Help me move to Scotland!

[StrippingTheVelvet]

Myself and DP are moving overseas to Scotland in like 8 weeks. Both of us are working full time until then and pretty much as soon as we touch down. All I've done so far is get a quote for a removal company and discover we have a council tax to pay on top of rent.

We're sitting down tomorrow to figure out what needs done and who is going to do what. My brain is now moosh -as the stress is about to break me- so please hit me with all the things that we need to consider that I haven't thought of!

Set up a weekend of viewings of potential places and commit yourselves to getting somewhere that weekend. You would be better sorting things now so you know what you are doing. Other option is to get a short-term rental for one month, but you are coming up to a busy time with the festival and then universities starting back

I’ve phoned round caravan parks around Edinburgh and one of them was willing to take my mum and her two cats for a few weeks (she stayed with us in the end). So they do exist. I can’t remember which one it was, whether it was Dunfermline side or North Berwick side.

Dunfermline is a fine place to live but there are some awesome places hardly any distance away. I saw a house for rent in Aberdour the other day - stunning place! Dalgety bay is no distance at all and inverkeithing has nice parts.

I used to rent in Dalgety Bay and it was lovely there. Where is the other job if one is in Dunfermline?

Have you got a job to go to? If not, what type of thing are you looking for? Someone on here will be able to suggest the best place to check job adverts for your line of work.

Oh wow. Everyone's making me nervous about getting a rental in time . We're not too fussy as it's hopefully a quick stop gap for a mortgage.

No, I don't have a job yet but partner has one in the Queen Margaret so really reluctant to move somewhere where we might both have to commute.

Does anyone know if it will be anymore difficult to register at doctors surgeries etc as even though it's UK, it's a different country?

I think per head there are more GPs than often is reported in England- I don’t know about NI. But there’s still a shortage in some places. GPs in Scotland are quite strict on catchment areas these days, especially out of cities and towns. That means you might register with one at your rental address and then have to change again when you move long-term. But it shouldn’t be hard to find one with spaces. NHS dentists are much more scarce but I’m sure Fifers on MN will have ideas when you need them.

Leases in scotland are different from the rest of the UK. We now use a private residential tenancy agreement (PRTA). This has no minimum term and just keeps running until you or the landlord gives notice. You as tenant always give 28 days but the landlords notice period depends on why they are giving it and how long you’ve been there.

Agents must be registered with the Scottish government or have their registration pending. Deposits must be held by the 3rd party scheme approved by government, of which their are 3. Agents can’t charge you any fees for referencing etc.

Incase you can’t tell I work in property! Feel free to PM me if you have any more questions.

Okay, here's my tuppence ha'penny worth as someone who has moved over 20 times in my life. (Including once from England to Belfast and once from Belfast back to England.)

I'm presuming you've both already decided that it's not an option for partner 1 to go over and live in temporary accommodation for a bit while partner 2 stays in Belfast area so partner 1 can get the lie of the land and work out where is nice to live etc, where the snarl ups are, traffic wise, but that you're both intent on moving together with the dogs at the same time.

1. Where is partner 1 going to be working? What kind of commute will be doable? What are the traffic patterns, shift patterns etc? If you're used to central Belfast, I'm sure Dunfermline will seem like a doddle, traffic wise...If you drive, remember to change the insurance address, driving licence addresses etc; you may find your insurance will go up temporarily just because the address is unknown to your insurer. Or you might be pleasantly surprised and it'll go down. Make sure the car's been serviced and all that if you can as well, just for peace of mind really.

1. Most important question, how much can you afford to spend on accommodation? Be realistic and remember you may need up to 6 weeks' deposit as well as the first month's rent in advance. Though thankfully agencies are no longer supposed to charge some of the wacky "admin" fees they have in the past. Is partner 1 going to be working somewhere that can provide accommodation, like a hospital? Or do they have recommended accommodation they could suggest?

1. Once you've got your new accommodation sorted, then you can look at utilities, bank, etc, phone; if you're with BT or whatever then you might be able to just transfer your service but so much of this depends on timing. I do think the month someone suggested up thread in a caravan might be a bit optimistic (not because of the caravan, just how long it might take to find somewhere suitable longer-term), even for somewhere as wee as Dunfermline, but then I might be jaded from the many moves I've had over the years....realistically I'd have thought 6-8 weeks especially if you're looking at places with tenants who need to move out. I'm not sure how renting works now in Scotland, I know when I came back to England from Belfast, I was amazed how much information was required to rent as it was 6 years since I'd had a new landlord in England; I had to provide bank references, character references, landlord references and 6 weeks' deposit up front although that was put into a tenancy scheme and I did get it back at the end. The property type people on here in Scotland will be able to confirm, I'm sure, what the situation is with council tax, which will probably come as a bit of a shock; I think you still have rates in NI? Other than that, Royal Mail can sort out things like mail forwarding etc - a lot of things will be the same.

