To ask whether anyone has relocated to Cornwall?

[Picklesandpies]

Posting here for traffic. We have just returned from another lovely week on the South coast of Cornwall. I have been going once or twice a year for my whole life (now 32 and taking our children too) and every time I've been in the last few years I've felt more and more that it's somewhere I'd like to live someday. We relocated to Hampshire about three years ago and, whilst I'm not dreadfully unhappy, I just feel there is more to life than where we are now. Dh commutes two hours every day into London, quite a bit of travel etc and the lifestyle here isn't very fulfilling. We love walking, beaches and generally being outdoors with beautiful scenery. Cornwall obviously offers this in spades.

My question is - we live in a £500K+ house where we are now but obviously this is only possible with London salary - but I'm wondering what people do for a living in Cornwall who have biggish houses and a more salubrious lifestyle? Are they all retired? Is it inherited money? Second homes?

We really would look at moving down and don't mind taking a step back on property ladder in order to improve our lifestyle but the jobs that pay a decent (but obviously not London level!) salary just don't seem to be about down there. I'm just confused as to how people can afford the big houses you see.

Have been on Rightmove on the way home and even looking at a much cheaper house, I can't see how we could do it!

Ran away from Cornwall 12 years ago. Best thing we've ever done! No prospects at all there for us as a young family. You couldn't pay me enough to go back and that's coming after another move where i'm currently unhappy but it's still miles better than back end of Cornwall. Seriously think long and hard - the cornish also don't like anyone new - there are also major issues there.

I think its very unfair to say the Cornish don't like anyone new, I'm Cornish and take people as I find in fact my very good friends are from London.

I've found Cornwall to be outrageously friendly by the way, much more so than the other places I've lived in England.

Excellent point re Dorset. It has everything Cornwall has to offer and more, with fewer of the cons.

As a Cornish person, from one of the most deprived towns in the region, I can tell you that the people that manage ok are those who have indeed relocated and can manage a commute.
It's a shit place to live when you've got no money, and it's shit place to get any.

It's the most beautiful place on earth, and it's my home, but I'll never go back and moving my child out of there was the best thing I could have done for her. She might actually be able to make something of her life beyond the Tamar.

Dorset is nowhere near as beautiful or varied as Cornwall. Absolutely no comparison.

We live in SE Cornwall. Fortunately both DH and I are in medicine so have fairly well paid jobs, but most people who live in the £500k plus homes around here are either retired and relocated, second home owners or have a DH who works and lives in other areas of uk during the week/s. It seems to be the norm!

So agree with Hogs!
Ok so in my 15 years of experience of being an 'outsider' (moved there as a child and moved out in my 20s) friendly people were few and far between.
I know of so so many places as beautiful and more beautiful than Cornwall.

Dizzy, I agree that people there can be very unfriendly to outsiders. In fact, we even have a name for "non locals". Outsiders and holiday makers are known as "emmets", which means "ants".

An ex colleague (he's just retired) lived near Truro. He worked for my organisation from home which gave a decent salary.

The drawback was he basically accepted he was never going to develop in his role. There wouldn't be opportunities and promotions for him like there could potentially be for the rest of us in the offices.

He was happy with that but he was already in his 50's with a pension coming at 60 (remember those days!) so I dare say he'd weighed it up carefully.

I disagree Pea, I find Dorset more beautiful. In the eye of the beholder I suppose!

Also, average salary in Cornwall is about 23k, average house price (3 bed semi) is about 200k. Hence the vitriol towards second home owners! (See St. Ives or Port Isaac for examples of communities fighting the good fight against holiday homes).

Quick name change for this one

We have a fab lifestyle in Cornwall but dh was lucky enough to land an amazing one-off job and I landed on my feet workwise too. Mine is far from my London salary but the hours, benefits and opportunities are great.

I work with lots of people who have also relocated and brought loads of experience and skills to the company, most people are over qualified for their roles.

I've mostly made friends through the dcs and work, a mixture of Cornish people and those who have moved in. I find people really friendly- everyone speaks where I live.

We are not far from the area you're looking at and it's really lovely here, although some places can be a bit cut off (st mawes is gorgeous for example but full of holiday homes and miles from everywhere)

The schools are great - some lovely rural primaries and there's a great secondary on the Roseland or private schools in Truro if you want to go that route. The dcs have a lovely outdoorsy lifestyle and we can go to the beach after school for a swim in summer. We bought a 5 double bed house for under £400k.

Downsides - there are some deprivation issues in many of the local towns. People can be narrow minded and casually racist. There is little diversity. It's hell on the roads in the summer holidays. Going anywhere "up country" is a total mission. Salaries are generally poor unless you have a professional qualification. I hope my dcs choose to move away for uni or work to broaden their horizons.

I'm also surprised at the unfriendly comments as that is not our experience.

And we have Superfast broadband

Reading with interest as DH and I are seriously considering moving to Cornwall.

We've always loved the area but lack of work put a spanner in the works. He's now got a new job that is mostly working from home so we can finally relocate as we hate where we currently are.

We rent at the moment but could get so much more for our money (south east coast, v expensive and we're being priced out of the market as a lot of property here is snapped up for student housing ) but I'm not sure what the schools are like and I do worry about being 'incomers'.

Good to hear about the broadband

Cornwall's superfast broadband is directly from EU funding - that might tell you a little about the Cornish economy for Cornish folk.

I've read numerous threads on mumsnet about how poor us Cornish folk our and how shit our jobs and it always makes me mad. No we are not on London wages but very few outside of London are on London wages. There are also so many opportunities for well paid jobs, own businesses,online businesses and great careers. We are not an impoverished county who can't afford anything nor are we on horrifically low wages. Make the move, it's a lovely county to raise children and you won't suddenly find yourself living on the breadline.....

I relocated last year after 18 awful months in Exeter. I was lucky as I landed 2 jobs one in fitness (very part time) and my main one in the public sector. The main one is a contract for 2 years but I'm hopeful I'll be extended or land a permanent role if I want one.

Basically the majority of people I know who are working down here are working in the public sector, most of which is based in Truro.

I have to say there is a hugely different pace even in my main job, the ongoing joke is that when you move to Cornwall your career dies I sometimes wonder how anything gets done. I've previously lived in London and its a massive change, the community is more tight nit but you are viewed as an outsider, that's not to say people aren't friendly they just take their time getting to know you.

That is true for some people. Teaching, healthcare, and the council pay well. However, for most local people, there simply are not well paid jobs, and there certainly aren't affordable homes. Not every local Cornish person is poor, that is indeed true. But, a great deal of them are.
Although yes, that is very much area dependant. Truro has decent opportunities, as does the SE because of the ease of getting to Devon.

Only if you're loaded.
The hard up locals in seasonal work who can't afford to buy houses in their birthplace can seem a bit unfriendly.
Cornwall is beautiful though.

There is an island mentality down here and it can feel quite remote especially with all the blooming roadworks on the A30 You definitely need to drive as public transport is almost extinct. However, it's freaking beautiful and I have genuinely cried driving to work at the gorgeous scenery.

We moved to Devon (20 miles from Cornwall) from sw London just over a year ago and are very happy here.

My partner is a mechanic and I am a chef so there are always jobs and we were both lucky in finding jobs we both love here. Renting at the moment but will be buying next year after we sort the equity from my former marital home. £200k will buy a nice 3 bed house here where we wouldn't have been able to get a 1 bed flat for that in our previous area.

We love the calmer pace of life down here too.

By the way "up country" is not a euphemism for sex like I thought it was for a few weeks.