Is this possible?

[AWiseWomanOnceSaidFuckThisShit]

I'm seriously considering moving away, not just yet but in a few years. I currently live in a lovely little house but it's terraced and has very thin walls. My next goal to achieve either a big semi detached or even detached though the latter might be too ambitious. My budget hopefully in a few years would be around £180k. I earn £30k at the moment (no kids) and I'd be willing to take a pay cut if they pay less up there. I'm only in admin and I'm really not ambitious, but would I have to secure a new job first as if I do that would affect the amount I could borrow? I want to move as close to Scarborough as possible in an area that is decent but I'm not expecting Knightsbridge either... there are a lot of myths about property being cheaper up north! Is this doable?

The 'property being cheaper up north' is true in a very generalised sense, but 'the north' is a huge area and like the south there are cheaper and more expensive towns, cheaper and more expensive areas. Have you looked on Rightmove in the Scarborough area to see what you could afford?

It's too early to say where property prices will be in a few years' time given the state of the economy. I live in a non-touristy, non-coastal part of Yorkshire and £180k wouldn't get you anything very marvellous at the moment. Having lived both in the north and south, it's always seemed to me that the top and bottom of the property market are more affected by the 'cheaper up north thing'. E.g. where I live you could get a small terrace needing modernisation in a poor area for less than £50k, which would be unheard of in most areas of the south; anything above £500k would get you a very desirable detached property (or enormous Victorian semi) - but for the middle range of semis and average detached houses in a 'nice' area you would still be looking at the £200 - £300k bracket.

So my advice would be to research, save as much as you can and see what happens to the property market as a whole in the aftermath of Corona.

The issue you might find is that salaries are lower where you go, so you can't secure as big a mortgage.

Also my personal view is location trumps house so do your research.

But in general, those moving north find they can get more house for their money.

Pelleas is right about the extremes for sure. Average property prices in the north are slightly affected by the fact that there is far more surplus housing in undesirable areas with high unemployment, that is as a result very low priced.

However the north isnt magic alternate universe of affordability. The lower prices are linked with much lower wages.

As a result, the people I know who have done best out of moving north fit into two buckets:

• Dual income couples earning £70-100k between them in jobs where wages are relatively stable nationwide (teaching, medical related), where that income gets you a 2 bed flat in a crap area in the south east but a nice 4 bed in the north (without taking much pay cut to move).
• people who earn a south east/london salary and save a huge deposit, then take it up north where it goes further, so that they have a relatively small mortgage they can service despite taking a significant pay cut when they move.

I’m not North but I live in a town with middle of the road housing prices. There are some areas where you could get a house for £180k but it’s not somewhere I would want to live. These were 3/4 bed houses. I bought my 3 bed in a much more desired area for more around the £250k price.

Agree with the PP that you’ll need to look at the area and decide if the cost is reflective of that area or if it’s low housing prices in general.

That was my main question really. I could borrow x amount on my current salary so what I'd like to do is buy a house based on that then look for another job when I've relocated. Even on a lower salary I could handle the bills plus I would probably rent out rooms just to bulk up my nest egg. But I guess the lender would start asking questions about my 200 mile commute to work every day once they seen my new address :-(

It's widely believed that there will be a shift now to greater home working, so location of job vs. home may become less important for roles which can be done at home. A 200 mile commute might become something you could do, say, once a month while WFH the rest of the time.

It's a little dream of mine. Living in a big, quiet house near my favourite seaside town. I know loads of people think it's a shit hole but I don't. Not for the most part anyway. I would have two decent lodgers topping up the bank balance, I would only work part time. My parents would be up there three times per year and I would travel back down that often so we'd still see each other regularly and I'd still be in touch with my friends. Plus I might even make new ones up there. I love East Yorkshire and I've no ties...I hope one day it can turn into some sort of reality :-)

Scarborough's OK but if I were going to move to the coast, I'd choose nearby Filey - much quieter.

I wouldn't bank on renting out rooms in your new place. The market for that sort of thing in London and university towns/cities is (well, was, but post covid hopefully will be again) lively. But outside of these areas the market for rooms is practically non-existent.

Yes it's just a pipe dream for now. If I seriously started making moves I'd be researching everything from lodger availability, job opportunities, crime stats and everything else I could think of down to what Internet providers are available. I'd probably spend a good month living there in a b&b or rental too just to get a feel of the locals, atmosphere etc.