1. From a practical point of view, if you have time, get rid of as much surplus stuff that you don't need as soon as you can. Most storage companies charge by the square metre and it soon mounts up. (Of course your other option is to stick everything in storage and sort it out once you've found somewhere to live...) Will partner 1 get any help with relocation expenses? It might be worth getting them to ask their future employer.

1. Seriously consider getting a company in to pack it all up and move it for you. It might seem expensive on paper but it's worth it for the stress level reductions.

1. If 5. really isn't an option, think about investing in some Really Useful Boxes - expensive, but sturdy, plastic and very stackable. If your stuff is going to be in storage also think about dehumidifier crystal type thingies (I think Lakeland or somewhere similar should do them, or even the pound shops). If you're sticking with cardboard boxes (or plastic boxes!) then make sure you've got masses of newspaper to pack up anything remotely breakable, and pack boxes as tight as you can; also think about putting bin liners round things to help keep the moisture out. Bubble wrap is your friend too, or wrapping things in duvets etc. Or a brilliant packing tip I was give1n by a moving company was to nip down to Ikea and get lots of the bi1g blue bags they sell and use those to pack what you could, especially for clothes, bedding etc, as they pack down really flat.

1. Don't overload. When I move house now I have a rule that no single box is too heavy or too big for me to move on my own. (Furniture is different, but in my younger days I used to pack boxes of books, say, very densely, and then not be able to move them.)

1. Pack up by room. Label. Put lists in boxes of what's in there.

1. Make sure you have your "emergency kit" of kettle, biscuits, tea, doggy beds etc with you until the end - make it the last thing you pack and the first thing you unpack...

10. Good luck! It's a while since I was up that way but I remember that part of Scotland (well, all of it I've visited, actually) as being really lovely. We'll be relocating to Scotland like a shot as soon as we can find suitable work....!

Actually, rather than finding a caravan, I’d come and visit for the weekend in 4/5 weeks. Have a good look around the area and view a few rentals. Our experience was that it took 2/3 weeks to get rental paperwork sorted, but that was just one example so I don’t know what’s normal.

The advice here has been fantastic so thanks everyone especially @DementedMa, @Canny and @IceBear. I feel I can get on with a list now and start putting a plan in place .

@StrippingTheVelvet I live in Dunfermline about 5 mins from Queen Margaret if you are talking about the hospital, so have name changed for this so my others posts aren't too obvious.

Can I answer any questions? There are several local letting agencies I can point you in the direction of.

Dunfermline is a lovely town for families and is fast growing with a huge number of new builds too.

Thanks you so much Stay. I'll take you up on that of I think of anything . This morning I emailed a handful of estate agents with what we need so fingers crossed someone will get back to me with something quickly!

Do you know much about the town? Happy to answer or recommend anything I can.

We visited a few places recently and just knew Dunfermline was for us. Do you mind me asking, are there any specific areas we should avoid given that we're a same sex couple? Or is the place generally open minded?

I would say generally open minded in my experience, but I'm straight so obviously not living the same experience.

There's a lot of people who have come from Edinburgh to have more space.

Fife has had a Fife Pride event about 20 mins away in Kirkcaldy for about the past 5 year which is a getting more and more support from what I can see.

Ooh, I'm dunfermline too. It's a lovely town with easy access to the rest of Scotland. There are several hotels and b&bs if you can come over before hand to view properties/areas. Lots of properties in the Duloch/masterton areas. Pitcorthie is nice but don't come up very often. Wellwood and Baldridgeburn are lovely and have great schools. The area around the hospital is mixed with queen Margaret Fauld being good and right next to the train station but Robertson road a bit rougher. Pittencrieff park (the glen) is wonderful and lots of great restaurants- Dhoom, Khushis, Incontri, Fire Station Creative to name a few. I've never known anybody to bat an eye at same sex couples.
As pp have said, outlying villages are also nice but sometimes public transport not great. My Dh works in Dalgety Bay.
Feel free to pm me. I love Dunfermline!