Best Area to live in NI (Property Value vs. General Quality of Life)?

dsab

Hello Everyone,

we are currently hunting for a house to buy (4/5 BR detached), but seem to be unable to find something within our Budget in our current Area (Newry), unless we decide to move somewhere to the a** end of nowhere.

As I am working from home Full Time we could actually move anywhere within NI (or even the UK). As we are both not from the North and have no family ties to NI, e have no real preferences or reservations against any Area.

Our requirements are:

- Nice place to live
- Good Value in Properties
- Decent Schools available (1 Toddler and 1 Baby)
- Not one of the extremely Unionist or Nationalist Areas (which can be quite intimidating to outsiders like us).

Any suggestions are welcome and much appreciated.

Regards,
dsab

saverbuyer

dsab wrote: »

Hello Everyone,

we are currently hunting for a house to buy (4/5 BR detached), but seem to be unable to find something within our Budget in our current Area (Newry), unless we decide to move somewhere to the a** end of nowhere.

As I am working from home Full Time we could actually move anywhere within NI (or even the UK). As we are both not from the North and have no family ties to NI, e have no real preferences or reservations against any Area.

Our requirements are:

- Nice place to live
- Good Value in Properties
- Decent Schools available (1 Toddler and 1 Baby)
- Not one of the extremely Unionist or Nationalist Areas (which can be quite intimidating to outsiders like us).

Any suggestions are welcome and much appreciated.

Regards,
dsab

Really depends on the budget.

"Value" is very subjective.

dsab

We don't want to spend more then 180K, maybe 200K at a Stretch.

As an example the exact same House then the we are currently living in can be bought in 3 other locations within NI for considerable less money then it is in Newry. (140K in Newry vs. 120 & 108K within 25 miles of Newry). So they would probably be better Value.

warmhands.coldheart

More details.............. what exactly is your budget? Silly question but have you looked on Propertypal or porpertyni ??

warmhands.coldheart

dsab wrote: »

We don't want to spend more then 180K, maybe 200K at a Stretch.

For a 4/5 Bedroom detached........ :rotfl: you having a laugh... I know property is on a slump but I doubt you'll get a detached 4/5 bedroom house for that money in a decent area with good schools..... Sorry but if you removed the "decent area with good schools" you may have more luck

dsab

That's exactly the reason I am asking. And yes, I have searched up and down Propertypal/Propertynews for Houses that would match the Budget, and there are a lot very nice houses coming up within our Budget.

I just don't know anything about the Areas. So what I am asking would probably be "What decent Area in NI is generally considered as being good Value in terms of Housing".

SnowyOwl_2

Maybe you'd have more success if you went down the auction route. There are plenty of repossessions around. Or perhaps you could look over the border, there are pros and cons of course, but there is an abundance of empty property there.

chunter

warmhands.coldheart wrote: »

For a 4/5 Bedroom detached........ :rotfl: you having a laugh... I know property is on a slump but I doubt you'll get a detached 4/5 bedroom house for that money in a decent area with good schools..... Sorry but if you removed the "decent area with good schools" you may have more luck

Plenty of excellent schools out in the sticks, if you want to look at the school tables. Plenty of cheap houses too.

The Titanic city isn't the centre of the earth, although most times I do believe it is Middle Earth.

GlynD

dsab wrote: »

That's exactly the reason I am asking. And yes, I have searched up and down Propertypal/Propertynews for Houses that would match the Budget, and there are a lot very nice houses coming up within our Budget.

I just don't know anything about the Areas. So what I am asking would probably be "What decent Area in NI is generally considered as being good Value in terms of Housing".

I see exactly what you are driving at and I agree, there are loads of houses around at the moment which suit your budget. It depends on certain things as you know. Ethnicity is still important in some areas which might otherwise seem ok. Do you have kids, need schools?

My own view would be to get away from the Newry/border area. It's too busy, and too much unsavoury stuff going on there. I'd be inclined to advise you to look around Banbridge or Dromara, these areas have similar housing values. Banbridge has the same access to motorways etc that Newry has but it's a lot less busy yet with all it has most of the same shops. Great houses there and quite a friendly wee town. Quick access to other neighbouring towns too like Portadown, Lurgan, Armagh, Lisburn plus all the little villages and their excellent restaurants to explore.

PM me if you have any other considerations.

thetope

A friend of mine has just bought a 4 bedroom detached house in lower Ballinderry, near Lisburn/Moira for under 170k. I don't know the area well myself but she says there is a newly built primary school and it seems nice enough.

saverbuyer

With you budget and requirements I think this is more than achievable. Going by the league tables (post primary) the majority of “good” schools are outside the Belfast City area. Like others have said I would consider all the areas mentioned and also look at the North Antrim/Derry areas. Sometimes people on here are reluctant to admit how much prices have dropped (60% to date) and continue to drop. 200k is a lot of money and to be honest lots of stuff, in Belfast in particular, is just sitting on the estate agents books taking up space.

Check out the league tables here
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/education/northern-ireland-schools-league-tables-alevels-16127228.html

Why not look at some of the better performing areas and take a look on property pal. Look at the insight tab to see how long the property has been on the market and the drops to date.

I would personally be looking at properties 20%+ over my budget and be looking to negotiate. Asking prices are just that. It really is a buyers’ market.

If you want any advice on specific areas feel free to ask, I’m sure someone will be able to help.