Moving to the UK - location advice EDITED TO ADD

[wisteriahouse]

Hi all,

My husband and I will be relocating to the UK next year from Australia. We have a seven year old son and will be looking for jobs upon arrival (husband works in IT, I am a lawyer).

We have been looking at different locations to settle including London and Leeds. Our requirements are excellent schools, good transport links (we will be using public transport only), local shops/pubs/restaurants/high street. Our budget is around £1,300pm.

Coming from a “new” country, we are looking forward to immersing ourselves in the history and culture and would value having these options readily available without having to venture too far away. We enjoy going out for meals, walks/bike rides, enjoying the outdoors, swimming etc. We are hoping to travel around Europe on a regular basis (mostly long weekend trips) so convenience to an airport would be a plus.

Any suggestions would be welcomed! It’s so hard to plan things from the other side of the world and we don’t want to drag our son around while we decide on an area as we want to get him settled in a school asap.

EDITED TO ADD:

Thank you to all of you who replied to my original post. Thought I would provide some further information/context on our situation:

1. My husband is a UK citizen (although he has not lived there since he was a child so we have no preference around UK locations).
2. My husband will arrive 2 months prior to my son and I to try and secure a job before we arrive (and find a rental). We do intend to apply for jobs before we leave AUS to at least get the ball rolling (but to be honest, would be surprised if either of us got one prior to arrival given we are currently on the other side of the world and I’m sure there’s no shortage of local talent).
3. I will be applying for a family visa to join my husband after he has arrived. We have enough in savings to bypass the minimum salary requirement for my husband and would pay for the fast track decision which takes around a month from memory. We meet all the other requirements (except for housing obviously, but that would be sorted before applying).
4. My qualification is transferable to the UK without having to sit extra exams/retrain so yes I can practice law there.
5. We have enough in savings to pay up front rental costs for a longer term period (12 months or longer if need be).
6. £1,300pm is our “hopeful” budget for rent only (not including taxes/bills etc) when we first arrive as we will likely be jobless and living off our savings (of which we would like to have some left by the time we secure jobs/pay up front rental costs).
7. Our plan was to rent somewhere more affordable until we both have jobs and then move if need be to an area that meets our requirements (and likely costs more).
8. Once we are both working our budget could comfortably double for rent (not including tax, other expenses).
9. I would not describe us as “city” people however we do enjoy being able to have enough to do in our local area (shopping, restaurants, parks). We are definitely not fans of country living either. City fringe would likely suit or suburbia if there are enough amenities around without having to travel to a city.
10. We both drive (Australia life) so will look to get a car at some stage if need be but would prefer public transport.

We have a fair amount of money in savings so could afford more than £1,300pm however, we would rather not blow through our savings and try and save some money initially while we are both looking for work. We understand the budget is low but would reassess once we both have work. Salary expectations for both of us are combined >£120k (in London, obviously this would differ depending on the area we ended up in).

You should definitely try to get jobs before you move. We made a similar move 10 years ago ( not from Aus but close enough). My DH also works in IT and got a job offer before the move. He had 3 online interviews (with the same company) and they even flew him to the UK for the final interview. The company then offered to pay for the move including flights for the whole family, shipping our house content, airport pick up and hotel for the first 10 days as well as an agent looking for a rental for us. We didnt expect this from the company but they offered. This really made the move a lot easier and cheaper. Although this was 10 years ago, its worth trying to get a similar deal with a new job, specially working in IT.

Completely understand the reasons for the initially low budget for renting, but I'd say this rules out London for you.

Bristol might be an option, but I'd have a look on Rightmove to see if there is anything in your budget.

I second the advice to have jobs lined up.

You will look like the opposite of good prospects to a landlord or rental agency otherwise. There is considerable competition for rental accommodation in desirable areas with decent schools, local amenities, and good public transport.

What is the hurry here?

Also remember that leases can be minimum 12 months but more likely 2 years with penalties to break, so if you go for a 1300 place assume you'll be there for 2 years which means son settled in school, you into a neighbourhood etc. Shorter leases tend to be more expensive.

