Author Topic: Moving in the UK  (Read 13507 times)

never give up

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #50 on: August 11, 2021, 02:52:33 AM »
Congratulations that’s exciting.

SpreadsheetMan

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #51 on: August 11, 2021, 03:32:40 AM »
I lived in Kilburn, between Thirsk and Helmsley, a few years back. I loved the village life and the community feel, but be aware that it can get a bit isolative in winter. We had to buy a 4 wheel drive to get out of the village in winter snow, there was no mains gas, internet was really slow, and in the summer the tourists are everywhere and don't know how to drive on tiny lanes. :) Public transport was non-existent. I don't think it would suit me and the way I live now, but coming home from work back then felt like I was going on holiday to come to such a beautiful place.

I think my wife would view being snowed in as a benefit rather than a problem... Internet speed is something I'm aware of as my parents had to have satellite internet after BT removed dial-up as an option. Perhaps less of an issue than in the past though.

We've had an offer on our house today - in spite of not having spoken to an estate agent yet. It's someone who needs to exchange and complete in the next few weeks and whose purchase has fallen through. Probably need to get a valuation before deciding how to proceed. We've agreed to rent a property up north in any case.

Definitely get a valuation. Prices have shot up sharply in hot areas like Cambridge and your idea of what your property is worth may be lagging a bit, I know mine was.

Renting a property is a great idea. Having sold up and being local in the area where you are looking to buy plus having cash for the purchase is a big bonus. We had an offer accepted on our next house last week and being local, a cash buyer and not in a hurry to move beat higher offers in what turned out to be a feeding frenzy of retirees escaping to the country. (I'm not counting on the purchase though, the sellers need to find somewhere to buy still and a million things could go wrong before completion)

Manchester

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #52 on: August 11, 2021, 06:42:30 AM »
Wow, that's great.  Congratulations.

What region have you picked up North?  You'll most likely be a lot closer to Manchester which can only be a good thing for you! :D

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #53 on: August 11, 2021, 10:06:17 AM »
Good luck "oup north".

cerat0n1a

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #54 on: August 12, 2021, 06:44:09 AM »
The estate agent indicated a price range, and the offer is exactly in the middle of that range - and of course we potentially save the estate agents fees too. I guess there's still a way to go in terms of surveys and such like, so congratulations may be a little premature. The estate agent was pretty bullish about how quickly houses are selling. I guess it's his job to fill people with confidence about a quick sale/good price etc. but he did turn up with a bunch of properties in the area that they've sold recently with asking price, actual sales price, gap between coming onto the market and being marked on rightmove as sold and so on.

What region have you picked up North?  You'll most likely be a lot closer to Manchester which can only be a good thing for you! :D

I think we're pretty much settled on North Yorkshire - the Dales or North Yorks Moors.

We have friends and family in Manchester, and I do occasionally visit for sporting purposes too. It's a beautiful city, but I think Liverpool & Newcastle are even nicer :-) Yorkshire's big cities have their attractions too, but not quite in the same league.

MarcherLady

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #55 on: September 13, 2021, 01:26:19 AM »
I think we're pretty much settled on North Yorkshire - the Dales or North Yorks Moors.

Sounds like you will have competition!

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« Last Edit: September 13, 2021, 01:27:56 AM by MarcherLady »

cerat0n1a

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #56 on: September 13, 2021, 01:49:45 AM »
Interesting. I suspect there's a possibility of a few high valued transactions skewing statistics like that a bit. Certainly I've seen some houses in Richmond going very quickly, but others have not sold for months or have been sold and then the transaction has fallen through and they're back on the market. There are houses in the area on sale for below £200K which also sell quickly, and which don't really look like the kind of places people would want as holiday homes, so I think local first-time buyers are still a fairly big part of the market.

