Hello at this ungodly hour. I currently live in a quite dodgy area in South London. I am a working mum of 2 young boys and likely to be divorced in the future. I have been longing for a change and now narrowed down to 2 options which I equally life.
First one is 2 bed flat in Purley area, Croydon. 68 sq.m and easily convertable into 3 small beds as it has L shaped lounge with extra window. I viewed and kind of fell in love with it: it is in an excellent order, excellent location, low maintenance, share of freehold, excellent schools and basically I could lead very easy life with more disposable income, plus I wouldn't be too far from my current location and therefore occasional support of friends and potentially ex-H. Downsides: well, it is obvious: it is a flat and no outside space.
The second one is in Rayleigh in Essex and it is 3 bed semi-detached bungalow (love bungalows, love flats). Excellent location, commute to the City not too bad, excellent schools, not far from the seaside, a bit more space and a massive garden, all of which should lead to a better quality of life. Downsides: more expensive commute, there is always something to do/repair in the house, less disposable income, more stress.
On one side I love the idea of living in a flat and be compact and efficient IKEA type person and go to parks/woods instead of garden (we currently have garden but it is small and all patio and no one likes in there).
On another side life much further out in a house could bring more thrill and quality into our lives and if the garden has plenty of lawn, then perhaps we would want to play in it. But I would have to be totally dependent on my own and responsible for house repairs (which I am now too) and sometimes I feel it gets too much.
If you could help with advice I would very much appreciate!