Any great commuter towns in Kent/Sussex?

[langleybabe]

I'm really struggling and could do with help! I've been searching for over a year for somewhere to move to in Kent/Sussex so we can be nearer the coast (currently in Herts) and get more property for our money. It's now the cause of major rows in our house as eldest DS goes into year 5 soon and we wanted to move before big school. We were looking all over the south east but DH has now decided he doesn't want his commute any longer than 45 minutes as it's currently 20 minutes into London where we are. Which means all my research has been a waste of time if he can't stretch to an hour on a train I don't know where to begin. We were looking at Horsham but he now says that commute is too long so I'm despairing as well as not talking to him anymore. Thanks.

langleybabe - the Horsham commute is long! 56 mins into Victoria and 69 minutes into London Bridge. And the trains don't run all night like the First Capital Connect trains to St Albans do. It will make going out in London difficult. I like to be able to go to the theatre in London and my eldest two children (22 and 18) have really enjoyed being able to go to gigs, spend NYE and other events in London throughout their teens. And now my eldest is at university many of his new friends live in different parts of London and he's able to attend their parties if they have them in the holidays. And it's lovely that they can go out in London, get a train home at 1.30 in the morning (or indeed 2.30 in the morning) and then walk home from the station. I don't know how old your children are but perhaps worth bearing in mind that their needs don't remain the same.

I'm certainly not trying to put you off. As having space to run free is very important and keeping chickens sounds great fun. But perhaps worthwhile trying to future-proof your move, to limit having to pay SDLT more often than necessary.

Also check out the Gatwick Airport airspace consultation

www.londonairspaceconsultation.co.uk/?s=airspace69

We have just moved to East Grinstead and my husband is actually enjoying his commute, even though it is longer. The train is 55 mins to London Bridge and Victoria, both are direct, and as EG is the end of the line he always gets a comfortable seat in the morning with a table so he can work/ read the paper/ stare out of the window. The trains are ok coming back as well. As others have said, a slightly longer commute can definitely be better than a shorter but more complicated/ uncomfortable one.

We love East Grinstead too, we moved from Surrey for more space and so far have found every one to be really friendly. The town has a good mix of shops with a pretty high street with more boutiquey places and then the London Road which has the chain shops. Schools are good at both primary and secondary. We are so glad we made the move.

East Grinstead sounds promising, but do you get a lot of aircraft noise from Gatwick?

East Grinstead usually comes up on threads like this.

I know nothing about East Grinstead apart from that, and I went to a party there once, so I am happy to be corrected if there is a good reason no one has mentioned it.

Actually I think the party was in Forest Row.

X post and me not reading properly.

Burgess Hill is slightly cheaper than surrounding areas, has 2 stations on London-Brighton mainline. Not the prettiest of towns but beautiful surrounding countryside.

If you live on the east side of Horsham (e.g. Colgate) he could drive to 3 Bridges which is a 25 minute journey into town. There is a waiting list for the carpark, but he could rent a space on a drive nearby for less than the cost of station parking.

Or, Surrey not Sussex but is Godalming within your price range?

Ps Horsham is a really great town, very much on the up.

Not sure what you budget is and whether you want to be in a town or a village near a town but

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-31986096.html Colgate

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-44678845.html Godalming

We have noticed very little aircraft noise, it is not under the flight path so although you do hear planes it is not at all disruptive. Far less plane noise than our current house in Surrey or previous one in Clapham.

Horsham is nice too, we nearly bought there but it fell through.

I wouldn't dismiss concerns about commuting - it is tiring especially in winter. And if the trains are buggered then another nightmare.

Ironically we are thinking of moving to east grinstead Procrastinatingpeacock - are there any bits to avoid?

Now Boris Island airport has been rejected, it's possible they may opt to expand Gatwick.

I am not sure Iggly - we've only been there a few weeks and we're busy renovating our new place so I haven't properly explored all the neighbourhoods yet. All of the houses we looked at whilst house hunting were on the south side of town and I didn't notice any dodgy areas. I think that when I was researching before our move I heard mention of stonequarry as an area to avoid - but I have never been there so that is just second hand advice I'm afraid.

Try Lindfield. It's next door to Haywards Heath (virtually joined to it) but is a pretty village with good houses and quite easy access to the station (45 minute commute to either Victoria or London Bridge). If your DH is prepared to drive to the station, there are lots of lovely villages near HH that would provide you with the sort of property you've described.

We've been through a similar situation trying to find somewhere more rural and cheaper than Brighton but still commutable to London Victoria. Reading your posts I am struck by the situation being like ours - I really wanted to move, DP didn't. I don't think you're going to be able to persuade him (if he's like DP) by words I.e. Finding the perfect town with the short commute. It's about lifestyle so I think he needs to experience it 1st hand. We did day trips to possible places, checking out pubs, cafes and parks with DC to experience what it'd be like to live there. Maybe stay overnight and be a tourist?

Having grown up in the area you're considering I'd recommend moving to a village near a station as some of the commuter towns are a bit soulless. However, also try Oxted, Hassocks, Caterham, Horsham, Cuckfield (for Haywards Heath), East Grinstead. Also agree as a consultant myself that the train ride if you are at the start of the journey can be a blessing - enough time to clear emails and prepare for the day and it's billable time!

What persuaded DP was seeing how much DC enjoyed the nearby miniature steam railway, the local pubs and what we could get for our money. Your budget would get you amazing places in the countryside if you go for Sussex.

this is my dream house and direct trains to London Bridge and Victoria

or this is beautiful

2 acres

Huge thanks for your posts, it's really helping. I think if we find a place we like the look of he's going to stay there a couple of days and try out the commute in the week as that's what he's most concerned about.
We just have to be careful we're not looking at places under the Gatwick flight path seeing as we're now looking more inland than I originally did. I still love Whitstable though, would move there tomorrow if I could!
We will look at the towns further up the trainline from Brighton.

We've left London for Whitstable and it's brilliant :) The commute (for DP) is long and expensive but he likes the flexibility that he can equally easily get to Victoria, St Pancras or Cannon St, and if this line has problems for any reason it's really easy to get to Canterbury for the other main line. It's a long enough journey (on nice, not-busy trains) that he can actually get some work done en route if he so wishes. Better a longer commute that's actually fairly pleasurable than a shorter one where you never get a seat let alone a table. And of course the change to the quality of our day to day lives has been immense.