Anyone know Leamington Spa?

[Sicario]

Is Leamington a nice place to live? I've heard some mixed reports.

I like it when I visit. It’s got a lot of Regency buildings and Jephson Gardens is lovely. Good shopping too.
But I don’t live there, I’m sure there are grotty bits.
It’s contiguous with Warwick, which is lovely in the main.

Yes it’s v nice - I live in a grotty neighbouring town and would love to live there! Even if you end up in a not as nice residential part of it, you still get to enjoy the lovely centre whenever you like.

There are some lovely areas but these tend to be very pricey. Some quite rough parts as well. If you have a high budget then it would be a lovely place to live. The actual town is lovely with the gardens mentioned by pp

It has good parts and less good parts. Lots of development going on - 5000 houses on the edge over the next 10 years or so. Warwick is nice but costs more housing wise. Surrounding suburbs and villages mostly nice.

Good selection of schools and amenities in general and easyish access to Birmingham and London

Where are you looking at?

I used to live there and wish I still did. Moved to Coventry as it's cheaper there. Lots of empty shops in the high street and at last count had over 40 coffee shops. Great bargains in the charity shops. Got a nearly new Prada bag for £30 in oxfam.

Top end of town is lovely. Past the train station is definitely the wrong side of the track. Loads of student housing at that end of town and a few run down areas.
Plus there is now an increasing drugs problem.

Warwick is beautiful but very expensive. I did a stint of volunteering in the tourist office there and there are so many hidden gems, like some wonderful gardens you can visit. We're thinking about retiring back there in about 10-15 years.