Moving to London - is it possible?

Owain_Moneysaver

benjus wrote: »

You must either have very small parties or a lot of guest rooms if you can accommodate all your party guests.

Yes, but it's still better than living in a cupboard in central London.

lisyloo

I don't agree Owain.
I currently live in a 1 bed flat in central London and we both massively prefer that to commuting (having another home does make a massive difference though).
I'm not trying to persuade anyone, just saying that people have different opinions or circumstances on this.
If you have kids and it's your main home them clearly that's very different to a bolt hole.
Also if two of you are travelling then the travel costs are double compared to a single person in the household working.

Armorica

lisyloo wrote: »

Serious question.
Everything within reasonable commuting distance to London is VERY keenly priced according to "niceness" of the area (for want of a better word), train prices and transport connections.
If it's like you say, then why have London workers missed Bedford?

They haven't missed it - the trains are pretty busy.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.php?p=66552754&postcount=24 earlier in this thread is me about Luton.

I'm not sure it really helps OP though because the transport costs would be so high as a proportion of salary. From Luton/St Albans is cheaper because you can get coaches instead (which aren't v. flexible but are significantly cheaper than trains).

However, OP never gave his working location - ideally you pick a train line that terminates close to where you work, avoiding tube/bus travel costs.

Luton and Bedford have some nice areas, but both have some pretty awful areas which keeps prices in general down. As in my earlier post, I bought a 5 bed house which would still only be worth 150-170k now.

http://www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/34390824 is in the general area (coach to london goes from not far away)

jimbog

I enjoy living in Bedford but friends of mine get weary of the communte to london as, even though some of the trains are only 38 minutes you still have the 'door-to-door issue'
How about walking distance from Luton station?
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-45330502.html?premiumA=true

James_B.

Owain_Moneysaver wrote: »

Yes, but it's still better than living in a cupboard in central London.

Fortunately jobs are good enough here that we don't have to live in a cupboard.

Crashy_Time

London property prices are in a mega bubble, most scrape by on I.O mortgages plus various top ups from benefits. It is going to collapse at some point in the near future.

enthusiasticsaver

We moved out of London 25 years ago when our daughters were small. I doubt that a £30k salary will get you anything half decent within a reasonable commute and good area especially when the OP is supporting a family of 5. You either need to have lived in the area a long time, hence no need for mortgage or have a six figure salary. If you have found a way to make it work then make sure you research it thoroughly and make sure you have not missed anything.

lulalola

I found Bedford to be a fairly depressing and run-down place, moving there from the city. The river is beautiful and there are some nice pubs and restaurants, but in my opinion there's not much by way of shops or culture and I found the whole place generally quite miserable. Yes it's a good option in terms of the commuting distance, but if you're thinking about moving there as an alternative to London, please spend some time there and be sure you'll like it. Obviously living costs are a massive aspect in the decision, but you need to be happy at home; life isn't all about work.

SnooksNJ

Errata wrote: »

Do let us know which lender you think will give you a mortgage of c7 times your salary?

The Bank of Rainbows and Lollipops.

sjb2016

I relocated to Bedford from the States (via Leeds > China > Scotland), and I think it's a perfectly decent place to live. My partner (from Manchester orginally) refers to it as "inoffesnive", which it is. A few of our friends work in London and they all have about a 90-100 minute commute each way. Which is doable, although I wouldn't want to unless I couldn't find work closer to home.

It's hardly a mecca of culture, but the London Philharmonia have a residency at the Corn Exchange and the Bedford School often has interesting performances (either by students or up-and-coming professionals). Plus, London doesn't get any further away at the weekends, so if you fancy a bit of "proper" culture, it's a legitimate option for a day trip to a museum or for a show (the trains run pretty late). Also, Cambridge is 40 minutes away (no traffic or 12 hours if you get stuck at the Black Cat Roundabout), but lots of culture there as well.

Like any big town (either in the UK or America) there are nice areas and rubbish areas. I live on a nice quiet road, across from a fantastic Italian bakery in a 3 bedroom semi that cost less than 220,000 (oh, with a pretty big garden for the kiddies). I don't want to big it up too much, but it's a perfectly nice place to live. When I first was offered a job down here, I found this site, and it convinced me we were making the right choice (read point number 2 ):

http://www.knowhere.co.uk/Bedford/Bedfordshire/South-East-England/info/bestthings

Doesn't really help the OP, but I thought I'd stick up for my adotpted home.