Moving back to England - but where could we afford? 12 November 2016 at 10:09PM in England 20 replies 23.5K views

HitforSix

Hi! I am new to the forum. We are hoping to move back to England after living abroad, but need to work out the financial side. I need some help! My husband and I are both teachers, and before we go any further we need to work out the cost of living in different parts of the UK, where we would be able to afford to live and how much income we would need. We have three children, so school for them is also a consideration.
Does anyone know how I can find out likely monthly outgoings in different parts of the country? How much do living costs vary? It feels like a daunting task at the moment!

missbiggles1

Your main outgoing will be housing - are you planning on buying or renting?

SailorSam

Although it may only give you a 'ball park' figure, or the price it was when houses were last sold. This may help if you click on different parts of the Country.
http://www.zoopla.co.uk/heatmaps/

HitforSix

Hi missbiggles1, we are planning to buy, although possibly not immediately.


Thanks SailorSam, that is a really useful website.


Would you say that costs like food and petrol vary in different areas?

Savvy_Sue

HitforSix wrote: »

Would you say that costs like food and petrol vary in different areas?

They do, although I'd find it hard to say by how much. I know when I visit one of my siblings it's best to fill up before I leave here (large city) as petrol is several pence per litre dearer around her home (large town).

Again, across my city, food costs can vary wildly: 'artisan' food freely available in some areas, and discount stores in others.

Even the charity shops vary from one area to another!!!

But it's not difficult here to get away from the really pricey stuff - the trick would be living somewhere with choice, rather than somewhere with very little choice!

HitforSix

Thanks Savvy Sue - you're right, choice is important. I suppose what I wondered was whether costs vary in the same shops. For example is Sainsbury's in one place more expensive than Sainsbury's somewhere else? Maybe I could find this out online.

[Deleted User]

Cost of living is marginal really. Food costs may be a few percent more expensive in one area compared to another but nothing significant.

Housing and childcare would be the biggest things.

e.g. 3 bed semi detached in the South East might be £350k - 500k compared to £100k-250k in the North.

Teaching salaries are similar around the country, with some 'London weighting allowance' within the M25. But an extra £10k between you won't counteract the significantly higher house prices.

HitforSix

Thanks. Regarding mortgage deposits, what is the sort of percentage we would need to put down? We would consider renting to begin with but it is worth knowing.

[Deleted User]

A 10% deposit would be a decent guideline. Obviously, the more you can put down the better interest rate you'll get, and the wider range of mortgage suppliers that you'll have access to.

Heedtheadvice

Ringo is fairly spot on.
Petrol/diesel prices vary as to area maybe 5% but more from supermarkets to motorway service stations.

Food prices vary more between city to rural areas and discounters to premium shops respectively being more as well as freshness and quality of produce.

Other goods effectively can be fairly constant via internet buying except for deliver to very outlying areas.

Commuting can be though of as very costly with season tickets in the thousands but then again that is far less than just annual depreciation on a car (here [my 'remote' location] a car is essential, no trains, infrequent and unlinked public transport with high travel distances) . SE England home counties (and further) are also frequently homes for London workers pushing up travel costs just owing to distances.

There are variation in heating/power costs but less significant than supplier tariff and building efficiency but can be similar surprisingly to winter heating for say Greece where property is poorly insulated.

Overall costs are higher in locations that are 'nice' compared to deprived areas.

Probably no surprises there.......

Heedtheadvice

Further: put a search onto Google 'uk regional cost of living' to get some hard facts.
You are quite lucky as teacher salaries vary little but costs do across the uk so you can select less prosperous areas but still get some good schooling!