Help needed to escape our poverty trap!

bryanb

As you move north what you save in rent you spend on heating bills.

muntjack

The best thing we ever did was move to Norfolk. Wonderful place to bring up a family. Low crime rate. Cheaper property. I think the average rent for a three bedroom house is about £650. The housing is good and despite the rumors there is work. Norfolk has given us forty odd years of a good life and living. Norwich is a lovely city and we do have a beautiful coastline. If you are offered a chance to go, do not decline. We don't all have five fingers and carry bales of straw on our backs.lol.

Lovelyjoolz

I need to big-up my town too - CARDIFF!!!

I'm not a native Cardiffian - I'm originally a Midlands girl - but I moved here 7 years ago (for love) and it's a fantastic city to live in.

It is a decent sized city, with everything that a big city offers, but it has a villagey feel to it. It has distinctly different areas and each has a different community feel to it. It has stunning architecture, beautiful period homes and brand new builds. It's so green, with lots of parks and rec grounds. It has every type of retail opportunity you could wish for: boutique shops, quirky independants, big chains, every supermarket that exists. It has cinemas, theatres, bowling, museums (free!), antique shops. It has amazing nightlife, fantastic restaurants. It has sea views (well, ok, Severn Estuary views), and the beautiful beaches of The Mumbles are under an hour away.

Bristol in 45 mins, Birmingham in 1hr 15, London in 2.5 hrs.

Rents vary enormously. A nice 3 bed semi in a good area will cost you £800 ish. But you can pay much more that that in the best areas and more like £675 in the OK areas.

Brallaqueen

I vote for Liverpool - bustling city, got everything, not far from faves such as southport and blackpool, good schools and three universities to choose from.

mustbemad

Thanks for all the great suggestions everyone, I'm drawing up a short list so keep them coming! Is anyone from Nottingham or Derbyshire?

MBM x

timeou

I live in South Wales, 2 hours from London along the M4.

Semi rural, lovely schools and average house rentals about £600 - £700 a month.

I know I'm biased but Wales is a beautiful country if you don't mind rain x

timeou

Just saw the post above - I'm 15 minutes from cardiff and I agree its a fantasic area to live in - we truly have everything. Free prescriptions too! But you do have to pay for your carrier bags lol x

Norma_Desmond

I've just checked rental prices around here; you could easily get a 3/4 bedroom house for £500/£600 per month and with it would come the lowest crime rates in England and Wales, the friendliest people with great community spirit, the most stunning unspoilt coastline and countryside (think Cornwall 50 years ago!) and a real sense of being a long way from all the troubles of the world.................

BUT, our remoteness IS a real problem for some folk - we sold our little flat in the Cotswolds and bought this rambling old ruin just outside the village 8 years ago, and you have to get used to the fact that the local shop will run out of bread by mid afternoon and it's one hell of a drive to family/friends/airports/cinemas/a good ripe Brie...:D

I love it here and would never move.

Horseygirl123

mustbemad wrote: »

Thanks for all the great suggestions everyone, I'm drawing up a short list so keep them coming! Is anyone from Nottingham or Derbyshire?

MBM x

I'm from Nottingham. Lived here all my life.

Tiddlywinks

thequant wrote: »

Housing benefits cut starting to bite ? Solution: work hard and earn more money, don't expect the tax payer or random strangers on an internet forum to sort out your problems.

Did you actually read the posts or did you just fancy throwing in a random rant?

mustbemad wrote: »

My husband works for a big company that has offices everywhere so transferring is possible, I'm looking for work but will do any thing I can fit around my kids or in the evenings.

My opinion on your dilemma? As others have said, lower housing costs often are driven by a lower waged area or high unemployment...

There are much cheaper areas outside London which are commutable... which side are you currently on and where is your OH's work?