American Moving to Newcastle

[martaabba]

Hello Mums!
I am an American planning on moving to Newcastle Upon Tyne at the end of June 2019. I have a 8 year old daughter and a husband with a genetic condition that is fascinating to the Dr.s at the Kidney Centre.
I am looking for family friendly neigbourhoods that are not too hard on the budget. We will need to rent for the first couple of years as our credit will have to reset. Budget is a consideration.

I really appreciate any feed back you can give. And if any of you have questions about Portland, OR I will be happy to tell you all about it. :)

Do you know where you’ll be working?
For family friendly and budget some part of heaton are probably your best bet, particularly around chillingham road for activities shops and cafe’s. Jesmond And Gosforth are also lovely but generally more expensive but with a posher feel to them.

Do you want to live in Newcastle itself? Where do you need to be for work?

The north east is lovely! You’ll like it here!

I miss Newcastle!! I envy you, OP!

It does get a bit cold up there though

What is your budget and which hospital do you need to be near?! Heston, Jesmond (though this is a bit studenty) Gosforth, if you can use public transport then tynemouth at the coast is gorgeous. You will love it here

Freeman Hospital is where we will be attending.
We are going to be working as consultants with our current employers when we move...we are very lucky that they want to still work with us. We will eventually adjust to UK employers, but this will allow us to immigrate with only having to keep in mind the hospital.

Can anyone speak to the livibility of Gateshead?

Newcastle is a great city. I haven't been to Portland but I think it's got quite a hippy vibe which is quite different to the North East which is more of a 'down to earth' type place. It's very friendly and I'm sure you'll settle in easily. Check secondary school catchments because your daughter is approaching that age and like any city they vary massively.

It depends on your budget and how much you want to travel. Getting from Gateshead to the Freeman at busy times will be slow, but if you don't have to travel.at peak times it's not so bad. There's no metro stop at the hospital so you'll be on a bus or driving if you can't walk too far.

Gateshead has some nice areas, Whickham has a village feel and nice views from the top of the hill. Closer in to Gateshead starts getting a bit built up so it depends what you want because the trade off is being close to the sage, quayside and all the amenities.

Gosforth, south gosforth, far north jesmond (i.e. not such a studenty bit), high Heaton, and Heaton will be most convenient for the hospital and are nice areas. Renting a reasonable 3 bedroom house will probably be around the £800 - £1000 per month mark in those areas. Ouseburn is an area to look at if you want a more arty vibe, also convenient for the city centre.

You didn't say where you have to be for work. Are you home based? The coast is lovely and might be worth thinking about as a totally different option.

If you’re at the Freeman a lot, the area around the hospital (High Heaton) is nice and worth considering. Or, if you’re looking at Gateshead, Low Fell is good but it’s not on the metro line so not as convenient for the hospital.

We are going to be home based for work to begin with. But my husband is from San Diego! So although he has gotten used to dreary Portland, I get the feeling that moving to the coast of Northern England might be a bridge too far.
Portland has become less hippie and more practical. We keep chickens in the backyard and wish we could bring them with us! We are far too polite when it comes to 4-way stops. We drink a lot of coffee. Ride bikes and skateboards, unironically.

Whitley Bay is great for skateboarding but perhaps is too far out.

The North East is one of the more affordable parts of the country so your money will go much further than a lot of places in the U.K.- particularly the South/ Midlands. So in terms of value for money you have chosen well.

When you are settled and have built some local connections (school and work) you will be able to qualify for affordable housing options managed by ‘housing associations’ which are essentially not for profit housing providers. These are nothing like ‘the projects’ in the US, they tend to be mixed and well run community housing, usually pepper potted with private housing. Demand is lower relative to other parts of the U.K. for these homes and the quality of build and service is usually higher than private rented- but for less rent/ service charge. This is not the same as ‘council housing’.

You can either rent, buy shared ownership (rent half buy half at reduced prices) or do some other affordable home options. Worth exploring.

The coast is gorgeous, and would be a lovely base to work from home-wild windy walks at lunch time etc. Gosforth High was always a good school, so check catchments if that's a consideration.

Good luck with the accents. The People are chatty, curious, like to dress up. Good sense of humour highly prized (might be a bit rough round the edges -I grew up there and always find Americans sooooo polite). I miss it.

Heaton is lovely and more affordable than Jesmond, which is also very studenty, and Gosforth. It has some good coffee shops and places to eat out. It has changed a lot over the past few years and I think that will continue. It is within walking distance to parks, the Ouseburn, city centre and Quayside. It has a nice mix of students, families and young professionals. There are buses direct to the Freeman hospital.

I can't comment on schools as I've only recently had my first child.

We moved out of the city in the summer after 9 happy years living in Heaton. It has changed a lot in recent years, for the better, and I think that will continue.