Which area would you choose to live in?

[tequilasunrises]

DH and I can’t agree. We don’t have DC at the moment but are planning to in the next few years so thinking about where to buy our forever home.

We currently live in a really lovely coastal town. Good range of shops, everything is walking/cycling distance, lovely independent bars and restaurants, leisure centres etc. But public transport is a nightmare - there is no train station unless you drive 10 mins and buses are erratic at best. We commute together by car on the motorway to work which takes around 30 mins each way and costs about £100pm in petrol.

DH wants to move to the town where I work. It would remove the need for a commute all together and we could save petrol money and an hour a day. It’s an okay area and I do quite like the idea of cycling to work, but I would never be allowed to drive even if it rained because we would love to close to qualify for a parking permit. The area just isn’t as nice but by all means not horrible and the schools aren’t as good and Asda is the only supermarket. But there is a train station and has good links to the main city centre. It would be closer to his parents which is a positive but further from mine.

So, please could I ask - which area would you choose and why? Thanks!

Tough call - the extra hour in your day would be valuable with a DC and may save money on childcare etc in the future.

I don’t think a 10 minute drive to a train station is that bad though! Ours is 30 mins away!

Is be staying by the sea!

Ten minutes to the train is nothing.

I'll house swap with you as living by the coast is my dream and will be great with kids later on for you.

Although the town is a lot bigger so I think depending on where we lived if I walked it could still take 20-30 mins!

Gosh stay where you are, it sounds lovely and your commutes are alright really.

Only 10 mins to the the train and 30 mins to work sounds great to me.
Maternity leave by the sea walking the pram to all the independent shops and cafes will be lovely.
How would you cycle to work after the baby is born when you'd need to drop them at childcare? And in all weather's.
The cheaper childcare argument doesn't necessary work either as you can just use nursery or childminder closer to work than home, and wraparound child care tends to be set times and you pay for the session not by the time uses ime .

Ive just moved from coastal to midlands. Id stay by the sea!!!!!!

I'd be staying put.

Stay bythe coast

I’d hate to have to shop at Asda very offputting. When you compared schools, did you only look at Ofsted ratings or at actual exam results too?

However, I live in an area you wouldn’t choose based on the high street but... There are tons and tons of families, baby and toddler classes, sports clubs and other activities + big houses and gardens (and top schools). It’s a great place to live and I just occasionally go elsewhere to hang out on a fancier high street for the morning.

I'd stay where you are, it sounds lovely, a 30 min commute is nothing.