AIBU to be so worried about moving to the right area in Surrey I may not end up moving at all

[blunderandfrightening]

Moving out of London and preferred area is Surrey. The thing is I can't see us ever moving because we are so worried about getting the area right.
AIBU to think the choice is so vast that we will never move.

Where would you recommend in the Surrey area.

Good schools, pretty location but close to a station?

Pirbright has a lovely village green and pubs. There are community events on the green too. It is very close to Brookwood train station that has a fast service to Waterloo around 35 minutes.
Not sure what the local private schools are though.

Pyrford! Very villagey and really feels like you're in the countryside. 1 mile away from west byfleet station which is 27 mins to Waterloo.

Don't touch Woking with a bargepole. I grew up there and couldn't wait to get away.
Guildford is nice though, but pricey. My mum has been very happy there and made loads of friends in last 30 odd years.

Could you rent in your chosen location for six months tone sure it was right?

We hated Surrey (sorry!), but were close to Epsom - I think there is a massive difference between 'rural' Surrey and 'urban Surrey'. We thought we'd do the rural Surrey move, and we looked at Haslemere, Chiddingfold, Godalming etc which were lovely but we found our budget went further in West Kent, so have ended up in Tunbridge Wells....which isn't as rural as I'd have liked but is a great compromise, sitting between London and the sea, having great schools, lovely people and lots happening culturally......I have lots of friends still in Surrey (Esher, Kingston, Surbiton, Walton...) but I wouldn't go back in a million years.

Oh and if you look at www.lifeafterlondon.com there are loads of locals who could help narrow down areas that you like/answer questions once you've found somewhere.

Why did you hate it so much?

Farnham is very lovely.

Not sure how many pubs there are, I only ever stuck with the one. But its got character, a village feel, its near green stuff and is very pretty.

blunderandfrightening my kids are at a private achool in Camberley that is excellent my mum also is a teacher there (so im bias) I can dm you the info if u want

I thought Laleham was in Middlesex? Its too close to Staines but is very pretty.

how old are your dses? You can't assume they will get entry into a good private school any easier than a state one. Some pre-enrol at birth ! Ashtead is quite pleasant with a choice of prep schools, Tadworth/Banstead likewise or Bookham ?

I found it all horribly 'nouveau', all anyone cared about was what car they were getting next, what their decor was like, how big their bonus was and where they were going to play golf next time - and I just never met any other kindred spirits who couldn't give a monkeys about how much money anyone else had or what car they drove, or about golf .....etc

I accept that more rural Surrey is possibly different, but with 4 DCs we needed more space than we could afford in those areas. Eg, a friend of mine has just moved to the most perfect house in Haslemere, which is a place I would have liked to have lived, but it's over £2m which is a little (!) out of our league!!

Wow lot's of posts to catch up on.

Layla
Yes please to PMing me details. Thank you

What is Staines like?

Permanentpanicmode

Sounds awful. Can't bear all that one upmanship.

Haslemere sounds interesting.

Budget should be fine to find a house in those areas but I would rather have less house and be surrounded by genuinely nice people.

You guys are so helpful. Thank you all. Will be googling that website too thanks permanent

LIZS
Thanks for the heads up on competition to get into private schools. I naively did think they would just need to take a test. I suppose we will be dictated as to where they can get in.

A bland and deadly

Yes we could rent but it's always worrying with a rising market that we'll get priced out if we end up not finding anything. But good thought could save £££'s in mistakes.

Epsom is great! Very friendly and I've not found it snobby at all. Have only been here a year and have made loads of new friends. I'd totally recommend it

Farnham is affluent but doesn't seem too snobby to me (I work there but don't live there). There are nice shops, lots of pubs and restaurants, lots of lovely little side streets, lovely villages all around, a lot of community stuff going on, nice parks and lots of private schools within reach. Traffic can be a pain though, it gridlocks easily.

Epsom! Lived here 10 years, nice and green, good schools, good transport links and near to open countryside.

Haven't read the whole thread but these villages and nice & near Guildford/Godalming.
Shalford
Chilworth
Bramley
Wonersh
Cranleigh
Shere
Compton
Puttenham
Wanborough

wherever you are thinking, note the horrific traffic. I left 2 years back and it has got much worse even then.

lovely part of the world - which is probably why it is so full!

Perma - yes, it's very much like that where I live - very nouveau riche.