What could I get in Edinburgh for £600k

[Edinburghmusing]

Starting some thinking about where I want to move to and Edinburgh keeps coming up in my lists.

just wondering if anyone has any insight of what sort of property you could get for around £500-600k

i would be after a garden and preferably parking (I can’t parallel park - I’m a lost cause). Two/three beds. Not a major/reno but happy to decorate.

kind of area I’d like would be not busy centre but somewhere where I can walk to cafes, parks etc.

i really am only just starting research - but am just wondering what the property market is like there. I’ve had a browse on Rightmove etc obviously but got myself overwhelmed with it!

thanks if anyone has any insight!

I’m in south east England at the moment. Nice seaside town.

It's really not that far. Barnton isn't far away, neither is Corstorphine or Blackhall. All have shops and cafes. It's not the centre of town though, no.

Lots of hidden gems with parking in Edinburgh. I used to rent an amazing flat in James square, Caledonian crescent, close to hay market. It didn’t have a private garden but it had a massive roof terrace over the pool that belonged to the flats. Another rental round the back of the station had two car parking spots and a private garden. It had started off life as sheltered accommodation and had purchased via his mum under right to buy. I think you just have to be specific when looking.

Agreed.

What is the appeal of Edinburgh>? The politics are awful, the weather is awful and Scotland is probably soon going to be independent.

I would echo searching on espc for houses.

You could also try slightly out of Edinburgh. Eskbank near Dalkeith is nice

Edinburgh is a really beautiful city and I think a lot of people visit and think it’s wonderful. Until you live there however you have no idea of how bad the downsides. Even I didn’t and I’m from there! I can escape a fair amount (eg appalling schools) by being reasonably well off but not all.

@TimandGinger what are the downsides?? Thank you

@Walnutwhipsarenothesame it ranks very highly on many liveabiltiy charts as a stating point. And a lot of feedback on it is thst it’s vibrant, friendly, not too big but not too small etc.

(I think it it does become independent it will join the eu - not a bad thing from my perspective- I know it’s a lot more complicated than that sentence suggests)

Weather. A very poorly run council (bin strikes in summer were dreadful) that charges a very high rate for not much.potholes galore. Snp administration. Poor schools. Extremely eye wateringly expensive for housing.
upsides - fab for kids: so much on your doorstep.

OP wanted somewhere with garden and parking, and walking distance to cafes and parks. Lots of cafés up Craigmillar Park, and there are parks. You won’t get private garden and parking in that budget in Morningside, or even Leith I suspect. It’s not buzzy, but is practical and convenient.

The downsides are the public transport - no tube/underground & very few train stations -.so the streets are congested & there are mainly buses - plus a tram service which runs from the airport to city centre (soon to be Leith). I dread it if I have to go across town or along the bypass at peak hours.

It's the most expensive city in Scotland - everything costs more here eg petrol, haircuts etc.

The festival brings so many tourists in the summer & it's unbearably busy in town.

As a single, I think you would find Glasgow more friendly & better value all round. I'd go for Giffnock, Newlands etc which meet your criteria - you'd get a something amazing for that, better state schools if you need them in the future, much better public transport.

I’m looking to move back down South . I find Edinburgh very congested, very expensive. Poor public services, dreadful anti women policies . It isn’t friendly either. Property is very expensive .

Shandon doesn’t exist as a distinct area on Rightmove (it does on the ESPC website although lists there will tend to still pull in properties from nearby areas). Some Shandon properties come up under “Slateford” on Rightmove as it’s south of a part of Slateford Road (one of the main routes south west) but what you see under “Slateford” are also properties north of the road and further out of town from Shandon. I’d say Shandon is the area bounded by the Union Canal to the south, Harrison Road to the east, Slateford Road to the north and the freight railway line beyond Ashley Drive to the west (think the line is called the South Suburban). One of the things that is nice about it is there are a couple of roads running north-south but mainly to do that, there are better options to take so it feels like a relatively quiet, tucked away area which is well connected to lots of other places.

ESPC is better for Edinburgh than Rightmove. This is what they call Shandon. I'd suggest you want to be at the canal/Harrison Park side.
espc.com/property/shandon

My eldest dc lives in Edinburgh and loves it. He comments how good the buses are, and how cheap they are (compared to SE England!). It’s quite small as cities go, so quite easy to get around.

Driving in Edinburgh is a nightmare. I hate it so much. The clowncill are a bunch of incompetent twits. The state of the roads are dire. Just a few downsides.

If I were you, I'd look at a main door garden flat in bruntsfield. Quite buzzy. bruntsfield links and the meadows are right on your doorstep, plus the hermitage, braid, blackford and Craiglockhart hills are nearby. And the right side of town for the pentland hills for big walks. It's in a good catchment area if that becomes a consideration.

Might not get private parking though.

I absolutely LOVE Edinburgh, even with the potholes and twatty council. Moved here 25 years ago, and have tried moving away, but it always draws me back. It's had so much to offer through different phases of my life (students, young professional, parent to young kids and to teens).

Lots of haggis and a good set of bagpipes?

What sort of lifestyle do you want @Edinburghmusing ? A lot if the revomhh my end around in this thread are very residential, the cafes will be full of mums with buggies lingering over coffee. That’s fine if that’s your vibe but it doesn’t sound like it is?

I’d second bruntsfield good for walking and quite central/villagey feel, Newington is close to Arthur’s seat but possibly a bit studenty. Shandon is nice but a bit further out. Leith and the shore has lots going on - dog walks on the links and cycle paths and Pilrig is also good - close to town but good parks. Broughton and canonmills also worth a look - central but good cycle path links and parks. Abbeyhill is close to Arthur’s seat and also v convenient for the beach at porty. Porty itself is also a nice wee town.

I wouldn’t be looking at Hermiston gait, Barnton or Silverknowes unless you want a quiet/suburban lifestyle - 40 minutes into town on a bus at least. Grange is nice but very £££

definitely use ESPC rather than Rightmove

I love Edinburgh, it’s a great place to live. I agree with PP re
parking - there are a lot of places with on-street parking that doesn’t involve parallel parking. Round us it’s all perpendicular to the pavement, so v easy. I also don’t personally agree you need a garden with a dog. We’re close to Holyrood Park and the walks are amazing.

The climate isn’t great if you like warmth, but it works fine for me. It’s one of the driest places in the UK - but admittedly it can be cold!