Is the job market any better up north? seriously thinking of heading there.

Cubanista

alibean121 wrote: »

I'd check the cost of rent carefully before you move. I now live in Manchester and find nice rentals much more expensive than I anticipated. Clearly cheaper than London but equivalent to places on the south coast where I've lived before. It was a massive shock to me how expensive it is up here.

hi,


really? my uncle moved from manchester with his wife to the Cotswolds, and i think his wife sold her house in manchester for something like £110,000. a home of similar size here in the south would be at least £50,000 more. a lot of people talk about how much cheaper manchester is compared to the south.


is this not true then?


thanks,


cubanista.

Cubanista

Deleted%20User wrote: »

You are not at all worry when you are over 40 maybe..
I've come to hate living on my own, one of my interviews this week was with a very, very strong ex self employed guy who explained some not pretty facts about them who live on their own re. independence so it started to make sense


You can't really go out when rents rise and stuff like that, my parents still have to 'look after me' it's worse now then when I was at 18/20 yrs of age as lines of credit just no longer exist, it's feels like prison almost but admittedly better then being stuck in a job situation you really don't want to be in because you have no choice, and still with no guarantee bills will reduce so I'd rather be poor


You've plenty of time petal x

hey,


thanks for the positive response. i don't know if i would hate it, but i would at least like to experience for maybe 6 months to see how i get on. i mean, the worst thing to happen would be i do hate living on my own and figure out what to do.


i am in a fortunate position where my parents don't ask for rent as their mortgage is paid off, only that i chip in with housework and pay for the majority of shopping which i gladly do, so i save probably £100+ a month due to their generosity.


i get on well with my parents, but little things do sometimes bug me and i sometimes just want to be independent so i am forced to learn things on my own. i do get envious of my peers when i read on facebook "bought my first home" or i hear about people i know who have moved out.


i have been looking at flats that are part furnished, or even fully furnished just to get an idea of how much they would cost. part furnished flats are a little more expensive, but at least i would save money on appliances by not having to buy any. i have been thinking about things that i would need or not need such as a t.v, wifi etc. i suppose i could survive without a t.v, and instead install broadband and use my laptop for entertainment. i spend most days working and socialising with a close friend or two anyway, so majority of my time would be spent in their company at their homes.


sorry, i should probably have asked this in another forum

pathtofreedom

Cubanista wrote: »

hi,


really? my uncle moved from manchester with his wife to the Cotswolds, and i think his wife sold her house in manchester for something like £110,000. a home of similar size here in the south would be at least £50,000 more. a lot of people talk about how much cheaper manchester is compared to the south.


is this not true then?


thanks,


cubanista.

Depends where you are comparing really when you talk north and south but there more costs in the north apart from the housing you might not have thought of. Where I live you could buy a terrace house for 50k but there are hardly any jobs, and in turn hardly any shops or entertainment. So you have to have a car, and then petrol to go in it as the public transport is non existant or just too intermittant to use to get to work or even use to get back on a night out unless you are fine staying out till 930. So then if you wanted to go out somewhere and drink then you need taxis on top which again aren't cheap with the distances involved.

If you get ill depending what it is not all hospitals offer the same level of service so you might have to travel 50-100 miles each way for treatment, so again you better hope you have a car.

This all depends exactly where you are comparing again though obviously but in places with good public transport, good local services and high emplolyment the housing costs might be not quite as cheap as you imagine.

Could you spend the time still at your parents to do evening courses to improve your skills and in turn improve your wage. Might give you more options then for when you do move out.

kingfisherblue

You might find that towns are less expensive than cities for rental costs. Even though you might have to factor in transport costs if you work in a city, you could still find living in a town cheaper. My nephew works in Manchester and is looking at renting in one of the towns north of there, as it is so much cheaper (and not all low rental cost areas are dreadful!).


