Belfast - London Relocation

kgrant

anotherginger wrote: »

You need to really scrutinise train prices, my OH gets off the train earlier than necessary to save a few pounds (it all adds up!). We currently live in a leafy home county and commute, so our quality of life is similar to where we were in leafy South Belfast in terms of location, but our disposable income has reduced significantly and free time is also less due to the commute. Definitely a good idea to be near an airport, just remember to book flights early. I know you say the move is permanent, but from my experience people from NI (and probably elsewhere!) tend to be in London until its time to buy a house/have kids/have some money, unless they are on a super high salary. Good luck!

Hi, thanks for all the comments so far ....

At the moment,I am at the offer stage for this role to relocate to London & from the sounds of things our budgets are vastly naive!I think I'll need to re-negiotate and find out if I am entitled to more support from the company...

Personally I would be on a decent wage but can someone honestly give us a good salary figure that would be suffient to sustain 2 x Adults to live near London for at least 3-6 months? I shall be going to ask my HR for support on the move but initially I would be the sole provider to keep us both - we have discussed moving companies,ferrying our family over & looking into employment for my wife as eventually my OH would need to find a job to help us more!

We understand that £800 pcm for a place + £340 for trains is very expensive from our current position,but we have to be realistic and we are both open to find a house or flat (only us though in the property)in a good commuting area or anywhere that would take myself direct to Liverpool Street station - We will also want an area that is safe for the car that we would be bringing & was wanting to ask in terms of council permits how much can they cost up too?

For general Renting in/near London - Is it the same here in Belfast that the rental price pcm includes all the rates,council tax & building insurance? The only other bills we would pay would be water,gas & any phone/tv package? We are just trying to work out how much things should cost & how much disposable income we would have left if I accept the offer....

Many thanks & any further comments would be welcome..

@anotherginger - can we ask how did you find the move from Belfast & any tips to make it a smoother relocation for us? Cheers...

arbrighton

Unlikely to include council tax.

casualwalks

Or- TV licence (I noticed that was not on your list). You would also need to get insurance for your belongings (optional).

casualwalks

Also, if it's just the two of you (and its a short-ish term). Why not rent a 1 bedroom flat? Much cheaper option.

bitsandpieces

kgrant wrote: »

At the moment,I am at the offer stage for this role to relocate to London & from the sounds of things our budgets are vastly naive!I think I'll need to re-negiotate and find out if I am entitled to more support from the company...

Personally I would be on a decent wage but can someone honestly give us a good salary figure that would be suffient to sustain 2 x Adults to live near London for at least 3-6 months?

I'm single, and earn what I'd view as a decent wage. I'd be reluctant to move to London - not because I don't like the place, but because (even with London weighting) I wouldn't be able to have as nice a lifestyle there as I do in a smaller town. You pay much higher rents and - if you're working in central London - you're likely to face a commute into work, unless you're prepared to compromise on where you live (or are loaded ). There are lots of benefits to living in London, and in some lines of work it's pretty much essential to spend some time there to get good career progression, but costs can add up: there is a reason why plenty of organisations pay an extra 'London weighting' to staff working there (in my job, the extra money wouldn't even cover extra living expenses).

For general Renting in/near London - Is it the same here in Belfast that the rental price pcm includes all the rates,council tax & building insurance?

Building insurance is the responsibility of the landlord (though you should get your own contents insurance). Other than that, the tenant almost always pays the bills. Council tax, water bills etc. you will usually have to pay yourself - and check how much this is, as it can be another significant cost.

kgrant

casualwalks wrote: »

Also, if it's just the two of you (and its a short-ish term). Why not rent a 1 bedroom flat? Much cheaper option.

@casualwalks - We will need a 2 bed flat or house with parking for family to come and stay


I shall try find out more from my company this week if we are entitled to any support but at the moment we are seriously looking at The Sawbridgeworth/ Bishops Stortford area as it has got a regular Liverpool Street - Bishops Stortford train line for myself to commute to/from work, seems closest to our £800 budget for rent/£300 budget for travel & as its close to Stanstead Airport & M11 (good transport links to visit family in the North)- please feel free if anyone can recommend somewhere better? Preferably looking somewhere that I can get 1 direct train to Liverpool Street station & there are regular ones in case I missed one...thanks again

plehxat

kgrant wrote: »

@casualwalks - We will need a 2 bed flat or house with parking for family to come and stay

A spare bedroom is a luxury, a luxury it would seem you cannot afford.

casualwalks

plehxat wrote: »

A spare bedroom is a luxury, a luxury it would seem you cannot afford.

It's funny isn't it. I really would be reluctant to pay a premium for an extra room I'd only get occasional use out of (but its the OP's money, not mine). I think i'd invest in a sofa-bed. £800, plus £300 for transport, plus £100 for council tax (at least), plus bills. I hope the salary increase is really significant.

Money_Grabber13579

Surely your employer should be giving you a substantial wage increase from moving to London from Belfast? I know for my company, wages would be double in London what they are in Belfast.

If they only plan on giving you a couple of thousand pounds more, I wouldn't accept it, as it would be more like a demotion!

arbrighton

plehxat wrote: »

A spare bedroom is a luxury, a luxury it would seem you cannot afford.

Agreed. This is a WANT not a need. London is not short of hotels. Nor are Bishops Stortford etc with their proximity to Stansted Airport.