RENTING IN SCOTLAND (EDINBURGH)

zagubov

As the subject of schools has come up, are you familiar with the education system? Most of the UK has a a 6:7:3 year system but Scotland's got a 7:6:4 system.
If your kids are at an age where they're preparing for qualifications to leave secondary education and maybe enter college/university you need to check how it works.

macman

If asking for 'average prices' then you need to specify the area: the cost of a 4 b/r property in the New Town is going to be vastly greater than in the eastern suburbs.

sheramber

What are are you going to be working in?

What areas are you looking ti buy?

Prices vary depending on how  easy it is to commute into town.

user1977

zagubov said:

As the subject of schools has come up, are you familiar with the education system? Most of the UK has a a 6:7:3 year system but Scotland's got a 7:6:4 system.

Or a 7:5:4 system (6th year at school is optional if you've got sufficient passes in 5th year for university entry).

zagubov

user1977 said:

zagubov said:

As the subject of schools has come up, are you familiar with the education system? Most of the UK has a a 6:7:3 year system but Scotland's got a 7:6:4 system.

Or a 7:5:4 system (6th year at school is optional if you've got sufficient passes in 5th year for university entry).

I left Scotland when it was still a 7:5:4 system, but I was under the impression that staying for a sixth year was becoming almost a norm. People often have to transfer between the two systems but it can work better when there's a point where the subjects narrow.

For example, leaving year 9 outside Scotland you'd be reducing your subjects to prepare for GCSEs so this would also mean you could enter S3 in a Scottish secondary without having to stop and start existing courses.

Similarly, you could leave after year 11 with your GCSEs and join S5 to do your Highers and get a university place. And maybe stay for an addiitional year to do Advanced Highers in S6

But if you leave after year 12, you'd at most have GCE AS levels which might not count for university entry and maybe you'd have to join S5 and do Highers.

If you're leaving year 6 at primary, in Scotland you'd have one more year of primary, P7 before you go to secondary school.

If you leave after year 13/upper sixth with A levels you could get into university in Scotland at the second year of your degree, which almost everybody I know reckons would be a massive mistake.

superblade

I've lived up here for 8 years now, you will be hard pushed to find a 4 bed house to rent anywhere central as most are tenement flats. If a 4 bed tenement is ok, then you're probably looking between £1200-2200 PCM depending on where you want to be.

If you commute and work in the town centre you would be much better off looking at places a little on the outskirts, you'll get more for your money renting or buying. Look at Midlothian for instance, good train and bus services, all within 30-45min commute to the town centre in a car, Eskbank (Dalkeith) is about 20min train away and there's quite a few other places that are on the borders trainline that are worth exploring.

If you are buying, then just be prepared that typically it is offers over, it is not unusual for sort after places to go 20-30% over the asking price. 

The only real way out of this is buying new build or buying fixed price homes.

Greymug

brross said:

Thanks Guys. @ zagubov, I would much prefer to be in Edinburgh so I can cycle to work, and enjoy the city generally. When you say that Edinburgh is overpriced, do you mean the city centre or all over the city?

I suggest you rent in Edinburgh even only for 6 months, before you consider buying.

I lived in Edinburgh almost 10 years and just recently moved to the outskirts and I never really understood what "city centre" means. Is only princes street city centre? If I live in New Town/Stockbridge/Bruntsfield/Morningside/Leith...is it still considered city centre?

Anyhow, a few pointers:

• houses in central areas (like the ones I've mentioned) are rarely available and cost a lot. Central Edinburgh is mainly tenement flats
• if you want a house you need to move further out. Still plenty of nice areas. Off the top of my head, there are some nice houses in Corstorphine, Liberton brae, Silverknowes, Trinity. Houses are ok but if you want to cycle, you're already talking 25-30 minutes by bike to princes street
• if you want to cycle in Edinburgh, get ready to struggle. It's not flat here, there are hills everywhere so if you're not fit, you'll struggle at the beginning
• also, as a cyclist, you'll get buses and cabs cutting you off and being abused by drivers so hopefully you have a thick skin

sheramber

My son cycles from EH20 to EH10 for work. He does so because it is quicker than driving. He cycles past the  queues.

it takes him around half an hour.

Greymug

sheramber said:

My son cycles from EH20 to EH10 for work. He does so because it is quicker than driving. He cycles past the  queues.

it takes him around half an hour.

That doesn't really mean much since EH20 and EH10 are beside one another. Can be both really close and really far away depending on where in those postcode areas you're travelling to/from

fewcloudy

brross said:

Thanks Guys. @ zagubov, I would much prefer to be in Edinburgh so I can cycle to work, and enjoy the city generally. When you say that Edinburgh is overpriced, do you mean the city centre or all over the city?

@brross

To buy or rent in Edinburgh is generally more expensive than to do so in most other towns and cities in Scotland. If you find somewhere that seems cheap or reasonable then there is probably a reason for that, most likely that it is in a less desirable part of the city. From what i have read on here over the years, it may seem overpriced if you are used to paying much less for the equivalent housing in your hometown. If you lived here all your life it doesn't seem like that.  And if you move here from London you'll think, wow this is amazing!