We ended up talking to two estate agents, the second of whom seemed much better than the other (and also valued the house £50K higher than the other, which I assume was purely to win the business). They had the house up on rightmove on a Tuesday afternoon, we had a number of viewings lined up for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, but the lady who looked round first made an offer above the asking price, on the condition that we cancel the other viewings, and we accepted, so it was sold within 12 hours of going on the market. So it seems like the market here is pretty hot too. Seems like the buyer is in a hurry, as her own sale is at the point where they're ready to exchange contracts. So, fingers crossed it all goes smoothly from here.

We need to open a joint bank account to hold the cash proceeds for however long the gap between buying and selling turns out to be. Splitting it across multiple accounts for FSCS protection is going to be too painful I think, so National Savings might be an obvious choice, but I'm not sure if they're set up for big electronic payments and extra security.

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #57 on: September 13, 2021, 03:48:07 AM »
Congratulations on the quick sale.

SpreadsheetMan

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #58 on: September 13, 2021, 05:15:56 AM »
Interesting. I suspect there's a possibility of a few high valued transactions skewing statistics like that a bit. Certainly I've seen some houses in Richmond going very quickly, but others have not sold for months or have been sold and then the transaction has fallen through and they're back on the market. There are houses in the area on sale for below £200K which also sell quickly, and which don't really look like the kind of places people would want as holiday homes, so I think local first-time buyers are still a fairly big part of the market.

We ended up talking to two estate agents, the second of whom seemed much better than the other (and also valued the house £50K higher than the other, which I assume was purely to win the business). They had the house up on rightmove on a Tuesday afternoon, we had a number of viewings lined up for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, but the lady who looked round first made an offer above the asking price, on the condition that we cancel the other viewings, and we accepted, so it was sold within 12 hours of going on the market. So it seems like the market here is pretty hot too. Seems like the buyer is in a hurry, as her own sale is at the point where they're ready to exchange contracts. So, fingers crossed it all goes smoothly from here.

We need to open a joint bank account to hold the cash proceeds for however long the gap between buying and selling turns out to be. Splitting it across multiple accounts for FSCS protection is going to be too painful I think, so National Savings might be an obvious choice, but I'm not sure if they're set up for big electronic payments and extra security.

Congrats on the fast sale.

The proceeds from my own sale are just sitting in my personal current account at the moment. This did require DW to sign a form saying she was OK with it, but I didn't want it in our joint account (poor service - I don't trust them an inch) or open a new joint account (descent into 1970s admin with in-person simultaneous visit required to one of the few remaining physical branches).

I'm either going to have to either pay for a CHAPS transfer to my NS&I account, or transfer it in lots of £25k tranches (HSBC have a relatively large daily limit). I'll probably do the latter, there is a reminder in my diary with enough notice before the end of the FSCS high balance protection period.

cerat0n1a

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #59 on: September 13, 2021, 05:34:43 AM »
I'm either going to have to either pay for a CHAPS transfer to my NS&I account, or transfer it in lots of £25k tranches (HSBC have a relatively large daily limit). I'll probably do the latter, there is a reminder in my diary with enough notice before the end of the FSCS high balance protection period.

I'm wondering whether there's a NS&I Account that can actually receive a large payment from the solicitor - presumably they would normally use CHAPS to make such a payment, but I'm not clear that NS&I handle CHAPS in and out in a timely way. In our case, the temporary large balance should be spent within the six month timeframe the FSCS allows you for house proceeds, so maybe I shouldn't worry about it.

SpreadsheetMan

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #60 on: September 13, 2021, 08:09:54 AM »
I'm either going to have to either pay for a CHAPS transfer to my NS&I account, or transfer it in lots of £25k tranches (HSBC have a relatively large daily limit). I'll probably do the latter, there is a reminder in my diary with enough notice before the end of the FSCS high balance protection period.

I'm wondering whether there's a NS&I Account that can actually receive a large payment from the solicitor - presumably they would normally use CHAPS to make such a payment, but I'm not clear that NS&I handle CHAPS in and out in a timely way. In our case, the temporary large balance should be spent within the six month timeframe the FSCS allows you for house proceeds, so maybe I shouldn't worry about it.

I think transfers have to come from (and go to) your nominated account for ns&i, so the solicitor couldn’t make the deposit. If you are doing it all within the 6 month timeframe it’s not really a problem anyway and you’ll save one chaps charge not shipping it out of the current account.

