* Would you sacrifice where you WANT to live in order to buy a home? *

CharleneUK

This is the dilemma my husband and I are currently facing and I just wanted to know if anyone has done this?

I really really wanted to live near to where I live now, the heart of Croydon, but property prices as they are now, it just isn't going to happen.

There is a town near by (New Addington) which I'm not particularly fond of, but the house prices are around £30,000 cheaper and I've checked out the schools and they aren't the best, but they are far from the worse.

I could change jobs which I'm hoping to do anyway and go full time sometime in the near future. I just want to be happy there. I guess once you close your doors it doesn't really matter does it?

What were your experiences of settling for an area you didn't really want?

nelly_2

I wouldnt sacrifice anything just to buy a home

astonsmummy

Hey chrarlene, i havent bought a house but i mutual exchanged to this house from where i grew up, the area of crawley i'm in is one of the most deprived areas of thw whole town, but tbh i have never had any problem, i even live on an estate (only a medium sized one with just houses and maisonettes) and i can say that even though i didnt want to live in this area i actually like it now, and have no wish to move, i mean obviously if the chanc came up for a better house i would but i wont be going out of my way to search for anything.
I think if your the type of person who keeps yourself to yourself you'll be fine, maybe visit the area at different times of the day to get a feel for it, go along to visist the schools etc (which i'm sure you'll do anyway - saw your other thread!)
And just think in years to come you may have the oppourtunity to go exactly where you want to go.

vansboy

Hi Charlene, you seem to have a similar dilema to us - but you've more to consider, than we have, 'cos you've kids n schools to think of.

We've found a place that in sooooooo many ways would suit, but it's just that li'l bit further away from where we live now, that is the main problem.

It's more than we want to spend, too, plus the seller isn't in a hurry, as I've posted previously, so we're still here, at the moment.

I'll post again when things change & let you know if we got it right...in a few years time!!

Best go with what your heart says - forget your heads ideas!!

VB

Doozergirl

I wouldn't moce to New Addington just to be able to buy a house, I don't think. Schools are a big issue when you have little ones and I would rather be near to a good school than own a house. If you are able to support your child academically and help them achieve, despite being in a less good school then it is less of an issue, but I've taken no chances and I my children will go to good schools and I would continue to move house to ensure that, if necessary.

New Addington used to be very isolated though I think the tram solved a lot of the problem. It does seem to have a sense of community but really, it is a very ugly place in terms of buildings, having simply been created as a huge council estate back in the 50s/60s?

But yes, it is certainly a family that makes a home, not the bricks and mortar. As long as you have the local amenities that you need, I do believe you can live happily almost anywhere.

firesidemaid

is the difference only £30,000. could you achieve this still in croyden by going full-time/changing jobs or either of you working overtime.

or is there a different area within croyden which is a bit cheaper, or a house that needs work doing to it? have you tried a few cheeky offers?

Norma_Desmond

There's no way I'd sacrifice where I wanted to live; location is *everything* to us.
When we moved here 3 years ago house prices were just about to go into orbit and we bought an ancient old house and have been working on it gradually ever since (just about finished now!)
Thing is, we haven't got any kids, so schools, disruption etc. didn't come in to the equation - but quality of life, low crime, a real community spirit and lovely surroundings certainly did!
Good luck whatever you decide.

Tiger_greeneyes

I was in the same position - I had lived in Croydon all my life, and was buying a house with my then long-term boyfriend. When we split, my wages were nowhere near what I needed to be able to buy - or even rent - the smallest flat in the worst area. I had no choice but to move away. It's taken me a while to find my feet but I wouldn't go back to Croydon if I was paid. I've got a lovely three storey Victorian house by the sea (my dream house) and I don't have a mortgage. On the flipside, I'm a 3 hour drive from my family and friends - but I don't get called on for babysitting duties and don't have to attend family 'do's'

If you move away then it needn't be the end of the world - it can even be the beginning of something fantastic. Personally speaking, it's more important for me to have a better quality of life rather than live in an expensive location.

However, New Addington isn't exactly far from Croydon... you'll still have the same people/job/amenities but they'll be ten minutes further away - but you will have a much lower mortgage. You should really consider that the property in NA might not increase in value as much as Croydon pro rata, therefore you may not be able to move back there if it's what you really want to do.

If none of that bothers you, and you find your dream house - then go for it.

Does it have to be NA by the way? There are other areas nearby you could look at which aren't quite so remote - central Croydon itself is very expensive and if you don't like NA that much then it may well be worth moving another ten minutes further out to somewhere you'd be more comfortable.

How about Coulsdon, Woodmansterne, Wallington or Carshalton, for instance? Biggin Hill is ten minutes the other side of NA and so much nicer Even Forestdale might be a good compromise if you want a smaller mortgage but don't want the extra distance.

Biggles

Norma_Desmond wrote:

There's no way I'd sacrifice where I wanted to live; location is *everything* to us.

Absolutely. I can't speak regarding the specific areas being discussed, but if you (and your kids) are going to spend x years (or even xx years!) somewhere, it needs to be somewhere you're going to be happy with in the long haul.

We made sacrifices to live where we are (house prices are far higher than the nearby large town) but it was all worth it, both for us and the kids, and we are still here years later. We had to go without a few things (foreign holidays, new cars etc) but even now we (and the kids, which is the main thing!) think it was well worth it.

CharleneUK

Thank you for all your replies, they've been very helpful.

Basically, my oldest daughter has been refused all the good schools I wanted to get her into, and it just so happens that Addington High school have vacancies. I checked their Ofsted report and the LA's and they aren't all that bad 'on paper' I'd have to do more investigation obviously. Same with the primary school. I've been thinking a lot about this, albeit not for that long, maybe in the last couple of days.

What I was thinking about was, if I lived in Croydon, bought a 'dream house' and then someone moved in a caused all sorts of problems, or the neighbourhood turned awful over a short period of time, I mean, this could happen anywhere and Croydon is not immune, and then, I could move to NA and it could be bliss, who knows?

I'm just really scared of making a mistake, but then, we live in a 2 bed flat and we have 3 children. (My oldest is 10 and needs her own space, so the situation is becoming desperate) We've been saving for years for a deposit and now the council have offered us a possible place on an assisted private purchase scheme, which would help us further.

With all of this, we'd be able to move to NA, but not really in Croydon where average 3 bed houses are £225,000. We worked out our finances and with my current part time job, after all the bills, mortgage and council tax, we'd have around £150 between us for the rest of the month. That may seem like a lot, but in my opinion it isn't.

It depends on so many things anyway, but we just don't want to feel strangled at the end of each month, KWIM?

I have looked at neighbouring areas and Addington really is the cheapest. With my job, taking a tram into Croydon isn't an option as I do a lot of floating support so would need my car. Access isn't the issue. My partner and I are 'quiet boring people' who keep ourselves to ourselves.......

If I get the job I applied for, we *may* be able to move to Croydon, but will need childcare, so it's a catch 22.

Sorry to go on and on, just trying to give you all a better picture. I guess we'll see. We may not even get accepted onto the scheme anyway.

Biggles

There is one other benefit of buying into what you believe to be a 'better' area: that is that, if you think so, then so do others.

The net results are that a) your house price will hold up better over the years and b) when you do need/decide to move in the future, you know you'll be able to sell it easier. We have certainly found this.