To wonder why people struggle to live in London.

[m1nniedriver]

Just honestly wondering what it is about London that makes people on, as I see it, huge salaries want to live in tiny flats just because it's london? The cost of living there seems riduculous. Some of the posts on here about the cost of housing just beggars belief! A tiny 1 bedroom flat for 300k?? If that's what you want then power to you but I do see posts with people say they are struggling and stressing every day to get by. Why would you not move to another part of the country that would enable a much better quality of life?

I'm not great at putting things across on posts so I hope this doesn't offend anyone its is meant as a genuine question, not having a go.

I've not rtft (criminal offence I know) but seriously, what is it about London that makes every Tom, Dick and Harry feel entitled to badmouth it and harangue the people who are clearly mugs for living here? I wouldn't say to someone - why the fuck do you live in Hull? It's a shithole. For example.

I live in London because I was born here, because all my family and friends live here, because I love the city, its vibrancy, its multiculturalism, its food. Etc etc etc. I earn much more here than I would anywhere else and right now I choose to pay high rent so I can live in a place that I love.

I am now pregnant with my first and we are going to buy somewhere. We can't afford to do that in London. We are going to have to move out and it breaks my heart every day to think about it. This is my home.

wash of course it doesn't disappoint, but I disagree, and that's fine, but I still find it odd why people are getting so offended. You were obviously one of them judging by your tone. By the way, I didn't say there was more to do just for kids, but in general, and I don't think that's ridiculous, or wrong but hey ho, you do, never mind, good job you live in Devon

There is more to do in London but that wouldn't personally make me want to live there. You can get to those things pretty quickly easily and cheaply without actually living there. e.g. I live in the Midlands and it only takes me an hour and 20 minutes to get to London (from my door) so often go there with the children on a Saturday.

Oh and also for me I couldn't give a stuff about museums as I find them the most boring places on earth, it's all the little things you can't get elsewhere that make me not want to leave.

We go to London a lot but live in Devon and find shed loads more to do down here with kids particularly if you don't want to spend oodles of cash.Sorry if that disappoints.

I'm endlessly cheered that all the brilliant free things to do with kids round here are apparently deadly secret from the tourists. Maybe we have a different internet just for people who live here? Whatever the reason, I'm not complaining.

Honestly, what are all you lot spending your oodles of cash on?

In all honesty - I suspect people have their routines and places they go regularly with their kids wherever they live, that they just don't experience when they're on holiday and doing 'special' things. The last two Sunday afternoons, DH and DS have pootled around various bits of London, looking at things, poking around Tower Bridge a bit, talking about different buildings, nipping into a gallery for half an hour, having a nice walk in general. Hasn't cost a penny either time except for ice creams as a treat. (I got to stay home as I'm on week 36 of hyperemesis.) But I suspect not how you'd spend an afternoon if you were here on holiday.

Still curious to know what you lot are spending your money on though. That's the second weird comment of that sort on the thread, and I'm still no wiser.

But you're wrong.There isn't more to do in London,that is just your opinion

You can't have it both ways! Either it's a matter of opinion - she thinks there's more to do in London, you don't, it's a matter of opinion and no one's right or wrong, but it's a valid reason for her to prefer living in London.

Or, there is an objective right and wrong, and there exists a national ranking of Where Is The Place With Objectively The Most To Do In The UK, in which case one of you can be right, and one of you can be wrong, and I assume everyone will be happy.

wash so I'm not wrong then...

"There isn't more to do in London,that is just your opinion.confused."

No, that's your opinion and you are so wrong that I can hardly contain my laughter.

Look at "things to do for free" in London for today on timeout which is just a selection, and compare it to what is going on wherever you live. Then add 10 world class museums and art gallaries, several UNESCO world heritage sites, street performances, markets, food festivals, stuff going on in local pubs, shops, parks ad infinitium.

Pl

Late to the party but...how long is a piece of string?

Some people have to work in London. Huge amount of employment opportunities compared to elsewhere in the country. I just typed my job role into a job search site and it came up with more than 100 vacancies in London, 13 in the rest of the UK combined .

(and if all the public sector workers and people who provide essential services like me decided to piss off out of London...what would happen?)

Some people love London.

Some people have their family and roots in London.

Some of us (me and DH!) have all of the above!

I totally support anyone who finds that living in London is just too much, too expensive, too crowded, whatever...

But I will NEVER leave. Its where I'm from, its who I am, its where I am raising my DC. London 'til I Die

Longtime, for heavens sake don't tell them about the secret London internet!!

Oh damn, should I mention that there are several apps that can tell you this stuff too, oh hang on, that stuff doesn't work outside London does it ;)

lurked there are a lot of posts on here where people complain( Not sure if that's the right word) about how they can barely manage to get by financially because their rent is ridiculously high in London. That's why I posted it. If there were similar posts about Manchester, Liverpool or wherever I would wonder the same thing.