I’m not completely comfortable having the massive balance sat in my current account though as there is a little more risk due to having a debit card for that account. I don’t use that card on-line though, only my credit cards.

MarcherLady

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #61 on: September 13, 2021, 10:08:48 AM »
Woohoo, congratulations! Might be worth just checking with your solicitor, both re 'can we use NS&I?' and 'which banks have you found easiest to deal with for large sums?'. They might not be prepared to comment, but might have a suggestion that you wouldn't have thought of.

cerat0n1a

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #62 on: September 13, 2021, 10:22:01 AM »
Yes, that's a good thought.

We haven't had a joint bank account since paying off the mortgage ~20 years ago, and apart from the 70s-style admin requirements imposed by the know-your-customer regulations, we're also going to have to do some standing order in and out of the new account in order to meet the "£1000 coming into the account every month" type rules. I wonder whether it's possible to limit an account so that there are no associated cards or online features and it can only do CHAPS payments to or from our solicitor.

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #63 on: September 23, 2021, 03:33:06 PM »
I'm very late to this (and congratulations on the sale!) but have you looked at Malton? Have only been a couple of times but always seems lovely.

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cerat0n1a

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #64 on: September 24, 2021, 04:24:09 AM »
I'm very late to this (and congratulations on the sale!) but have you looked at Malton? Have only been a couple of times but always seems lovely.

Yes, it is very nice, although surprisingly few houses have come up there for sale recently, and I think we prefer the villages further north that are actually in the Howardian Hills or on the edge of the North York Moors NP.

Sale seems to still be progressing OK - building survey didn't turn up much. The surveyor seemed to spend quite a lot of time working out whether various remodelling options were feasible (adding a downstairs ensuite, adding an extra shower room, fitting a large double door at the far end of the garage).

Moving temporarily from a large house with a large garden and multiple outbuildings to a much smaller city terrace is requiring a large amount of forced decluttering. I think we're still going to end up with a bunch of stuff in storage until we buy though.

SpreadsheetMan

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #65 on: September 24, 2021, 06:08:23 AM »
We had a big declutter before moving to Norfolk, but were always planning for quite a bit in storage. One thing I found when looking for a removal company is that the removal cost was quite similar between companies, but the storage cost varied a lot so it is very worthwhile shopping around.

cerat0n1a

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #66 on: September 24, 2021, 06:18:54 AM »
We had a big declutter before moving to Norfolk, but were always planning for quite a bit in storage. One thing I found when looking for a removal company is that the removal cost was quite similar between companies, but the storage cost varied a lot so it is very worthwhile shopping around.

Yes, unsurprisingly, it seems to be a good bit cheaper in Yorkshire than in Cambs. Cards & leaflets from removals companies (and other estate agents) have been arriving daily since the house went on rightmove.

How is your househunting in Norfolk going?

SpreadsheetMan

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #67 on: September 24, 2021, 06:53:11 AM »
We had a big declutter before moving to Norfolk, but were always planning for quite a bit in storage. One thing I found when looking for a removal company is that the removal cost was quite similar between companies, but the storage cost varied a lot so it is very worthwhile shopping around.

Yes, unsurprisingly, it seems to be a good bit cheaper in Yorkshire than in Cambs. Cards & leaflets from removals companies (and other estate agents) have been arriving daily since the house went on rightmove.

How is your househunting in Norfolk going?
It worked out almost 40% cheaper using Norfolk storage for us.

We have had an offer accepted on a house, but the seller still needs to find somewhere and they are moving well out of the area, so it may take some time. We’ve seen nothing better on Rightmove since, so no problem, but if it goes another couple of months and we spot something good with vacant possession or an established chain it’s going to be a tricky decision whether to bail out or continue waiting.

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #68 on: September 26, 2021, 02:48:58 AM »
Sorry to be hijacking the thread
I have also had an offer accepted in early July but the seller hasn't found a place yet.  And no update from the EA.....
Stuck . :( :( :( :( :(

It worked out almost 40% cheaper using Norfolk storage for us.

