Ely or Winchester? Rightmove links.....rightmove psychosis part 2.

[TonbridgeorWinchester]

Vote YABU for Ely
Vote YANBU for Winchester

Been ravenously searching for a house for 2 years. Rightmove app shows 9 hours of usage per day. I've even taken an unpaid week off work to househunt it's taking so damn long.

Sorry to everyone for being a pain and asking again. Apparently Winchester is a no brainer.

I am considering a 2 bed flat in Winchester vs a 2 bed exposed beams house in Ely.

I have lived in Winchester and love it there.

My heart personally is in Winchester and having taught at Ely college I wouldn't really want my future child there and not sure about private at this stage due to rising costs, tax raids and bf's disapproval.

Ely is much closer to both my parents and sister but Winchester is close to my slightly more distant cousins.

The Winchester one I can buy for cash. NO mortgage. Plus has a garden for future baby.

My whole family and bf much prefer Ely house but I think Winchester is where I want to be. In my opinion it's location, location, location.

Which is best?

Ely rejected my initial offer and Winchester have accepted subject to viewing....

Winchester:
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/174066974#/?channel=RES_BUY

Ely:
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/92850702#/?channel=RES_BUY

I don't really fancy a mortgage.... even for a little amount. I'm done saving. I've been frugal for 10 years. I'm 28 and looking to start a family with my serious partner in about 5-7 years. Will be buying alone and get relevant legalities sorted.

My heart says Winchester.....

The house in Ely is much nicer. But I think Winchester would be a nicer place to live.

Have you seen Sussex street recently? I’d not want to live there.

I've never been to Winchester but I know Ely very well and I would happily live there. I don't know when you taught at Ely College but it got a new principal a few years ago and I really rate it now. However if you're 5-7 years off having children you're 16-18 years off them going to secondary school and schools change a lot in that time.

I have no idea what Ely is like.

Winchester has lots of great things going for it, but I would think twice about those flats. You have a busy road either side, and are sandwiched between a pub and multi-storey car park - not to mention the mainline to Waterloo just behind.

Neither of these places look ideal for a family.

Are you a fan of cathedrals OP?

I grew up in Ely and return regularly. It has the same problems as any other town but a stronger high street than most and with the addition of a nearby Cineworld complex not short of things to do.

I know it's technically a city!

The flat looks quite small for a family and it’s on a very busy road. If you’re considering Winchester a house with a mortgage would be better than no mortgage but an unsuitable flat. Also the schools are great so you wouldn’t even have to consider private.

Why are you making offers on a property you haven't seen yet?

I’m not sure I’ve read everything properly

My understanding is that you’re suggesting the advantage of the Winchester flat is the lack of mortgage.

How much would a small mortgage on the Ely house cost compared to the annual service charge on the Winchester flat.

A mortgage gets paid off in the long run, but the monthly service charge will continue in perpetuity. So if finances are playing a part in your thinking the Ely property is more appealing.

I know Ely but not Winchester. The house in Ely is much nicer. Prefer the Ely street too. But it's clear from your OP that you don't want to live in Ely. So take out a small mortgage and get a house you want in Winchester, you're 28, it's what most of us did at that age.

I think the reason you're dithering so much is because you don't want either property.

Ive visited both places & like to travel round

Winchester is near to New Forest & Bournemoth, Weymouth, Isle of Wight

Ely is near to Norfolk Coast, Norfolk Broads, Norwhich, Cambridge

I would choose Ely
Freehold
Cheaper than Winchester

I understand the temptation of no mortgage, I really do. But I think as soon as you have a baby you'll want a different house.

So I guess the question is, do you buy a flat now and move again after starting a family, or do you get a small mortgage now to enable you to buy a 3-bedroom house, and not need to move again? There's no one right answer here of course, and maybe your mind's already made up!

I agree with this

Winchester state schools are the best
all of the primary and secondary catchments are good
and of course Symonds is fab

Once the A34 roadworks are done, the riverside walking and cycling will be excellent

Easy train connections to all over the country

Biased as I live in Winchester. However I would
not go for that flat. It’s a busy road, next to the council office and big car park.

if Winchester is where you want to be I would look at a house with a garden and a mortgage.

I think you need to decide where you want to live first, and then look for suitable properties. Where are your jobs? Where do you currently live? Why those two places?
re properties, I do t like either. The flat looks like a basement flat with the windows being so high, and the kitchen in Ely looks awful, nor is the house suitable for a family. Easier to get a mortgage now, get ahead patient g it off than when you have children. Also, once you do have children… it really is much easier living near family

Love my home town (Winchester) but the city centre to raise a family? Especially in that awful spot on Sussex street?

If you need a 2 bed place, try Kings Worthy. Maisonettes for essentially the same price with a bit of garden and a garage.

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/94411503#/?channel=RES_BUY

And, easy bus/taxi links to town.

OP you are dithering because you don’t know what you want and what your non-negotiables are…you are going for random locations (Tonbridge) and really unsuitable properties. Before putting in offers, decide on location first, then decide on size and budget. But be a little open minded because if you really want a child, you need to buy a property with that in mind unless you are happy to move later. Most people go for a 3 bed house with a family friendly layout and a mortgage because there is logic in doing that and getting it right first time even if you have to pay more. Moving is expensive and as you have seen, looking for a property is really stressful. You are only 28, you have plenty of time to pay off a smallish mortgage.

Reselling a flat in the future is likely going to be much harder due to leasehold! Also you’re at the mercy of service charges increasing. I wouldn’t want to live in the Winchester flat with a young baby/child.

The Ely house kitchen is totally impractical for life with a baby or children!

Id keep searching for better properties that will suit you for the longer term! What is the rush? Patience will pay off.

I’ve not read both full threads, but I live really close to where you’re looking at in Winchester. I moved here a few years ago now and I love it here.

I’m at a different stage of life from you, but I’m reading you are trying to account for everything, not only now, but also very different future scenarios, and that feeling resonates. I bought here anyway even though it was not necessarily the most sensible option, and I haven’t regretted it for a moment yet. I may do in a few years but I’ve decided I’ll cross that bridge when it comes to it. I have no idea about Ely.

No one can possibly know which would be ‘best’ your variables are too uncertain so you’re not going to be able to get a definitive answer on paper. Anyone who’s giving you advice is telling you what would be important to them, not you.. See the Winchester flat, see how you feel about it, and determine when you make a decision, one way or another, you will focus on what you are getting from wherever you buy, not on what you could have had instead.

i remind myself of why I chose to buy here every day, rather than thinking about the reasons i could have decided differently. I figure if it ultimately ends up as less than ideal, at least I’ll remember why I’m here in the first place and I’m less likely to view it as a ‘mistake’. It helps me to do this when I make big decisions and it’s worked so far.

good luck either way 🤞

I love Winchester, but I'd have no desire to live on that street.

Do you really want a leasehold property? Is there nothing else better in Winchester?

Not that street in Winchester! Keep looking

There are some nice terrace houses in Badger Farm where you could raise your family.
Sussex Street is a weird choice