Move to Warwickshire

[WhereToMove2020]

Good morning everyone,

I got a job in Coventry and we need to relocate. I am looking for advice of where to move.

Are there any good areas in Coventry itself? From looking at previous threads I haven't seen anything positive.

We have a budget of around 240k so not huge and would like 3 bedrooms.

We have looked at Nuneaton and Southam. We would be able to afford quite nice houses there I think. There are also some in Leamington Spa but they'd be significantly smaller than in the other places. Are there any areas there to avoid?

Our criteria are basically 3 bedrooms, small garden, parking, ok commute to Coventry. We don't mind about the high street so much or anything. We would also be very happy with a village.

Does anyone have any advice, recommendations, areas to definitely avoid?

Thank you!

I live in Rugby which is about 12 miles from Coventry so do know a bit about the area.
Nuneaton - I would avoid to be honest, bits of it are ok but it doesn't have a very good reputation generally.
Southam - is very pretty with some gorgeous houses but can get a bit pricey. There are some fabulous villages in that area.
Leamington Spa - has got a great little town centre with a good selection of shops and restaurants. Some areas aren't great and the houses in town can be eyewateringly expensive!
Kenilworth is somewhere else to consider but I don't know much about house prices there.
Coventry itself - personally I would avoid Bell Green, Willenhall Wood, Hillfields, Foleshill, Wood End and Tile Hill.
Earlsdon, Allesley, Finham and Cheylesmore are all good areas.
There are lots of villages surrounding Coventry depending on which.side you are going to be working on.

I live near Stratford.

You won't get a decent 3 bed.house for £240k in Stratford, Leamington, Kenilworth nor Warwick. If you do see them, they'll be on the estates you'd possibly want to avoid.

Rugby definitely look at, particularly the villages around it.
Southam yes too
Coventry I don't know as well but you need to read up on your areas as some are lovely (Finham, Earlsdon, Allesley) and some are not.

I have friends over Fillongley way and that's lovely too. Ansley village area.

Thank you for your quick response. I'd be towards the Southside, actually not too far from Cheylesmore so that may be an option. Do you have any village suggestions in the south of Coventry?

Kenilworth seemed fairly expensive but I will have another look.

Shame about Nuneaton but I guess the low prices had to be too good to be true. Southam seems fairly reasonable so far as well.

What is Rugby like? Whenever I read online people say both Coventry and Rugby are quite rough

Thank you GuyFawkes. I know our budget is fairly small unfortunately. We could possibly stretch a bit higher but it really depends on what's happening with mortgages. At the moment banks want a 15 percent deposit and this would be our downfall for more expensive properties.

Good to hear you think Southam is acceptable and you recommended the same areas in Coventry as Darumafam so that's good. I'll have a look at all the areas you recommended.

Rugby depends on the area. Dunchurch is lovely, but can be expensive. Bilton is a nice area mostly but schools are not all good, particularly the secondary at the moment, if that's a consideration. Hillmorton is popular too. Warwick is nice, close to Leamington for more shops. Prices variable but can be expensive. Avoid Nuneaton, it doesn't have a good reputation. Coventry itself has improved in recent years, but as previous posters have said you'd need to pick your area carefully. Earlsdon is meant to be nice, but I think can get pricey compared to other areas and also it'd depend on your route into work as around the university can get very clogged up in normal times.

Thank you PleaseNoMoreGlitter.

Just had a quick check on rightmove and those areas in Rugby you suggested seem very reasonable price wise so that could be an option.

Another vote for the villages around Rugby. You do get a bit more for your money.

I like Rugby, it is a town and has some nice areas to it. They are also building and investing there currently so I see that as a positive.

I would not personally live in Coventry, it just seems so soulless. But between Rugby and Coventry there are some nice places, with good access to major roads for commuting.

Warwickshire/Coventry are pretty mixed - north Warwickshire (Bedworth/Nuneaton etc) is more affordable but also less desirable. South Warwickshire has lovely towns and villages but is much more expensive.

Earlsdon in Coventry is great, with good schools, near parks, good community, pretty safe - but if you buy in the catchment for the good local secondary the house prices can almost double. If secondary school will be a consideration you need to choose carefully in Coventry as in some areas one street either way can make the difference between a top school and a struggling one.

Saying that, it's still generally cheaper than Leamington/Warwick I think. It's a big city, very diverse, quite deprived in some areas, the city centre is ugly, but we always found it friendly. In the south of Cov you can easily get out into south Warwickshire/Solihull for nice towns/pubs/countryside and you also are close to Warwick uni with good sports centre, arts centre, family events and so on.

Thank you Kapowsers.

There are a lot of houses available in villages between Rugby and Coventry within our price range. Long Lawford seems to have a lot but I've also seen some in Newbold on Avon and other small villages. Maybe that's the way to go.

I live in Balsall Common (south-west of Coventry, technically in Solihull borough) and it takes me about 30 minutes to drive to Coventry Hospital.
It's a lovely large village, surrounded by open countryside with lots of great dog walks.
All the surrounding villages here (Knowledge, Meriden, Berkswell) are also very pleasant and pretty.
Kenilworth is lovely and has plenty of shops etc.
I do think you're going to have to compromise either on price or location though, as property is expensive round here.
Good luck with your move

I think you need to decide on your preference for town vs village and amenities before asking for specific villages. Most of the villages south of Coventry and round towards Rugby are lovely. Some have shops and/or pubs and some don't. What counts as an ok commute?
Southam is a lovely town but no train - does this matter?
As pp have said, Leamington and Stratford are much more expensive.
If you narrow down these preferences, then I think your locations might 'choose itself' based on what's available.
Be sure to check the proximity to the HS2 route as sadly that's going right through that area. Don't know if it's made housing close by any cheaper, but it needs considering in case the building works and later on trains would bother you.