We have had an offer accepted on a house, but the seller still needs to find somewhere and they are moving well out of the area, so it may take some time. We’ve seen nothing better on Rightmove since, so no problem, but if it goes another couple of months and we spot something good with vacant possession or an established chain it’s going to be a tricky decision whether to bail out or continue waiting.

jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #69 on: March 19, 2023, 02:39:33 AM »
I thought it best to revive this topic rather than repeating a similar question, as there's a lot of useful info here already -- if you don't mind @cerat0n1a? Also apologies if I missed an update elsewhere, but I'd be interested to find out if you did end up moving and if so, how that went?

We're basically in a very similar situation and a lot of this threads recommendations are going to be useful as we think about moving in the UK too. I'm just going to add a few of our details.

we're living in the SE. Hubby retired at 50 and is now 52. I'm 47 and working at local university but planned to finish in 2 years or go (more) part time (when I'll also complete all my NI years). I love my job and can do PT but have had some health issues so I feel ready to go I think.

Hubby needs to buy 1 NI year at some point. no kids or big reasons to stay once I finish and we're also feeling fed up with mass scale house building around us (directly and in the wider local area), are interested in a new start and the idea of releasing equity to cushion our early retirement at the same time. We want a 1 or 2 bed low maintenance house which it seems feasible to get for £150-180k less than our current location. Okish access to London would maybe be a plus but not too important.

Our house is paid off and worth £270ish. We live happily on about £10k a year and have worked out the figures that with over £120 k invested in two years plus some NHS pension for hubby (when we decide to take it) and Uni pension for me at 57 we can do this, even living here (planning on state pension for 67+).

We like the idea of living near an area with an attraction ie AONB or coast (or both) but taking into account future flooding risk. Live pretty rurally now but would like better walking access to some amenities and to future proof as we get older so maybe a market town or similar. We are both on the liberal-ish green side of things so slightly alternative would be good for like minded people but not essential.

We're thinking anywhere in the UK possibly though maybe not as far as Scotland. We have a cat with health needs so day visits are probably out of the question so we'll likely sell and rent in a new area before buying again.


« Last Edit: March 19, 2023, 03:27:41 AM by jade »

LightTripper

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #70 on: March 19, 2023, 05:13:32 PM »
@MarcherLady is on the coast but pretty far north (maybe too far for you).

Yorkshire is lovely but expensive I believe.

I've always had a soft spot for Lancaster - well connected to London, close to the Lake District, nice town in itself - there must be nice villages around there.

@PhilB may be able to advise on some areas further West!

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #71 on: March 19, 2023, 11:40:50 PM »
The Isle of Wight could get you about everything except the access to London and ferries add to costs if you go to the mainland often. Parts of Lincolnshire (not the flat bits) could get you the access to London but not the hippy vibe.  Looking at market towns is a good idea.

jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #72 on: March 20, 2023, 01:54:48 AM »
Thanks for the reply @LightTripper .. I see MarcherLady is in Northumberland, that looks like a lovely part of the UK. maybe ok distance wide.. we're trying to keep an open mind and I think the east coast trains are pretty quick so in some ways that may be fine.

Yes, I keep hearing great things about Lancaster! That's high on my 'to investigate' list. I noticed Yorkshire does seem quite expensive in parts too. Looking up places to the west as well, makes you realise there's some great places in the UK.

jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #73 on: March 20, 2023, 02:00:21 AM »
Thanks @former player .. I hadn't really thought of the isle of wight but if we only came back irregularly, ferries etc wouldn't be a big problem.. good idea. Yeh, Lincolnshire looks great too and market towns do seen to offer what we're looking for as well, not too big, not too small. Hippy vibe isn't massively important, just maybe not too traditional.. probably a low key kinda feel (rather than Brighton kind of place) for us these days, which I love and lived in when younger.

