Apologies if this isn’t right place for this but looking for some honest and helpful advice.
I’m 30, DH 32 and lived in Bristol for 5 years before moving to London. I moved from Scotland straight after University for work and DH’s job was also in Bristol. First 18 months were good in Clifton. I didn’t really take to Bristol as a city as a whole, I loved life in Clifton and that was our bubble. (Note: people absolutely love Bristol, it’s a great city and I like a day visit but I found it too alternative/hipster for me to live in). We then moved to North Bristol to buy an ‘opportunity’ house, my husband had just gotten a job just outside London which he commuted for and I hated those 3.5 years in Bristol. I found the place rough, it was a new build estate near nothing, I’d come from a cute seaside town in Scotland with a lovely high street and bike rides on my doorstep and I was living in an estate near absolutely no parks/amenities/anything, couldn’t walk anywhere, had to drive everywhere including work/shops, our lovely detached new build was next door to social housing and we had an attempted break in within 4 months of being there and our direct neighbour getting an ASBO for constant arguments and fights outside. I was thoroughly miserable and on my own 80% of the time.
Given husbands job was in London (and he’d had a near miss of a serious accident on his commute home one night) I visited SW London, loved it and we sold up (made a lot of money on our 4 bed detached new build house) and bought a 3 bed garden flat in Putney. I adore SW London, the parks and feeling of green space, cafe culture, cute pubs, restaurants - it’s just an all round lovely area though traffic and parking are a nightmare.
Anyways, last year DH became unwell, was hospitalised and was left with post viral fatigue and has been off work for 7 months. Whilst he loves what we have here, he is ready for a little bit of a quieter pace (I.e no beeping horns on our street at 2am, not being able to get parked on the same street as our flat, noise of tube etc) but still with nice cafes and restaurants but main thing is he wants more space (DH grew up in a huge stunning period house with a walled garden so more space to me means something a little different to him!)
Husbands job has changed slightly in that he only needs to commute once a week, we used to visit Bath a lot and loved it. We have also considered other areas of SW London (Teddington, Richmond) but don’t know if it’s still too much for him. I would live there in a heartbeat. I don’t know if going back west is scaring me a little as I had a rubbish time there before. We aren’t village people, more large town people (probably aren’t big city people given we don’t leave SW London much) Also thought about Edinburgh but jobs for me there look thin. No children yet - I might not be able to have any so it’s not a guarantee we will but irrespective I do want to live in a lovely, family friendly, SAFE as houses area (I’m OCD on safety after an incident in Bristol which left me with anxiety). Not sure this is even important but DH is a little genteel if that’s the the right word?!
Does Bath sound like it could be right for us? Visited Marlow and Henley and liked them both but commute to London for me would probably be a pain. If we moved to Bath I’d work in Bath or Bristol. Also thought about Windsor too.
Looking for ideally a period detached house with a driveway, garden, minimum 4 beds in a really nice area where the people are friendly/sense of community and it’s easy to make friends. Budget is £1.4m. I really want to find somewhere I can settle and not move every 3-5 years! Help!
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Should we move again? London to Bath (or who knows)
planforeverything · 11/07/2020 12:37
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Bath is lovely but very touristy and traffic can be bad.
How long have you been away from Bristol? It just keeps improving and is great for eating out now if that's your thing, so perhaps is worth another look.
Clifton is lovely but with your budget I'd look in Sneyd Park. Gorgeous leafy part of Bristol just north of the Downs so still close to Clifton but with bigger houses, bigger gardens and a more tranquil feel. Definitely not even slightly alternative or hipster 
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