Please tell me about Brighton

[lamii]

Hi parents,

I am not a parent (but planning on becoming one). My partner and I relocated in Stockholm after spending 8 years in London. We are thinking of moving back to England because we miss network and friends from London.

I looked at houses zone 3-4 in London but I am also interested in Brighton as it seems like a good compromise between London and Stockholm.

Please tell me all you know about Brighton: housing, safety, atmosphere, air quality, access to London, nurseries price, schools, etc. Is it possible to get a house for 350k?

Thanks a lot!

[thirstyperson]

If you move to Brighton, hove is better. More homes, less tourist but it's still Brighton. Walking distance to the marina and all of brighton. Lost of busses because it shares two long roads that crosses it with Brighton. Excellent schools too. Closer to the downs and hove park.

[lamii]

Hello thirstyperson,

thanks for your point of view.
Yes Hove seems like a good place. Can you find nice parks in Hove? Does it feel safe to go around with a baby?

[RosieWithTheGoodHair]

There's nice parks all over B&H and it certainly feels a lot safer than London does. To me, anyway

[thirstyperson]

Yes love parks. With tennis courts. The dawns is very big and excellent for long walks and fog walking. It's connected all over west and East Sussex. There is two golf causes that I know off two. The Devils dyke, great for picnics. Pubs and restaurants are everywhere. You can go for a drive in the dawns too. Excellent shops and shopping centre. Good high streets and an hour away from London. Hove has a station too.

The parking in Brighton itself is not great. The parking metre is extortionate.

[lamii]

Oh yes, I am a car-free person. Is it ok to go around without having a car?

[lamii]

Are nurseries and schools expensive?

[RosieWithTheGoodHair]

Yep - I've not driven since I've lived here. Public transport to the surrounding areas and most of central Brighton is walkable

[OhTheRoses]

You won't get a house for £350,000 in Brighton or Hove.

[MephistoMarley]

Brighton and hove is brilliant for going carfree, has great parks and you can buy houses for £350k (not sure how big though)
Nurseries are probably about average, £50 a day more or less? Schools are free as they are everywhere

[MephistoMarley]

Right move says there are 123 houses within Brighton and hove for £350k or under

[lamii]

Thanks all for your answers!
Living in Brighton/Hove is also a way to stay close to London. Would you say that once you live in B/H you aren't going to London anymore? Is it easy to keep in touch with network/friends?

[lamii]

@MephistoMarley yes it does, although I never completely trust rightmove!

[dinkystinky]

MIL has just sold her 3 bed unmodernised detached house, with shared drive and garage and front and back garden - at least a 40 min walk from the seafront/Hove station but with buses to Brighton Centre going from the road outside it - for £550k. I live in London, like going to visit MIL but find the buses criminally expensive and metered parking in Brighton worse than London prices. Get a bike and you'll be fine (Brighton and Hove is run by a Green council).

Trains - Brighton to London are a fast line in to Victoria; generally quite rubbish on the weekends with lots of works/delays going on (Southern who run the line are crap) so we normally drive from London to visit which takes a couple of hours.

Brighton and Hove has a nice vibe - I've noticed lots of families in Hove where MIL lives. Hove Park is lovely (with tennis courts) and lots of nice places to go walking or out to eat around Brighton (though will need a car to access a lot of them).

[lamii]

@MephistoMarley schools are free! I wonder why everyone is always complaining about expensive fees then. Is it in London?
Nurseries are free in Stockholm (...)

[lamii]

@dinkystinky ' (Brighton and Hove is run by a Green council).' ->> I like that.
How is the air quality? I know they are working on it!
Cycling is my favorite transportation mode. I stopped in London as it felt like you gonna end up under a bus every minute.

[lamii]

Since the brexit storm I would be also careful in picking an area. I feel like B&H might be one of the most open minded population. Am I right?

[cheapandcheerful]

You can get a house for £350k in Brighton! We bought ours just over a year ago for £275k. 3 bed semi in Bevendean which doesn't have the best reputation but we like it! We live on a cul-de-sac, beautiful views over to the racecourse, bus from the front door to Brighton station, garden backs onto the south downs.

[cheapandcheerful]

Oh and my dhs cycles to work in Hove every day.

[Footle]

"Dawns" in thirstyperson's posts is a typo for Downs. You may need to know this.

[cheapandcheerful]

Sorry, *dh! I only have one!

[lamii]

Ok please tell me what sucks in Hove/Brighton now. ;)

[thirstyperson]

schools are free! I wonder why everyone is always complaining about expensive fees then. Is it in London?
Nurseries are free in Stockholm (.. Within half hour drive there is about 6 private schools I can think of. Mostly in west West Sussex and Brighton and hove.

One thing about the free council, they don't collect their rubbish. Lots of strikes.

They also have one of the best cycle routes. The ones I know is from the east side of Brighton heading towards Worthing littlehamton and beyond. Excellent foot paths too. You can also cycle to shorerham by sea along the river.

Yes it is downs. Got it wrong in the second post because autocorrect. I need to cut my nails.

[MsRinky]

I used to love Brighton and spent a lot of time there, but last time I went I hated it.

As I don't live there I can't quite work out whether it was always so filthy, had such a visible issue with homelessness, begging and drug addition, was quite so full of spectacularly drunk and aggressive people and hipster twats, or whether my tolerance for all of the above has just taken a nose-dive as I've got older.

[Sooverthis]

The Greens suck, rubbish piled up on the streets other than that it's a great place to live. You won't get a house in Bton or Hove but the outlying bits such as Mileoak, Bevendean some parts of Portslade you'll get one for 350,000. Maybe look at Worthing and Saltdean/Peacehaven as they are significantly cheaper and possibly better schools, definitely more parks and green spaces.

[Dakin1]

We moved to Brighton 1.5 years ago and it's the best decision we ever made. People are so friendly and there's loads of stuff for kids. I had asthma in London that has vanished in Brighton.

We have a large 2 bed flat (maisonette) in the centre of Brighton 5 mins walk to the sea and it cost us £305k. If you want a garden you will have to look further afield.

Cheaper areas that are nice and safe are saltdean, patcham, woodingdean.

Avoid whitehawk and moulescombe.

Nursery places on average £45 per day.

Loads of groups for babies and kids, nice parks, a gorgeous play park on the sea front with paddling pool.

Feel free to PM if you have any other questions.

Cannot recommend it highly enough!