SpreadsheetMan

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #74 on: March 20, 2023, 02:01:09 AM »
I’d suggest North Norfolk, inland a bit where it gets cheaper, but I think it’s still a bit too expensive here unless you are up for a big renovation project and get lucky buying.

MarcherLady

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #75 on: March 20, 2023, 02:55:14 AM »
Hi @jade. Northumberland is lovely, I highly recommend it to anyone. I've found people to be really friendly to incomers and we are very happy here.

Hexham always gets a really good review as a nice place to live, although it's enough inland that it gets colder and hotter than the coast, but I think is cheaper too.

If you wanted to stay south of Newcastle I like Durham and Darlington. I imagine Durham is more expensive, and also always seems to have a lot of traffic. We haven't explored Yorkshire all that much, although York itself is really nice, and Leeds has a lot going for it as a city. And of course Hebden Bridge is the Brighton of the North!

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #76 on: March 20, 2023, 04:12:59 AM »
Your budget of £90k to £120k (if I read your post correctly) wouldn't get you a house in my neck of the woods, I'm afraid.  AONBs, the coast or even nice market towns all tend to get reflected in higher property prices.  If you are planning to live on £10k pa then I'm assuming you will be car free, which would rule out being miles from anywhere, so I think you'll need to get creative to get what you want on that budget.  It is doable though, eg this house in Betws-y-Coed
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/131442344#/?channel=RES_BUY

jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #77 on: March 20, 2023, 06:12:29 AM »
I’d suggest North Norfolk, inland a bit where it gets cheaper, but I think it’s still a bit too expensive here unless you are up for a big renovation project and get lucky buying.

Thanks @SpreadsheetMan (love your name!). We kinda want more of a change of location as it's not too far from us currently but not ruling anything out yet (apart from renovations lol!) so your inland suggestion is something that may be useful.

jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #78 on: March 20, 2023, 06:16:06 AM »
Hi @jade. Northumberland is lovely, I highly recommend it to anyone. I've found people to be really friendly to incomers and we are very happy here.

Hexham always gets a really good review as a nice place to live, although it's enough inland that it gets colder and hotter than the coast, but I think is cheaper too.

If you wanted to stay south of Newcastle I like Durham and Darlington. I imagine Durham is more expensive, and also always seems to have a lot of traffic. We haven't explored Yorkshire all that much, although York itself is really nice, and Leeds has a lot going for it as a city. And of course Hebden Bridge is the Brighton of the North!

That's great to know, @MarcherLady , thanks! Yes, a friendly welcome to newcomers is one of the things we're thinking of as it's not always the case, is it? I've not heard of Hexham.. I'll check it out and your other suggestions.. I like York. Yes, I've heard good things about Hebden B though I think the prices are a bit higher than it's surroundings.

Look forward to reading more of your journal too.

former player

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #79 on: March 20, 2023, 06:16:59 AM »
Your budget of £90k to £120k (if I read your post correctly) wouldn't get you a house in my neck of the woods, I'm afraid.  AONBs, the coast or even nice market towns all tend to get reflected in higher property prices.  If you are planning to live on £10k pa then I'm assuming you will be car free, which would rule out being miles from anywhere, so I think you'll need to get creative to get what you want on that budget.  It is doable though, eg this house in Betws-y-Coed
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/131442344#/?channel=RES_BUY
ooh,  I like this game.

Here's something rather nice on the IOW, although it may not meet your "no flooding" criterion
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/127419590#/?channel=RES_BUY

Redruth in Cornwall has some lovely buildings and an arty vibe, and is overcoming its depressed mining heritage.  You might just get something in your budget, although beware mining subsidence and neighbourhood issues-
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/128619809#/?channel=RES_BUY

More opportunities in Lincolnshire
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/132172421#/?channel=RES_BUY
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/129490928#/?channel=RES_BUY
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/132080648#/?channel=RES_BUY

A flat or retirement property opens up a lot more locations than a house, of course.