I live in the North West and my daughter and her partner bought a house last year, a mile from my home. They paid £87,000 - it was a repossession and needed a lot doing to it, but they saved like crazy to put down a good deposit and to be able to pay for the refurbishment. It's a three bedroom semi in a decent area, and houses on the same street are selling for around £130,000. My daughter works in our town and her partner works a couple of towns over. Neither work in a city, and neither have to pay car parking at work (another cost to consider in may places).


I was in Liverpool a couple of weeks ago, and the taxi driver that we were talking to was telling us how there are quite a lot of employment opportunities due to the growing tourist trade. Admittedly they are unlikely to be high paying jobs, but the OP mentions working in NMW jobs or just above.


As well as looking at rental costs, look at job vacancies in the area, so that you can see the availability of work.


When people think about moving, they often think of cities instead of towns. Although cities might have a better nightlife, for everyday living it's worth considering towns. They tend to be less expensive and still have good facilities.

LplateSaver

I coincidentally had the exact same thought this morning. Decided I was fed up living in Hampshire, fed up living with OHs parents and wanted my own place in Manchester. House prices to buy were incredibly cheaper. House shares didn't seem that much cheaper. I've decided to stick it out a bit more and save more..

DKLS

I do the opposite, I live in the north and commute south for work, I could work locally but that would mean accepting a massive pay cut.

Leeds and Manchester would be the best bet for a decent job.

buglawton

It's well known that for owner/landlords, rental yields are way higher in the north compared to south east UK. Northern property prices are very much lower, rents are lower but proportionally not nearly so.

Areas of high employment are the best getting training and job advancement, I'd stay in the south.

amiehall

Cubanista wrote: »

hi,


really? my uncle moved from manchester with his wife to the Cotswolds, and i think his wife sold her house in manchester for something like £110,000. a home of similar size here in the south would be at least £50,000 more. a lot of people talk about how much cheaper manchester is compared to the south.


is this not true then?


thanks,


cubanista.

Cheaper to buy definitely! You couldn't buy on your own on minimum wage though. Rentals are expensive though and wages are lower so you could easily be worse off.

audigex

Is the job market better? No, if anything it's worse, as the economy further North isn't bouncing as nicely as the Government would like you to believe, and we tend to be fairly neglected as a region.

However, your wage will go a lot further when it comes to rent, and you may actually have a chance of buying a home on a low wage.

Avoid Manchester/Birmingham/Leeds etc if money is the factor here: there are jobs, but the rent is double that elsewhere, unless you're willing to house share.

You need to work out what your priorities are, though: you could go somewhere like Crewe and find a job while living fairly cheaply, but your social life won't be great....

It's about compromise. Social life vs money vs independence vs moving away from friends; make sure you think about all the implications of your decision. I moved away from friends and family, but moved home again within 3 years as it just wasn't worth being away from the people I care about.

Caroline_a

Cubanista wrote: »

hey,


i am in a fortunate position where my parents don't ask for rent as their mortgage is paid off, only that i chip in with housework and pay for the majority of shopping which i gladly do, so i save probably £100+ a month due to their generosity.


i get on well with my parents, but little things do sometimes bug me and i sometimes just want to be independent so i am forced to learn things on my own. i do get envious of my peers when i read on facebook "bought my first home" or i hear about people i know who have moved out.


i have been looking at flats that are part furnished, or even fully furnished just to get an idea of how much they would cost. part furnished flats are a little more expensive, but at least i would save money on appliances by not having to buy any. i have been thinking about things that i would need or not need such as a t.v, wifi etc. i suppose i could survive without a t.v, and instead install broadband and use my laptop for entertainment. i spend most days working and socialising with a close friend or two anyway, so majority of my time would be spent in their company at their homes.


sorry, i should probably have asked this in another forum

I really think you are being unrealistic about how much it would cost you to live independently. You pay your parents nothing :eek: as you say they have no mortgage. However, they still have council tax, electricity, gas, water, telephone, broadband etc plus any other bills. The cost of these are the same in the North or in the South, indeed heating costs are likely to be higher in the North of the country. Also, your friends will change - maybe your new friends won't want you in their company all the time!