Relocating to the North-East

[Tralee]

We need to move from Berkshire to the North-East (DH now working in Gateshead). I'm very excited - the countryside is beautiful, there seems to be hardly any traffic compared with down south, and anyway I have itchy feet! My sons are recently fledged and launched so I don't need to consider toddler groups or schools, but although we've done a huge amount of driving around and quite a lot of house viewing I would really value insider knowledge on specific areas. I'm used to needing my car (or bicycle) for even a pint of milk and all my friends here are a car ride away so I don't imagine myself living in the heart of a settlement, but I don't want to find we've bought a house close to a village that is going to make it difficult to sell in the future, should we need to. (Sorry this is so long, by the way!) Any suggestions where to avoid in the region about 20 miles south and west of Gateshead? Any help would be much appreciated!

Hi, we live in chester le street. I'd say we are about 8 miles outside of centre of Gateshead (11 miles to Newcastle and 5 miles into Durham). I/my family are from Gateshead although we move to Chester le street when I was 5. Most of my family still live in and around Gateshead.

Where In Gateshead I your dh's job based

I used to work 9-5 in the centre of newcastle and the traffic was a nightmare on the A1 western bypass.

Whickham is nice and close to Gateshead centre.

I live in Chester-le-street too! It's lovely! Good access to the A1 and, speaking as someone who works in Gateshead, fine to commute in the mornings!

Low fell is very nice too, saltwell park is there and was apparently once voted the best park in Britain! It has lots of parts to walk round and low fell has a good high street with sone nice shops.

Would also second whickham. Be careful about moving north of the river simply because anything involving the Tyne tunnel / centre of Newcastle can be a bit of a nightmare commute.

Where are you thinking of? It really us a fabulous part of the world to live in. I'm not from here originally but love it a lot!

hello - I'm in Durham and I love it. Were you thinking of Durham at all?

There is a Durham local thread, tho I think I'm the only person who lives in the city. The others live in villages and more up towards Gateshead. You could come over and ask them! We're ever so friendly :) Durham thread

I live in Great Lumley just outside of Chester-le-Street and travel to the West of Gateshead (Rowlands Gill) everyday. There are so many beautiful places to choose from. High Spen in West Gateshead is a lovely friendly village, Low Fell is great for restaurants and cafes. If I was to move again, I'd want to live near to the coast, Tynemouth is beautiful. My brother lives there and I would love to.

Good Luck, hope the move goes well. I lived in Bucks for twenty years before moving back to the NE and I haven't regretted it once. When you get here have a drive/walk to the Quayside on a Sunday moring and I guarantee you will love it.

Thanks, everyone, for this response - so much appreciated!

StickyLFDTfingers, thanks also for your invitation to visit the Durham group here - message duly posted! I love Durham when we visit, but for complicated reasons DH needs a large garden and is convinced he needs to be further out.

PotteringAlong, thanks for the warning about the Tyne Tunnel - DH is aware! He's happy to drive for 40 mins or so each way (I wouldn't be!) so we have quite a wide area to consider.

I would hate anyone to be offended, so if anyone would care to PM me with information on the areas to be avoided, that would be great.

When the new Tyne tunnel opens things might be better. Tell him to get one of the tag things from here if he's doing it regularly.

What's your budget and what size of house do you need? If you have no schools to sort out it might be worth renting for a year to get a feel for what you like. We moved 4 years ago and love the north east.
I'm another one who, although love where we live, would have moved near tynemouth If was doing it again.

Nikos, up to around £360K I guess, although it would need to be pretty special at that price - nothing left for replacing purple carpets, for example! (Now I've offended everyone with purple carpets...). Need a flat garden large enough for a workshop (DH makes furniture in spare time) and garage as well.

We have his rented city flat until May 2012 anyway, but I'm reluctant to rent a house for longer in case prices start moving upwards again and leave us behind. Tricky.

Anyone care to comment on Burnhope? Bishop Middleham? Leadgate? Hamsterley Mill? (All places we've seen houses for sale in.)