If at least one of you has a job lined up that gives you an area to anchor in but I get the challenges of applying overseas. So if not then I think you need to plan to take some time to travel around, make it an adventure as part of the move. Yes it will eat into some of your savings but spending the equivalent of the UK summer holidays moving between big towns and cities will give you at least a taste of their different vibes. A quick google shows articles like this https://www.clayton-legal.co.uk/the-four-biggest-legal-markets-outside-of-london/ or for tech https://www.cbre.co.uk/insights/reports/uk-tech-cities-report-2022#:~:text=Manchester%20has%20once%20again%20shown,the%20UK%20outside%20of%20London I'd be starting with some research along these lines to narrow down where best for your chances.

Sorry to add, I'm a landlord in London I have taken tenants without a proven track record in the UK - this may be because I am currently overseas myself, so sympathetic to the challenge. But you need your paperwork lined up from Australia, salary slips, and bank statements, a personal reference if you can. Get DH to set up a bank account and credit card as his first priority when he arrives. Get your story straight with the estate agents before you start looking so you can react quickly. It won't always be a yes, but if you can show professionalism it should be OK.

The UK IT job market is very different now than it was 10 years ago, plus the impact of Covid and cost of living is highly unlikely to see companies offering this sort of deal, I’m afraid.

We have been looking at different locations to settle including London and Leeds. Our requirements are excellent schools, good transport links (we will be using public transport only), local shops/pubs/restaurants/high street. Our budget is around £1,300pm.

You’ll not get more than a shoebox in London for that, especially if you want “excellent schools” and all the rest.

I'd agree that budget is very low. I'm in zone 5 and it takes me over an hour to commute to central London. Looking at Rightmove, there is NOTHING 2-bed to be had for that price within 5 miles radius. Literally nothing. (There are 4 within 10 miles but 3 of those are house shares and that's the price per bedroom!)

Try and readjust your expectations closer to Sydney prices and you might be getting somewhere. Once you factor in ease of commute and schools, you'll pay out on those amenities. Population density is very high here. That means a lot of competition and high prices.

Use Rightmove to look for properties - you can download the app or look online. What many of us do when moving in the UK is look for good primary schools, look up the catchment area (often 1-2 miles), and put the school postcode into rightmove with "show all available properties within 1 mile" filter.

As an international solicitor you're more likely to find work in the cities. Remember you won't finish work early (realistically you'll be lucky to finish at 5:30), and with your rental budget you'll have to travel a good distance home. My Aus family don't tend to leave their kids in childcare after 5pm latest, but here you'll be looking for the latest childcare you can get if you are both working because school will be close to your house but work won't, and you'll need to factor in the commute too.

Alternatively you could try looking at posts in the Government Legal Department- lots of Australian lawyers there and while the pay is shit, the hours are flexible and you could tailor your hours to childcare/school hours if you need to. Just bear in mind most employers are mandating staff in office 2-3 days a week now; you might find it hard to cover childcare in that time if you're both required to be in.

To help find an area, does your dh have family here and have you ever been to the uk? Is there a reason you want to come here? Your budget is so unrealistic for a 2 bed flat for the type of area you need to live in to be able to command a high legal salary that it would help to know why you want to move.

I think you should really try to get a job lined up before moving. The IT market is really dire right now. I was out of work for 10 months before I secured a job.

You mention Leeds and that's probably a good place to look initially and far more affordable than London. There's plenty of law firms in Leeds and also being in Leeds will make Manchester, York (historical walled city, great for a day out) and Sheffield a bearable commute particularly if hybrid working and/or it's not forever while you get to know the area and amenities better.

Public transport is variable - some areas have buses every 10 minutes other might be more like 1/2 an hour. There's a regular fast train service between Leeds and Manchester that many people use as a regular commute. Both Leeds and Manchester have international airports, with Manchester being the largest so bigger choice of flights.

So you have access to 4 large cities but also very close to countryside/national parks although this is much quicker/easier with a car but there are some trains to places like Ilkley/Skipton and between Sheffield and Manchester through the Peak District.

