To leave my career in London and move back to Scotland?

[keyls]

I grew up near Edinburgh, but spent all my holidays up in the highlands. Remote. Rough. Hard ways. We used to rent/stay at old stone farm houses, with roaring fires, and we could walk our dogs for hours and hours. It was such a peaceful place, with not much else to do in the evenings bar read history books.

Sounds idyllic eh?
At the time I bloody hated it. I couldn't wait to escape to go and live in a big city. Since then I've lived in Toronto and London, and often work in Asian cities. I have a lucrative career, but still have only a 2 bed flat in a smartish area of London.

Am I crazy to think f*ck it all, and give up the career I worked so hard to get, and give up my urban life, and piss off back to the Highlands again.
We've found stunning farm houses, where we could live comfortable but a modest life style, settle down, get some dogs, we are ttc. Has anyone made a similar mvoe?

I've done similar to you- lived and worked in North America and London and got fed up with how much of my income I had to spend on living somewhere fairly poky in central London, so gone back to relatively rural life back "home". However, where I live, while beautiful rugged and cheap, is also well connected by road and rail links to some major towns and cities and I've been able to continue my career in one of those cities (albeit with a bit of a commute and some working from home.) Does it have to be such an extreme move? Can't you move to east Berwick or similar and still be close to Edinburgh, rather than moving to the middle of nowhere? I suppose it depends on your plans for work and any needs of partner /family.
I have never regretted my move and wish I'd made it sooner- but I feel like I gained everything while losing very little as I still have a thriving career and good social and cultural life. Some people who make total life changes (such as giving up career) can feel more shell shocked.

Where the devil is east Berwick?! I of course mean north! Hopefully you get the gist. Inverness is wonderful too if you want rural but with some actual amenities.

It would be a dramatic change, that's for sure! Is there scope for middle ground, i.e. a small town in a remote area? Just thinking about the baby / toddler / primary years - very remote may not be ideal practically and socially. I live in a tiny village (no shop, pub, etc) and have to use the car to get anywhere (although fantastic walks on the doorstep). Personally I'd love to move to Scotland, especially given the political climate, but am not a fan of the cold!

We've got the electricity and that new internet thing up here too. It's almost civilized in places - we haven't eaten an incomer for months round here.

(Or a tourist.)

Is rural/ isolated idyllic with a baby? Is it just the price of property that’s getting you down? Why not move to Glasgow or Dundee or another cultural city where your money can go further? You could still holiday in the highlands.

I don’t think it’s unusual to become disillusioned with the career/ money path once you’re at the stage in life where you want to settle down. But I would say there is a lot more to a city than that - community, diversity, culture, advice, amenities are all things I massively value as a parent. Lots of different career options too if you decide to change tack.

If I were you and could afford it I’d pick a nice neighbourhood in or around Edinburgh. It gives you the best of both worlds.

I get it, as I feel similar about the West Country and Wales. However I would say that if you want children, living near shops and baby groups and doctors surgeries stops you going a bit insane, in my case anyway. I know this because when my child was two I moved away from all those amenities, and went a bit insane.

I know someone who has left London & moved to Scotland, a fairly rural part. They were sick of the expense, crowds, pollution etc & their small property has paid for a large one. The dh works remotely so their standard of living has really increased.

I did: left my career and one bed flat in London and moved to a gorgeous huge converted church in the Borders about 30 miles from Edinburgh.

Hacked it for four years until I couldn’t do it anymore. Cold. Wet. So wet. Oil fired central heating cost £500 a month to heat the place; the biomass I replaced it with couldn’t get the place warm. Difficult to socialise because everyone I worked with in Edinburgh lived, well, in Edinburgh - and getting to know the locals in my village was like pulling teeth. I know that there is cultural life outside London, but it was damn hard to find even in the central belt.

Returned to London a couple of years ago. Came back to my old one bed flat. Didn’t realise quite how miserable I’d been in Scotland until I came back.

Sorry to be the skeleton at the feast. I think what I’m trying to say is that with any move there’s an element of “same shit, different scenery.” Unless you’re also going to radically change your lifestyle and what you do for work, you will still have to deal with the same stuff you do now, and some things will be nicer and some things will be harder.

No. The ideal thing would be for you to go there for holidays. There's nothing wrong with a 2 bed flat in London either, many would envy you, it's a very interesting place to live but it is nice to get away to somewhere rural or remote sometimes.

We moved from London to the Highlands and took our jobs with us (as dh and I both work jobs that could be done remotely). We love it, we're so much more relaxed, have a much nicer house, big garden, lots of animals, take advantage of all the beautiful countryside around us to hike, cycle, walk with the dogs.

I think it would get really lonely with a baby. But as others have suggested maybe somewhere like Inverness, Stirling or Dundee would be nice? Near countryside and you'd get a LOT for your £ if you're moving from London.

Where abouts are you thinking of? How isolated?

Do it!!

m.youtube.com/watch?v=TX9h558Tz1E

We have just done this sort of..... Bought a house in a tiny village in SW Scotland, we are getting it ready for moving in and then we will move in, won't be for another year or so but I can't bloody wait! I'm getting so tired of the rat race, I can't wait for a slower pace of life in beautiful surroundings.

I know that there is cultural life outside London, but it was damn hard to find.

...in Edinburgh!!!! I try to avoid the place in during the summer August because there's too much of the damn stuff!

What about somewhere like carlisle, Penrith, or keswick..just outside them, plenty going on, beautiful scenery...not too remote

What job options are there for you there?

I did it. I don't miss London but I miss my old job. I love the peace and quiet, running on the beach in the morning and not having to live an over priced shoebox.

Move but rent out your flat. That way you can always come back. I've so many friends that have left London, and most have loved it. But those that returned were gutted to have to pay so much more for property to get back into the market. Better to wait a bit to be sure, seeing its such as drastic change.

I’m in edinburgh after many years in London and I love it. Friends who live in villages in the borders or East Lothian with babies spend ALL their time in the car driving places. I’d hate that. It’s ironic that living rurally often means walking less in daily life.