Thanks LongBlobson.

Earlsdon is a bit out of our reach I fear. Good to know there are nice areas though.

Schools are a consideration. Our child is 2 now so we have a few years to go with primary but a good catchment is important. While we would like this to be a long term move we could move again for secondaries if necessary I think. Who knows where we will be in 10 years I'd kinda hope we may have more money then

We've just moved to kenilworth, south Coventry village. Nuneaton, Bedworth and Bulkington are all grim, very old populations, failing town centres and poor life expectancy/schools (for the most part)

Kenilworth, leamington and Warwick are all lovely but V pricey, £240k won't go too far. Cheylesmore, Finham and Styvechal are all nice areas in Coventry and Manor Park school in cheylesmore is the best primary in Coventry. Nice 'village' feel around cheylesmore as there's a big parade of indie shops like butchers, DIY shop and greengrocer

Other option is to go Hinckley/burbage as the commute it 1 junction M69 and then one road A46 to cheylesmore. Burbage is the nicer of the two but again £££

SilverOtter and Lochroy, thanks for your help. You're right we will probably have to compromise on location or price. I will see what we can do price wise. We are currently in Surrey so flats here are expensive and commutes long. I feel like anything is an improvement really but need to look at areas carefully. But then where we live is really nice so I think I'm spoiled in that regard I will see what our bank says about mortgage rates. We have a larger mortgage at the moment than 240k but they expect large deposits and we would struggle with that. I will try and sort this asap and then you're right, the area will then probably sort itself.

HS2 also a huge consideration!

True, ok commute was vague. I do around 40 minutes by car now and my DH 50 minutes by train/tube. So anything around 45 minutes by car is ok for either of us really.

Trains- not too worried I think. We live close to a train line now but only really need it for commutes. But something to think about.

Seems like Nuneaton area is definitely out. I'd rather have something slightly smaller but a nice area.

Stylish Mummy, thanks for your recommendations. Cheylesmore sounds lovely. Hinckley more affordable.

I was a student at Warwick University and then lived in Coventry and Rugby post graduation. DH's family are all in Nuneaton. I would avoid Nuneaton. Bits of Rugby are OK but I wouldn't move back there and there really isn't much in the town itself. Perhaps the villages between Rugby and Coventry if you don't mind having to drive everywhere. Or Allesley, Finham, Cheylesmore or Earlsdon are nice areas of Coventry. There are quite a lot of rough areas in Coventry though!

We're not too far from Stratford. £249k won't go far in Stratford, Warwick or Leamington but you might be lucky with some of the villages? A 1930s 3 bed has just sold in our village for £245k. It obviously needed updating but was perfectly livable so you might be lucky!
We have a direct Trainline to London from here so that pushes prices up.

Waves to @GuyFawkesDay !

If you have primary age children some areas of Warwickshire still have the 11+. Rugby does and so does Stratford.

With regards to Rugby, Long Lawford has got a lot of new builds which are nice but parts of Long Lawford are beyond grim.
Church Lawford is lovely and I would have a look there.
Lawford Heath is just houses with no amenities at all so unless you are happy to drive everywhere I would avoid.
Bilton is lovely but as a pp said the schools aren't great, particularly the high school.
Hillmorton is a big area so again depends on where, there's a new development in the edge of Hillmorton called Houlton which I don't know much about besides that it is very expensive.
Brownsover is a huge estate which varies from grim to gorgeous depending on which part. Boulton
The town centre has got some beautiful old houses but they are generally expensive.
Clifton is another area to consider, it still has a village feel to it but I think that it's pricey.
Overslade - just avoid.
Hillside is nice but can be pricey in places.
Rokeby has a strange mix of private and social housing that has always seemed to not quite work - I lived there as a child.

If you can go for Allesley, Leamington or Kenilworth. Earlsdon is lovely but it is expensive and it can be noisy with all the students and pubs. Unless you can get somewhere away from the high street. Chapelfields is supposed nice. Nuneaton and Bedworth are not great. Maybe you could rent to try out areas before you commit to buy?

If you’re happy with a commute of 40 minutes then I would live outside of Coventry.

Also I think it’s worth deciding whether you want a town or village. Every town/city has rough areas - some more than others but it’s a very different feel.

I’d suggest Rugby and its villages. Lovely (for the most part) and offer better value. You won’t get a nice house in Kenilworth or Stratford. And again depends on the style of house you’re after.

Also some places above (Dunchurch, Newbold etc) are just suburbs of Rugby and haven’t been separate villages for years. I’d avoid Newbold too.

Actually @darumafan says it better! Would agree with that list!

Nothing wrong with nuneaton!!!! Lived in the area for years, I have a detached four bed on a lovely cul de sac and paid £190000 a year ago. I was cash so negotiated hard. Bedworth is a lovely town, my mum lives there, as leamington and southam very pricey but nice

Is this job a really great opportunity? or are you currently unemployed? It’s just that if it isn’t one of those then I think I would carry on job hunting - it’s really not a place I would want to move my whole life for (unless had £££ for kenilworth, balsall common etc)