Your DH could do worse than look at IT in the Civil Service. Salaries are likely to be (much?) lower than the private sector but it could be a secure job with a good pension - it's hard to recruit for specialists into the CS due to low pay so likely more likely to be vacancies with less competition than high paying private sector jobs.

https://www.civilservicejobs.service.gov.uk/csr/index.cgi?SID=b3duZXI9NTA3MDAwMCZwYWdlYWN0aW9uPXNlYXJjaGNvbnRleHQmcGFnZWNsYXNzPVNlYXJjaCZvd25lcnR5cGU9ZmFpciZjb250ZXh0aWQ9OTE3MjU5MjImcmVxc2lnPTE3MjM1MjcwMDUtYmNiYWRiODlmNjdjNTIwNWQ1ZmQ1YmNhZWIxOGRlYzczNGI3MDRjNA==

Leeds is reasonably served by local trains, so I'd try one of the outlying suburbs/towns for affordability. Again Rightmove is your friend.

Are you sure about having a transferable qualification? My friend qualified in Australia and had to take the QLTS exam in order to practice in England. This is now superseded by the SQE (unless exempt).

If you're aiming for exemption, then I'd suggest getting that in place before you travel.

https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/topics/international/how-to-become-a-solicitor-a-guide-for-international-lawyers-and-overseas-students

Some of the Midlands towns like Leamington Spa, Warwick, Kenilworth, Solihull and surrounding areas might fit the bill. Good transport links to Birmingham, Oxford and London. Lots of historical sites nearby like Warwick and Kenilwort Castles, Stratford upon Avon. Many good schools around too.

You know @wisteriahouse all this information would have been useful in your first thread - which you could simply have added to.

(BTW you can't edit posts on MN beyond the first 5-10 minutes after you post.)

Now you have two threads on the go instead of one!

Good luck, what an exciting adventure! Look at East Anglia - Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire. You can get a lot of house for your money in those areas and be near big towns, cities and commutable to London if you want as well as near coastline and countryside.

How exciting @wisteriahouse i think you’ll love it over here!

I don’t have any locations in mind though apart from Exeter.

I want to say good luck ☺️

I would stay well away from London. It’s an amazing city, but you need to be there either for work opportunities or out of love of the city. I don’t think either of those apply to you.

Leeds is a good option. Good city, great part of the country. Lots going on, easy to get to stubby countryside and other cities. I don’t know your sectors well enough to advise on locations, but I’d definitely look around Manchester, Sheffield, Leicester too.

That rental budget absolutely rules out London and southern cities like Oxford if you want the transport links plus good schools etc.

Your DH could secure a job prior to leaving as, since COVID, so many more companies are willing to interview online.

are you 100% sure you will not have to sit a conversion exam as mentioned by @NoWordForFluffy.

I’d say consider Leeds/ Manchester / Newcastle

You would be able to get a flat or small house in Bristol for that budget. Some areas more desirable than others. There are nearby towns but not all have good transport links. I love living here - it’s close to the southwest and Wales and there’s lots going on.

You would definitely be able to get an 'ok' 2 bed flat or a small ( not particularly amazing) house in Bath and surrounds - lots of legal and IT both in Bath and 11 miles away in Bristol ( connected on regular train) beautiful area, great schools, small walkable city with a vibe and lots of buses plus main line station - so lots of bars restaurants , music venues, festivals etc- It's unesco world heritage. It is touristy though so you have to be ok with certain periods being 'very busy' indeed - it does tick off your boxes though and we have lots of residents from all over the world - quite a lot of Americans, some from Hong Kong and tons of international students 2 universities

Possibly Cherry Hinton in Cambridge. A friend with school age DC is happy there. You could rent a flat there on your budget.

Slightly different thought to others but want you to be realistic.

We are hoping to travel around Europe on a regular basis (mostly long weekend trips) so convenience to an airport would be a plus.

The Department for Education have really toughened up the expectations around school attendance, mainly since COVID and the high proportions of children absent.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-improve-school-attendance
You wouldn't be able to frequently take your child away for long weekends (without penalty) unless you are thinking only in school holidays. This is maintained schools and academies I don't know about the expectations in the independent sector.

I'm adding that I love Europe and frequently wish I lived in Europe to be able to do the travelling you envisage. I don't know the legalities but could you live in Europe ( The Netherlands or Belgium perhaps).