MarcherLady

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LightTripper

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #81 on: March 20, 2023, 07:02:03 AM »
I have a friend in Hexham - I've only visited once (because she comes south regularly to visit family and it is faaarrr) but it's a very beautiful bit of country, near Hadrian's Wall and not too far from Newcastle.  The only issue is if you did want to come all the way to London it will add up to quite a hefty journey.  (Plus it seems up thread your budget may not stretch far enough there - and if you're not driving then villages may not work out).  Anyway, if you end up concluding that Hexham may be on the interest list I can find out the answers to any practical/local questions you have!

jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #82 on: March 20, 2023, 11:37:55 AM »
Hi all,

I've just finished work so can get back to this! Thanks so much for all your input.

Surprisingly for a finance forum, I got my maths wrong! 🤦‍♀️ Oops! sorry about that. I think we're fairly flexible but would like to top up our pension a bit. In theory taking fees into account, we could go up to £260k but as it's just us (so 1 or 2 bed is fine) and we're looking at cheaper areas hope to release at least £100k.

@PhilB thanks for the suggestion. We do have a car but manage to absorb the prices in but as you said, interesting to see what you can get when you get creative.

Thanks @former player .. lots of pretty good property at that price! Lincolnshire particularly seems to be good value. We've been debating the house Vs flat thing for a while but I think house wins for now.


@LightTripper I hadn't heard of Hexham.. I'm going to read the guardian, move to.. link shortly and will let you know in time if I need to pick your brain further on it, thank you! UPDATE I've read it and Hexham sounds great. Going on the list. Thanks again.

@MarcherLady .. ooh thanks re Darlington links too. I've heard great things about it.

I was at uni in Manchester (a while ago ahem) but have mainly lived in the south otherwise so great to get this inside knowledge.
« Last Edit: March 20, 2023, 01:23:18 PM by jade »

LightTripper

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #83 on: March 20, 2023, 01:51:23 PM »
Another thing to bear in mind, from a friend who spent many years in the Lake District and then moved to York - do take account of rainfall.  She LOVES York, not only because it is a very nice manageable sized city (she isn't generally a city person at all) but also it rains so much less on the East of the country than the West.  This is probably quite localised so worth just checking figures for areas you are looking at - particularly if you like the idea of being outdoors a lot post-retirement!

PhilB

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #84 on: March 20, 2023, 02:18:11 PM »
I'm even more impressed at your spending level now I know you're running a car on that budget :)

The extra £40 or £50k should make a big difference in what you can afford - although £120k does seem to go a very long way in Darlington!

The annoying thing is that had transferring out of a DB pension not become virtually impossible, taking the transfer value on DH's pension would quite possible have been an excellent idea for you.

Oh, and Mrs B's instant reaction to this thread was exactly the same as LightTripper's.  The rain is gonna be a shock if you move West!


MarcherLady

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #85 on: March 21, 2023, 02:50:31 AM »
The rain is gonna be a shock if you move West!

+1. When we moved from the SE to the Welsh border I swear it rained for the entire first month. Rainfall was a big part of our decision to look in the East of the country for our last move.

MarcherLady

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #86 on: March 21, 2023, 03:03:28 AM »
I can't find it now, but you said you might reconsider Scotland - oh, maybe you said it on a different thread. Anyway, if you do consider Scotland, remember that the laws on conveyancing are different. The buyer of a house in Scotland has to pay their deposit and legally commit to the purchase earlier in the process than a buyer of a house in England. I like their system, it seems to be faster than ours. But selling in England and buying in Scotland gets more tricky and stressful if you lose the buyer of your old house, but are still committed to buying your new house.

jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #87 on: March 21, 2023, 06:46:15 AM »
Yes.. rain! We're quite used to the (kind of ;)) balmy weather in the south so are trying to find the balance of weather, location etc on our budget.. tricky but I think doable. We've heard from people in our lives that the east can be a lot colder as well. We're not sure if we'd prefer rain or colder lol. Any input welcomed. Thanks @LightTripper for raising the rain issue!

