Crazy to move out of London if we can afford to stay?

[goteam]

Just that. We need to move in the next few years currently in zone 2 flat with 2 kids (7 and 5). Kids comment a lot how noisy and busy London is and love visiting family in the country side. Thinking about moving to a small town in Derbyshire near family but worried we will regret it. Budget 900k so can move further out in London but it's still London. I love the buzz and would stay and worried the novelty of a quiet life would wear off for the kids especially in 5 or so years time.

Anyone done it? Any peaceful bits of north London that might suit my outdoorsy kids?

@Velveteenfruitbowl

Tbh, we’re planning the split city/coutry lifestyle when children have grown up. I did find it a bit sucky growing up, though, from a friendship/boyfriend point of view as our places were 4-5h apart. So we’re in the burbs for our family years.

We're in SW London, A3 corridor. Train to London takes 17 minutes. Abundant green spaces around us, my DCs grew up exploring in the woods, climbing trees, picnics in the park, etc. Fantastic schools, top grammars, top 5 Indies.

And now my DCs are teens they have easy access to London and can see friends without me having to drive them around. And as pp have said, when looking for jobs in the future they'll be in the best place.

I literally cannot find fault with it. Your budget would get you a good sized house.

I would never ever move from London, but all my family and friends are here so there would be no reason to move and I would be too worried about being priced out if I wanted to move back if I moved up north.

surely outer London is worse? You don’t have the benefit of being walking distance/short tube ride from the things that make London nice but you’re stuck in sprawl

I live in the outer reaches of North London. It is the complete opposite of living in a sprawl. Quite rural with sheep and cows, horses and deer.
Yes we have to get in a car to get to the tube or anything else for that matter. But definitely not a sprawl.

As well as Rickmansworth I was going to suggest Amersham and Chorleywood or even Kings Langley (29 minutes into Euston)

Thanks @oliversmumsarmy I have had a cursory look at Rickmansworth but seems to be a lack of state secondaries. I like Amersham though, that could be a compromise

@dimsum123 dare i ask where or roughly where? I am kind of wedded to north London but have a soft spot for Twickenham and nearby.

Our friends are split between London and city up north but family all up north (well Midlands really). Would have a social life in either.

It's a tough one, I was born & raised in SW London (z2) & I still live pretty close z2/3. I love London & don't know anything else however I'm finding I'm spending less & less time in zone 1. The crowds, congestion & pollution put me off (I now work locally). I'm happy with my local area so tend to stay here but I'm starting to think well I could have this but a bigger house & garden if I moved.

Im pretty sure zones 4/5/6 don't appeal to me, I have friends in places like Sutton, Ewell, Bromley & just find they lack buzz. The high streets are a bit depressing with the usual chains.

The countryside doesn't appeal to me as it's too quiet, have to drive everywhere etc. I have been thinking about other cities as some friends have left London for Bristol, Manchester etc.

The big advantage you have is you already have friends/contacts in your potential new area.

As a teenager London was great, getting the night bus home after clubbing etc but I don't think kids go clubbing these days. I also think in the futures jobs won't be so tired to London, most of the 20 yrs old I meet work remotely!

That's a good point about jobs @chippychip1 as the jobs our kids will have probably don't exist yet. Who knew app developers would be a thing 15 years ago. I see the future of work as a lot of remote working too.

Was in central London for a work meeting today and loved it but will continue to blow hot and cold!

I moved from London to Epsom and never regretted it.

Epsom really is the best of both worlds. If you live in the right side you have countryside on your doorstep but can walk to the station in 15 minutes.

It is also right next to the M25 and very easy for Gatwick.

No don't do it, stay in London!
We recently moved to zone 4 Southgate Barnet, schools are good, low crime rate and there is so much green space. 900K will get you a very nice 3-4 bedroom semi with a good size garden. Or why not consider Potters Bar it's just outside the M25 but closer to London than St Albans. This London street check app www.localarearesearch.co.uk might be useful for you, we used it a lot when we was house hunting.

as the jobs our kids will have probably don't exist yet

Someone has been doing the rounds of secondary school open days.

HTs had obviously been to a conference where they picked up this phrase and a few other sound bites.

Irritated the Hell out of me.

