Moving back to UK after 13 years in America

[emzie889]

Hi all,

I came to the USA when I was 18 to study abroad and have lived here for the past 13 years, but I want to move back to the UK as I miss family, friends and the culture.

I am a 31 year old single female with no kids. I don't care about living near London at all, so a long distance away from the city isn't an issue for me. I have looked at coastal towns as I have a dog and love the outside lifestyle, beach etc, which I am very accustomed to, but I am really not familiar with any areas as I left the UK at such a young age.

Would anyone be able to recommend areas? Ideally I would like an area with lots of outside stuff to do, dog friendly, a good amount of people around my age, good nightlife and restaurants, shopping etc and a safe area.

I am trying to work remotely for my old company as they have a location in the UK, so I don't need to be near a specific area for work purposes. Rent amount would ideally be up to 1000 pounds tops

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. I am also open to other areas that aren't coastal towns if they were nice and fit all my criteria, but coastal would be my preference.

Where do your family live?

@ThatDirection

Where do your family live?

Yes, that's key - if you're moving all this way to be closer to your family then presumably you don't want to be too far away from them. I live 100 miles from my family, which is a PITA as it's over 2 hours' drive and to do that there and back in a day is a lot, but we have to live where we do because of DH's work. As you don't have that issue, it help you to narrow your search.

They are also in America about 3 hours from me.

Wait - what? I thought you wanted to move back to the UK to be closer to your family???

I guess what I said isn't exactly clear. Parents are here in America too but want to eventually move back to the UK to retire. Cousins and grandparents live in Kent, but I honestly don't want to live in that area and it is very expensive. I wouldnt mind driving to see them though.

Exmouth: beach and Woodbury common for dog and not too far from Dartmoor.
Town is not super exciting but has all the basics and only 10 miles from Exeter for a better choice of nightlife, restaurants etc. Topsham is lovely, but quite pricey.

Which country of the UK?

England. Should have specified that. It has been a long 24 hours of research and lack of sleep :P

£1000 a month in the SE won't get you very far, I wouldn't have thought, certainly not in a nice seaside town with good restaurants and nightlife.

What kind of place are you looking for - a room in a shared house or your own flat/house?

what's wrong with Kent, or don't you want to be too near the clan.
i was going to say brighton-hove, but maybe the money won't stretch.
or somewhere in essex. leigh-on sea, or somewhere near there.
or more rural remote areas, near bradwell on sea, maldon.
or orford. is that suffolk. not sure. but those are remote. no night life amd not much day-time activity either.
will you be able to afford to run a car, or will you be hiring one as and when required, or car club.

I was looking more Devon area. Also considered Bournemouth and Portsmouth. Not too fussed about the SE to be honest.

I would prefer my own place but a 1 bed is fine. I have a dog too and from what I have heard renters aren't as dog friendly in England?

There is nothing wrong with Kent, I just prefer a change of scenery from where I grew up. I am looking at about 40,000 pounds wage wise based on my position and the job I will have there.

I have a car here which will cost thousands to transfer overseas so I will be selling it once I move back. I am thinking I will get around 20-25k for it.

You’ll need a good plan B should you lose your current job, eg financial security, it’d it’d be crap to enjoy and make friends only to have to move for work. so suggest somewhere within commuting distance of London or another large city, unless your job is very portable, eg healthcare.

Would rule Devon and probably also Bournemouth out on jobs grounds.

I lived in Bournemouth for most of my life. Good connection to London, great nightlife (pre Covid!) loads and loads of our doors things to do. Poole is good also (pretty much the same place) and a 2 bed flat is about £800 a month. The beach is lovely, right next to the new forest and Jurassic cost but also very cosmopolitan. Biggest downside can be traffic and tourists but it wouldn’t be bust if it wasn’t nice

@emzie889

There is nothing wrong with Kent, I just prefer a change of scenery from where I grew up. I am looking at about 40,000 pounds wage wise based on my position and the job I will have there.

I have a car here which will cost thousands to transfer overseas so I will be selling it once I move back. I am thinking I will get around 20-25k for it.

Why transport the car and then try and sell it here? Would it not make more sense to sell it before you leave if you're not.planning on keeping it anyway? 25,000 is a lot for a left hand drive here..

Location wise, does it have to be coastal? There are some lovely places in Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire in or Worcestershire, and probably not as expensive as the south east.

Yes, I am selling the car before I leave. Should have said selling it when moving back not once I move back. Brain is not working today.

Highly unlikely to be able to afford anything in the area you want on that budget. Certainly not if you want a dog - most rentals in the UK are not dog friendly unless it's a larger family home. Apparently renters in small houses aren't allowed dogs .

What breed of dog do you have?

A cavalier king charles spaniel.

I know you have family in Kent, but have you thought about the North East? Beautiful beaches, coastline and countryside and Newcastle is never that far away for nightlife, shopping etc. £1000 a month would go much further too, you'd get a really nice property for that.

Bristol, Clevedon, Wells, Cheddar all in the south west.

$20-$25k for a second-hand car? What make and model? We have just bought a new Jeep for not much more. Have you sold a car here before? They depreciate very quickly. Is that the KBB value?

I would think for a social life at your age you need to be near a city.
So the outskirts of a city which has a good bus service.
Getting from the 'north' to the SE is not easy even if it doesn't look far, due to the M25 round London. At holiday times it's a nightmare.

Areas in the SW are sometimes not well connected if you go too far. You'd get more for your money if you went up north a bit

Wow - loads of negative replies on here.

How exciting OP to be moving country and starting a new life. What pay of Kent food you grow up in? It's a big enough county that you could move far from where you grew up and it would feel different. There's are some lovely costal parts of Ken from which you could get a train in to London if you needed to.

Traffic congestion in the UK can make journey times long, even if it looks like a short amount of miles by US standards. I love x180 miles from parents but still so the journey infrequently as the journey can take anything from 3.5 hours to 5.5 hours depending on what the M25 is doing. We never just go there for a weekend because Friday evenings are worst for traffic. So, I would look to be within 40 or 50 miles of your family if you want to see them often.