Mancunians please help! City centre (or near) living.

[slep]

Hello all, I hope you don't mind me posting this here. First posted in property but it is much slower in there and I'm sure there are many more people in here who can offer useful advice who might not have seen my other thread.

I am planning a move to Manchester for work and personal reasons and am looking for a place to live either in the city centre proper or one of the peripheral areas sometimes now also considered to be part of the city centre. I’d be grateful for your thoughts on the areas I should consider, and perhaps even specific streets or buildings to focus on.

My interests are art, football, fashion and technology, and I spend a lot of time just hanging out with friends over coffee or drinks. I also like cooking and hosting small groups of friends at home. I expect to travel semi-regularly to London, Leeds, Glasgow and Edinburgh. I prefer not to drive so would like to be within reach of trains, but I’m happy to walk a lot and 15-30 minute walks are routine for me. My work is freelance and flexible so shouldn’t tie me to any particular area.

My budget is £420k. I'd like a minimum of 2 bedrooms and ideally 800 square feet or more. I’m happy to live in a block of flats but I’d prefer if it were a lower rise building or block overall. I don’t want a very noisy street but can cope with some noise a few streets further away from the action.

I’m relaxed about what sort of property and whether there is parking and outdoor space. I am more interested in finding the right part of town for me than I am in maximising the property that I get for my money e.g. I know I would get more for £420k in the Northern Quarter than Spinningfields.

Thanks for any help you can give.

[lastqueenofscotland]

If you don’t want noise avoid the northern quarter! It’s always all heaving all day at weekends.

I’d look maybe around Castlefield and spinninngfields myself

[Nomad86]

The Northern Quarter has lots of trendy cafes and boutiques, and you would get a lot for your budget. We lived on Whitworth st West, near the gay village. There was a building, Bombay House that had a gym and pool in the basement. I think these facilities were shared with neighbouring buildings so could be worth a look in that area. The building on that street are converted warehouses so have high ceilings and big windows. More modern buildings are more likely to have balconies though.