...should have said - please do PM me rather than post anything that might risk offending someone.

i will PM you tralee

At rush hour, 40 mins via the Tyne Tunnel or A1 Western Bypass won't see you moving many miles. So lovely as Tynemouth/the coast is, I would save it for w/end visits. You would also struggle to get a large flat garden there. Co Durham and Tyne Valley villages definitely your best bet, but in the case of the latter go for South of the Tyne, to avoid having to do a peak-time river crossing.

Bishop Middleham is just up the road from me; very pretty place and some very nice houses- there is a peacock living in the garden of one of them!-. Good school (dh's cousin is the dinner lady), couple of nice pubs , good butcher

I went to university in Durham and love the north east so much that I stayed and persuaded my now DH to join me! We rent in Gosforth at the moment, now looking to buy in the same area as we really like it- great local high street with fab pubs, everything we need within walking distance, and easy access to A1, or centre of town via Metro/car.

Much of the housing stock is Victorian/ Edwardian terraces, and the larger one with gardens are v pricy, but there are also areas of 1930s semis with gardens & garages, still near the high street, and more modern housing further out of the centre.

My job sometimes requires me to travel to various places around the local area, often south of the Tyne, and while I agree the Western Bypass isn't great at rush hour, it's surprising how many places I can get to on the Metro system without having to use the car at all- it's ideal for commuting if your DH's work is near a station (I always go on the Metro when I have to go to Gateshead)

I wouldn't now buy anywhere that wasn't within walking distance of a Metro station- also means you can get to Newcastle Airport and Central Station without having to use the car.

Not trying to sell Gosforth only by the way, just wanted to make the point that the Metro system can get around the Tyne Tunnel/ Western Bypass issue.

Re some of the other places mentioned, I agree Low Fell is lovely. If you want something more rural, be careful how far up the Tyne or Wear valleys you are- in the Wear Valley especially theres only really one road in and out and it can be very isolated - my parents were looking at houses in these areas but eventually moved to where road links are better.

Captainwentworth, can I hijack you a second?

I'm staying at the gosforth travelodge soon. Am travelling via train from York Is it walking distance from a metro station?

Op, northeast is lovely. I know middlesborough area better than where you want but get yourself to the north York moors for some gorgeous scenery.

We live in a village to the west of durham which is lovely. Or have you thought about somewhere around the hamsterley area?

Viva, are you in M'bro? I didn't know that! I have a load of family in Stockton/Middlesbrough/Guisborough area

oooh that makes me sound rough

Not in the boro anymore but used to live on ayresome park rd when the footie ground used to be there.

Hi VialaBeaver- have just checked where the Travelodge is and it appears to be right on the junction with the A1 just north of Gosforth proper. It's about 2 miles up the high st from the nearest station, Regents Centre (but high street does turn into quite a big road before it joins the A1). Might be a BT of a hike unfortunately. Regents Centre is also a bus interchange (& there may be a taxi rank? not sure) so there might be a bus going past the Travelodge on the way to the new Great Park housing development on the other side of the motorway.

Sorry that's prob not v helpful!

That would be bit not BT- iPhone...

I'm a little bit inland of Whitley bay, gorgeous village and close to the beach, Gateshead is just a short hop along the a1, about 30 mins away. I don't know much about the other side of the water but I can wax lyrical about my area. Depends on your budget and type of house you're looking for I guess.

Also live in the gorgeous North East - so much to see and do here and it's all so pretty (except Gateshead town centre!) but had to come on and say that Leadgate and Burnhope are yuk - sorry if anyone on here lives there.

I actually live north of the river in Gosforth and commute to Gateshead everyday and if you plan it right it isn't so bad traffic wise. Gosforth is lovely, fab schools, brill amenities, excellent access & transport but you don't get much house for your money and some like ours although lovely houses only have a postage stamp for a garden. I love Wylam and would snap up a house there in a minute if I could.