Would you sell your house if you were me?

[MoonCow]

I have name changed as family on here and they dont know yet!

I live in a part of outer London that is sought after by young families as the schools are good, lots of open space and a reasonable high street. I've been here over 20 years and my dc are at university. The house is a 2 up and 2 down - no parking. I've done the loft and extended the kitchen into the strip at the back. It has 20 foot decking outside, no grass so not a proper garden. I can walk to the high street with cafes/food shop and to the station all within 5 mins. Because I've been here so long, I'm known v well. I can walk into my local pub without arranging to meet anyone and always find someone there that I know to talk to. If we go away, there are loads of people who would look after the house.

But I hate the commute. It's on the SWR line and it's got worse and worse over the years to the point that a journey to Waterloo 20 yrs ago took just over 30 mins and now it very rarely takes less than an hour. And then I still have to get to the office from there. I would also love a proper garden as I enjoy being outside and gardening and it would be great to park the car.

I could move to somewhere like Ealing, be on the end of the district line and about to be on cross rail and get a house with a garden and parking. It would cut 30-45 mins out of my commute one way depending on how far I'm from the station. I could still get back here if I wanted to see people and I have friends in Ealing already.

Does it sound mad? I mentioned it to one local friend yesterday and they could not understand why I would do it!

If it would improve your daily quality of life, go for it. Especially if you still have to commute for work after lockdown ends...

a bad commute is one of the things that makes people miserable for year - it is dead time that is entirely wasted.

so moving to get a better commute is definitely a sensible idea - start looking.

I'm not sure - if you could I'd suggest renting out your house for six months and renting yourself to see if the grass really is greener.

I think I know the area you are talking about! It does sound awful with the commute! If I was you I would move a couple of miles north, to the other side of the river- at least you have the tube there.

It's a difficult one, it may be harder to make friends at this point in a new community, how would you feel about that? Are you itching for a change generally? How far is Ealing from where you are now?

We have just made a big move (but further out). Lots of positives... but I do miss the community I had in London. I don't think I will find it again where I am now, but hope to be proved wrong! Possibly a good idea to rent and try it out if you aren't sure?

Your hone life sounds fab (car parking notwithstanding). I’d be more inclined to change the job!