They were saying that 10 years ago and as far as I can see all the children i know through Dd and Ds have gone into jobs that have existed for 100s of years

To correct the phrase

A few jobs our kids will have probably don't exist yet

I would say that 99% of the jobs children will go into already exist and will have existed for many years

I moved London to midlands 4 years ago with three kids now 10, 7 and 5. I don't miss the hustle and bustle of London and having lived, studied and worked in central London I was done with it. Things I miss are access to the variety of world foods (not an issue in Nottingham) that I used to have and free museums, but between work and kids being at school I don't have vast amounts of time to spend on these anyway. Theatre wise for kids there is still quite on offer. I don't drive yet, but will be soon to be able to access all that the countryside has to offer. There is a good bus network via Trentbarton in Derbyshire and into Nottinghamshire and kids under 10 are a £1 for most journeys. You can get cheaper journeys with a family Railcard to Nottingham and Birmingham where there are more options. Derby has a fast bus to Nottingham which takes under half an hour. I have friends that live in West Bridgford in Nottingham that sounds nice leafy suburb on edge of countryside. There are pros and cons, but I would not go back now, people are so much friendlier and the pace of life less relentless.

123bananas

I think your dc are too young atm but I know as soon as Dd and Ds started secondary they made full use of the free stuff London has to offer whether that was going to the South Bank and hanging around there watching the street performers or having a look round Covent Garden, window shopping in Oxford Street, hanging out in one of the many parks in summer or a museum in winter.

They both do so much that is London centric which you can’t find anywhere else.

Even one of dds jobs would be difficult to do out of London because of the transport and safety issues.

She did try to do something out of London and at 3am when she was leaving work it was a long walk to the car in deserted streets.
Come out of work at 3am in London and the streets are buzzing

That is true and London has a lot going for it, but there is life outside London including nightlife and jobs, other cities such as Sheffield might offer access to countryside and things to do, just presenting another side.

I have family in London still, none of the younger generation will be able to afford to buy, for the price of our 2 bed flat in zone 2 we can have a 4-5 bed house. We had no choice being priced out. My brother still has to rent and his rent is more than double our mortgage. My nieces have been exposed to far more of the darker side of city living as children and teens living in London than most teens here, because crime of all types is significantly lower. It does depend on where you can afford to live as to what kind of secondary school they go to, what educational opportunities they can have and what kids/areas they hang around with/in.

Come out of work at 3am in London and the streets are buzzing

Well that's certain parts of central
London & if we are talking about outer areas very much area & day dependent.

people are so much friendlier (in midlands)

Not true in my experience. Quite a lot of barely concealed racism especially from the older generation. London is much more friendly and inclusive

Also "lower crime rates are in the midlands" wasn't our experience. We got burgled twice while living in an affluent area. Not got any problems in London.

Sure house prices are much much cheaper in midlands. I can see that unless you are in a high earning job or have help from family, staying in London in nice and safe area is just not an option.

people are so much friendlier

I lived in the Midlands

Apart from initially trying to make friends, connect with people or just have a chat and then giving up I rethink I went at least 10 year without speaking to anyone in the area.

I had friends who lived In London I would chat to on the phone and I had Dp but apart from that I found people to be generally unfriendly.

As soon as I moved back to London my social circle exploded.

Personally would prefer to stay in London. The countryside is great for breaks, but you only start to miss the opportunities offered by a big city like London when they are taken away from you for more than just 1-2 weeks. Made that mistake and regretted it - moved back to London after!

Maybe a tool like SearchSmartly will help you find that balance - you can search for neighbourhoods/homes within greater London by prioritising access to green space and other 'lifestyle' factors. Why not drop in your budget and needs and see what comes up?

Obviously the friendlier thing must only apply to the areas I have been to/live in not the whole of the midlands! DH is black and had more racial abuse from public and Police in London than up here, older white British people round here very friendly and invite him for cups of tea because he stops to chat to them with the kids and they are lonely (must just have lucked out on area).

Thanks @househunter19 I havent seen that website before, will give it a go.

@123bananas sounds like you've picked a nice bit of the world.

Outer London is perfect for us. We’re far out enough that we can walk to the coutryside (proper fields, sheep, bridleways and footpaths etc). Equally, close enough that DH cycles to the office some days and we can easily enjoy central London attractions with public transport available 24/7. Tons of amenities, easy accessibility to top schools and large houses sitting in 1 acre plots. It’s the best of both worlds for us.

This sounds ideal to me!