@PhilB cheers! That means a lot coming from a fellow mmmer!  Yes we're flexible and not needing lots more money so again trying to find the sweet spot of house / location and a bit more spending money. But yes.. rain! Lol! 😬

@MarcherLady interesting you moved west to east as a result of the weather. Any thoughts on the cold where you are? We do like the coast and are near it now so with flooding in mind may look at that and temperature differences too. Yes, we are fairly open and Scotland is beautiful. A long way from where we're both from but neither of us have a lot of ties so maybe..  thanks very much for the point about buyers in Scotland.. that's a really useful point. We probably will sell here, rent and then buy but that would still be a bonus, for sure. Scotland also has free prescriptions etc I believe which is another bonus.

« Last Edit: March 21, 2023, 06:52:45 AM by jade »

MisterA

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #88 on: March 21, 2023, 06:54:33 AM »
I'll throw in a wild card, with plenty of properties in the original price bracket, and so very good options in the higher price band.

With a mainline station direct to to London, the Lake District to the south, Scottish borders to the north, and Northumberland to the east.

Looks like a nice 3-bedroom terrace for £115. Or if you wanted a potentially fantastic place in the country (in the higher price band), you convert this barn, although it would be a full conversion from scratch.

Would I recommend this area? I don't know. It does rain a lot, and some of the locals aren't that friendly!
« Last Edit: March 21, 2023, 06:58:25 AM by MisterA »

MarcherLady

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #89 on: March 21, 2023, 07:23:40 AM »
Any thoughts on the cold where you are? We do like the coast and are near it now so with flooding in mind may look at that and temperature differences too.

We are very close to the sea, and that has a noticable affect on the temperatures compared to even 15 miles inland, where it is colder in the Winter and hotter in the Summer. We also get less snow than inland. The downside of that is we sometimes get a fret which sits on the coastal strip and blocks the sun while inland is basking in warmth. The main issue with Northumberland is the wind! It comes blasting in off the North Sea and can be... bracing. If we are going for a walk on the beach in the winter we often have to check the wind direction, if we want to avoid the wind-blown sand in our faces.

WeatherSpark is a good site to compare weather between towns.


jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #90 on: March 21, 2023, 07:55:49 AM »
I'll throw in a wild card, with plenty of properties in the original price bracket, and so very good options in the higher price band.

With a mainline station direct to to London, the Lake District to the south, Scottish borders to the north, and Northumberland to the east.

Looks like a nice 3-bedroom terrace for £115. Or if you wanted a potentially fantastic place in the country (in the higher price band), you convert this barn, although it would be a full conversion from scratch.

Would I recommend this area? I don't know. It does rain a lot, and some of the locals aren't that friendly!

Thanks @MisterA .. that's a lot of nice house for £115k! Yeh, friendliness is quite important.. I think we'd like somewhere where there isn't an issue with 'oursiders' too.
« Last Edit: March 21, 2023, 08:00:25 AM by jade »

jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #91 on: March 21, 2023, 07:59:46 AM »
Any thoughts on the cold where you are? We do like the coast and are near it now so with flooding in mind may look at that and temperature differences too.

We are very close to the sea, and that has a noticable affect on the temperatures compared to even 15 miles inland, where it is colder in the Winter and hotter in the Summer. We also get less snow than inland. The downside of that is we sometimes get a fret which sits on the coastal strip and blocks the sun while inland is basking in warmth. The main issue with Northumberland is the wind! It comes blasting in off the North Sea and can be... bracing. If we are going for a walk on the beach in the winter we often have to check the wind direction, if we want to avoid the wind-blown sand in our faces.

WeatherSpark is a good site to compare weather between towns.

Thanks for this MarcherLady and that link. We find it a bit more temperate near the coast where we are now too but good to hear about the fret and wind... UK retirement seems to be.. rain, wind or cold lol! Looking forward to it though. How was it retiring at 50 by the way too?

