I want to move to Scotland. Need Advice!

Dumyat

as people have already said they are two very different cities, but surrounding each are lovely areas to consider too, like Fife, Stirling, the Borders....depends what you are looking for. both would have job prospects for you in banking and finance.

pippintook

Glasgow is friendlier and more welcoming than Edinburgh because Edin people only talk to people they know, not much use when you're new to an area. Shopping is much better in Glasgow and going out is cheaper. Houses are cheaper too. There's more culture in Edinburgh but you can get a train through for that. PS I'm from the Edinburgh area so this is not west coast bias.

brodev

One of the big differences between Scottish and English house sales is what we term in Scotland "offers over" It generally means that an English property advertised at £199000 will go for as much as 20% below or £160000-£180000. In Scotland a property advertised at offers over £199000 will generally sell for £240000-£250000. This difference sometimes gives a false impression of Scottish prices.
PS I was born in Glasgow and I have worked and lived in both Edinburgh and Glasgow. I would prefer to live in neither. As others have said the commuting belt for both cities is both cheaper and more interesting

Contains_Mild_Peril

As others have suggested, it's probably best to try renting in the area you want to live before committing yourself to buying a house there. I'd definitely go for Glasgow: houses are much cheaper (to buy or rent), I find it a friendlier city, much of it has good public transport (both cities are a nightmare to navigate by car) and the general cost of living is cheaper. There are some lovely properties in the West end, but they're a bit pricey, so you could look at other areas: Cathcart is nice and comparatively cheap. The jobs market is generally quite good, and if you wanted to stay outside the city it has good transport links with most places within sensible commuting distance. If you could find a significantly higher paid job in Edinburgh you could even commute there: it's less than an hour by train.
Glasgow has loads of nice pubs, a good variety of shops, markets etc, and it has Tchia Ovna, the loveliest tea-room you'll ever find, with a unique atmosphere, a menu of hundreds of different teas and tasty vegetarian food, and regular events such as live music and storytelling.

amanda40

More and more properties for sale in the area I live ( East Kilbride) just south of Glasgow are now on at a fixed price, which means you know what you have to pay. I love EK, great shops, plenty pubs and restuarats, good schools and only half hour in the train to Glasgow.

goldspanners

i live inbetween both cities,20 miles from glasgow and 30 miles from edinburgh.
if i had to choose between the 2 it would be glasgows west end or the up and coming merchant city area.
go to edinburgh for a nice day out see the castle be a tourist like everyone else there and then get the train back to glasgow go out in the merchant city or up sauchiehall street and have a great night out.
glasgow is more friendly,more modern and easier to get around,whether you walk,cycle,drive or get the train,bus or underground.
and its a lot cheaper to do everything in glasgow.
i find most folk in edinburgh are wierdos,they dont talk and dont have a sense of humour and treat everyone from outside edinburgh like tourists.
glasgow is a more friendly city,most people will give you the time of day.
and if your a single guy then glasgow is the best for pulling! edinburgh girls are generally a bit stuck up. (sorry edinburgh girls)

scotsgirl_3

Jobs wise Edinburgh has a massive financial jobs market, lots of major banks, investment companies eg RBS, Standard Life etc which may make it easier to get a job - it would be worth seeing what's available. Personal choice, Glasgow for shopping and Edinburgh to live in - its a smaller place, easy to get around although if you want to live in City Centre forget having a car, the bus is probably faster!!!

They are very different cities, both with a distinct character and I would suggest more than a week to decide where you would like. You could see the obvious stuff in a week but it's not enough time to get a real feel for the place, have a look around residential areas, maybe meet a couple of recruiters to get a feel for the job market....

I don't know that Glasgow is that much cheaper - it is if you are buying property, but if you are renting I don't think there is much in it.

janken

Read all the replies re house prices. Yes, there are more fixed price deals to be had but would strongly recommend you spend time in the area before you buy. Very much depends on your likes, City, Lochside, Mountains, seaside and more importantly:Where you find a job. With house prices supposedly falling you may be able to offer slightly over the "Offers Over" price. (Not the 40 to 50% that seems to be the norm) Have not checked out Edinburugh and Glasgow but i would imagine that it is simmilar to Aberdeen where there are now double the properties on the market as this time last year.

If it has to be central belt i would be heading for Glasgow. You will be accepted far quicker and the people are much friendlier.

Good luck

stationaryace

don't do Aberdeen unless you want to feel like you've fallen off the map... the real strain of petrol prices can be felt up North where public transport etc is very very limited and expensive slightly bitter but moving away soon ....

SarahLou22

Hi OP - I just moved from Coventry (West Midlands) to Glasgow.
I've been lucky and transferred my job up here so it's slightly easier to settle in! I work for a Big 4 accountancy firm so if you are thinking of moving up give me a PM and I can maybe pass on your CV or give you my version of the accountancy profiles up here!
I'm loving Glasgow - i took the view that it made sense to rent for a while and am currently staying in the Merchant City. Its perfect for drinks after work, but agree with the other posters that say it depends on your circumstances eg family and general attitude to life.
At a risk of totally upsetting my new fellow countrymen.....Glasgow seems to call a spade a spade and Edinburgh seems to call it a specialist gardening instrument..... if you know what i mean?!!?
To be fair though, there's probably people in both cities all the way along from lovely to...not so lovely. Same as any big city!
Things I have found hard settling in:
1. the accent - dont underestimate it, it doesn't feel too good when in front of a client/new friends you have to keep saying "parden"
2. the food - seriously, EVERYthing seems to be available battered and they sell donner meat pakora EVERYwhere which is strange for me!
3. the government - although i knew there was a different government up here, i wasn't quite prepared for the impact it would have on everyday life eg health, schools ciriculum, council attitudes
4. the TV - they have their own soaps and even things like newsnight split half way through to go to a scotland only one

If nothing else I have learnt that everytime i heard the phrases "but its not the same in scotland" or "England just dont appreciate that Scotland is a big part of the UK" and didn't listen i was very wrong!

I finally did use the phrase "when i get back up the road" and use the word "wee" in natural conversation the other day, so i thnk i'm getting there!

Any of you sitting in Glasgow that fancy a drink, i've only been up here 2 mths so i'm still finding my feet and up for meeting ne people if you want to PM me =0)

Sarah