For what's it worth it's not jealousy on my part or anything like it. If I wanted to live in any other City in the country I would, I'm more than happy where I am, as I pressume are all the people who have moved here from the SE in recent years.

This wasn't a 'my place is better than yours' thread but seems to have developed into that I blame the Londoners

Oh, of course Londoners all complain about how expensive it is. Its our regional sport

But the ones that stay do so either because they want to or have to.

if they didn't want to or have to stay...they wouldn't!

I prefer local museums,they are often better. More thought put into them and less of a reliance on gimmicks.You can rarely get close to exhibits in London museums.

You really are going to the wrong London museums. Always happy to take recommendations, though.

And sorry but looking at Tower Bridge and buildings ad nauseum would drive me bonkers. Ice cream or not. You do find buildings outside of London

Oh goodness, how very sneery about a nice one-off afternoon my DH and DS had! DS (4) is hugely into engineering at the moment (thanks, Nina and the Neurons) and it was something he really wanted to see. You have a good Tower Bridge (or any bascule bridge) round your way, do you? Will let them know.

Hardly 'ad nauseam', just one random afternoon out. Last week's was different, and next time will be different again. That's the good thing about round here, always something different to do.

Bit more to London than you seem to think. Maybe you're doing it wrong?

You can tell yourself that Wash, but it just isn't true is it. The foyer of the NHM blows any local museum to smithereens, being able to see the Magna Carta, Da Vinci's note books, hand written lyrics by the Beatles and all sorts of others at the British Library trumps pretty much anything a local museum has, and thats just two and outside of peak summertime all this is easy to get into.

"More thought put into them and less of a reliance on gimmicks" which is why the best qualified curators and biggest tourist attraction museums in the world are in London is it? Do you think its all Ripley's believe it or not? Really?

You make yourself sound a bit silly don't you?

But eternal, no one starts threads that say "Why does anyone struggle to live in Manchester/Dorest/Hull" do they?

London is a unique 'situation' though, i'm not denying that.

I think what some people struggle to get their heads around is why some people are so adamant that they must stay there, even when it results is a fairly low standard of life - mainly in regards to housing and paying £££ to be raising dc in a teeny flat, but still hanging on by your fingernails because it's London. You don't really get that anywhere else.

I get that some people have to stay there for work. Which is unfortunate if they'd like to move and can't.
And I get that some people want to stay there because they grew up there. Or just because they like living there in general.

I LOVE the area I live, even though, compared to the rest of the my County, property is very expensive. There is a fairly clear East/West divide in my County - I could buy a house double the size of mine if I moved 5 miles East, for the same money (or less even).

I don't want to or need to atm - but as much as I would hate to move, if I was forced into a 2 bed flat in my area then I wouldn't stay for the sake of it. But many Londoners do seem to. Which I don't get.

Jobs we both do only exist in London. Commuting from outside London would be expensive and we wouldn't get back in time to collect our child from nursery on the days we both work, nor could we manage drop off.

I don't want to or need to atm - but as much as I would hate to move, if I was forced into a 2 bed flat in my area then I wouldn't stay for the sake of it. But many Londoners do seem to. Which I don't get.

Maybe they just don't share the general British obsession with living in A House, and don't think it's the be all and end all for quality of life?

When you look at how many more people live in flats on the Continent, our obsession with actual houses being the only acceptable option (while simultaneously declaring that the country is too full) is a bit odd. I understand it myself - I come from somewhere where the houses are much, much bigger than the average British house, and I know my parents are secretly horrified by my 3-bed semi. But it's not automatic for everyone than house+garden = optimum quality of living.

Its because its London, Eternal that people cling to it, it just has that vibe that some people find intoxicating. Others don't, but no one from here goes on to mn going: "Why the fuck would you live in Hartlepool". Now I'm from Hartleool, it has its charms, but I wouldn't now for love nor money. I'm not inclined to sneer at those who are from there for being stupid though.

Hahaha it has hasn't it minnie it's positive everyone is defending there cities/towns so fiercely, London clearly rules though

To add to the above, in London there are all the big museums that the tourists go to PLUS tonnes of 'local' specialist museums that are less busy, normally free and fascinating. For example, yes the natural history museum is fantastic but we also have the horniman (my local) which is great for kids into animals and UCLs grant museum of zoology which is a little more bizarre (jar of moles?) but also free.

Anyway it's not a contest, you all choose to live where you live, I choose to live here. In my opinion it's the best city in the world and I've lived in loads :)

I work in London but live outside of it, and spend 2.5 - 3 hours a day commuting. My job moved to London. Really wish I didn't work there, but I'm in a niche field and it's proving very difficult to find something elsewhere!