PhilB

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #92 on: March 22, 2023, 09:57:47 AM »
I thought I'd have a look in some of the places I've enjoyed holidaying recently.  Shrewsbury seems to have options in your price range eg this bijou terraced cottage with river views:
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/129891056#/?channel=RES_BUY
Or this rather more spacious property, but you would need to paint your own view...
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/128291768#/?channel=RES_BUY

jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #93 on: March 22, 2023, 11:10:50 AM »
I thought I'd have a look in some of the places I've enjoyed holidaying recently.  Shrewsbury seems to have options in your price range eg this bijou terraced cottage with river views:
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/129891056#/?channel=RES_BUY
Or this rather more spacious property, but you would need to paint your own view...
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/128291768#/?channel=RES_BUY

Thanks PhilB,  much appreciated. Shrewsbury wasn't on my list. Both those houses would suit, good value for money. I've had Oswestry in the back of my mind too which is fairly close to Shrewsbury, there always seems to be good properties in our price range there too.

PhilB

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #94 on: March 22, 2023, 11:36:05 AM »
I thought I'd have a look in some of the places I've enjoyed holidaying recently.  Shrewsbury seems to have options in your price range eg this bijou terraced cottage with river views:
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/129891056#/?channel=RES_BUY
Or this rather more spacious property, but you would need to paint your own view...
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/128291768#/?channel=RES_BUY

Thanks PhilB,  much appreciated. Shrewsbury wasn't on my list. Both those houses would suit, good value for money. I've had Oswestry in the back of my mind too which is fairly close to Shrewsbury, there always seems to be good properties in our price range there too.

I forgot Oswestry.  I haven't spent much time there, but I do remember it looking lovely in the centre - and you are not wrong about the avaialability of good value properties.  Lots of nice ones on Rightmove.

jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #95 on: March 22, 2023, 01:35:39 PM »
I thought I'd have a look in some of the places I've enjoyed holidaying recently.  Shrewsbury seems to have options in your price range eg this bijou terraced cottage with river views:
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/129891056#/?channel=RES_BUY
Or this rather more spacious property, but you would need to paint your own view...
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/128291768#/?channel=RES_BUY

Thanks PhilB,  much appreciated. Shrewsbury wasn't on my list. Both those houses would suit, good value for money. I've had Oswestry in the back of my mind too which is fairly close to Shrewsbury, there always seems to be good properties in our price range there too.

I forgot Oswestry.  I haven't spent much time there, but I do remember it looking lovely in the centre - and you are not wrong about the avaialability of good value properties.  Lots of nice ones on Rightmove.

Yes, it sounds like a really nice area but also good value which is great.

bill1827

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #96 on: March 22, 2023, 04:22:11 PM »
2 things about those houses in Shrewsbury. They are very close to the river which has a habit of flooding badly every few years. The Darwin Street one may be high enough to avoid it but the Broome Place one isn't. Parking is very difficult in both those areas, which may not be an issue for you if you don't have a car but maybe you have visitors who do.

On the other hand they are fairly close to the railway station and bus station and Shrewsbury is generally a pleasant town with good facilities.

When I worked in Shrewsbury you could have bought houses like that for less than £4,000.

jade

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #97 on: March 23, 2023, 01:49:29 AM »
Thanks bill1827, flooding risk is definitely something we'll take into account when the time comes.  I've been driving Mr Jade mad with 40 year flooding forecasts whenever we talk about an area lol! Important to think about.

LightTripper

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #98 on: March 23, 2023, 04:54:01 AM »
Yes I haven't been to Oswestry but we have friends in North Wales who have it as one of their semi-local shopping towns and say it is nice.  Shrewsbury does look good but I did wonder about flooding for that particular (very pretty) house when I saw the map!

former player

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Re: Moving in the UK
« Reply #99 on: March 23, 2023, 05:29:20 AM »
Carlisle also floods badly, as well as Shrewsbury.  I wouldn't buy a house in either town even if the house itself was above the risk of flooding, because of the distress and disruption caused by flooding to the community you would be living in, the problems for transport and business that it causes, the cost to the local authority and the effect that has on services, and eventually the abandonment of parts of the settlement as unviable. 

Mind you, I don't think the train line to where I live will survive the next forty years either.  Finding safety at that level is going to be very difficult.  This might be the starting point, though -

https://check-long-term-flood-risk.service.gov.uk/map