Where to buy with £260k budget? seaside/countryside

[Artygirlghost]

I want to relocate after a relationship ended and move back to a seaside location with some nice countryside nearby (the type of place I grew up in) for my ''forever home''. I don't want to take on a new mortgage so my top budget is 260K from the recent sale of our home.

So far I have viewed houses in the South East (Deal, Folkestone and Whistable) but everything I see needs a lot of work (not just cosmetic which I would be happy to do) or is in a not so great part of town.The West end of Folkestone and parts of Deal would have worked ,and I have friends who live in these towns already, but there is nothing in my budget it seems.

So I am thinking that maybe I just need to be realistic, widen my search and forget about the South East entirely as I no longer have family ties there and look North. I work remotely so I could be based anywhere.

Would anyone be able to suggest where I could look for a 2 bed house with a garden for my pets in a laid back, safe, quiet, green part of the country with access to sea/countryside but not be more than an hour away from a city by train?

Could be the North of England, Scotland or Wales.

Another concern is that I am British but originally from France so I would want somewhere that already has a little bit of diversity and/or is generally welcoming to newcomers.

Good luck, I love Deal!

I hope the Deal house works out!

If not, Whitley Bay and the Northumberland coast is beautiful. Plus you have countryside, Newcastle shops and excellent healthcare nearby.

That so exciting good luck!

NE definitely. I know quite a few who’ve relocated, and want to relocate to the NE. You could get a lovely two bed close to the coast as-well as the countryside and have plenty of money left over.

North Shields and Ryhope are lovely. Here’s one I just saw on Rightmove which is lovely:

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/85874682#/map?channel=RES_BUY

Roker beach in Sunderland is also nice.

Birkdale in Southport? Lovely village and just 18 miles from Liverpool and 50 miles from Manchester.

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/123660293#/?channel=RES_BUY

Deal

complimentary article in local paper about Deal.

.

@Riverlee Thank you for the link!

Yes it is such a pretty town. I have friends who live there and work links with a local business so it is a big plus to already have a community of people in the town :).

Deal is lovely.... just along the road :)

@Stomacharmeleon, it is.

I am bit deflated though today because the estate agent (it is one of the biggest chain of estate agents in the South East) insist that I first speak to their ''financial adviser'' to be ''financially checked''. I have already told them that I have my own broker and will stay with him.

I know that legally they have to pass on all offers to the buyer without faffing about like this.

I am going to take the adviser's call tomorrow but I will simply say that I am financing most of the purchase from the sale of my flat and that my broker has already established that I can easily get a mortgage and won't be sharing anymore info and that I expect them to pass on the offer.

To be honest this is the type of behaviour that simply makes me want to withdraw and I wonder if the vendor has even been informed of my offer or is aware of what they are doing...

Have a look at Troon or Seamill/West Kilbride in Ayrshire. Both lovely town with independent shops (WK is a craft town) and both have glorious Sandy beaches with views of the island of Arran and Ailsa Craig. Less than an hour from Glasgow by train.

There's also Prestwick near Troon too. Head further north for cheaper prices but you'll be further away from Glasgow.

Swansea or the surrounding area.

@jocktamsonsbairn

Thank you!

Yes Troon was always on my list as so many people have recommended it to me in the past year.

I think I was just a bit scared of making such a big move and wanted to give the familiar South East a last chance.

I actually found somewhere I really like in Deal last week and made an offer but the estate agent is messing me around so I have decided this is the last chance that I give to finding a property in the South East: if this one falls through then I will start looking at properties in Scotland instead.

I could buy a cheaper property there and semi-retire immediately so that is really appealing too!

Hope all goes smoothly but if not you'd be very welcome e up here!

@jocktamsonsbairn

That's very kind of you :)

The Scottish system when it comes to buying a home is so much more straightforward, it seems to me anyway.

How about the outer edges of the Cotswolds? With all of these options, you're going to be under an hour to one of: Oxford, Bath, Cheltenham.

Faringdon: www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/128925800

Cricklade (under an hour to Bath, Cheltenham and Oxford): www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/128266418

Malmesbury: www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/128748395

Sutton Benger: www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/126851300
(And Chippenham if you don't mind mid sized market towns)

Corsham: www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/126851300

Ah sorry, just seen you've offered. That'll teach me for only half reading a thread!

@cotsma

Thank you for all the links!

I have made an offer but I am dubious about whether anything will come out of it due to the estate agents behaviour so I am still considering my options.

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/127012139#/?channel=RES_BUY
Really lovely area 😊

Are the vendors living in the house you have offered on, @Artygirlghost ? If so, you could always put a note through the door.

Northumberland

Fingers crossed you get the house you want.

@ItsRainingCatsAndDogsAgain Unfortunately not: the house has a tenant in. Such as shame that this will probably fall through because of the agent not simply putting the offer to the vendor and instead trying to force their mortgage adviser on me.

@Icannever This is really pretty. I did consider Fife. I don't really drive though so this house and location would be perfect if there was a train station too.

Really feeling incredibly down about it all tonight.

I was so happy to have found somewhere I liked and made an offer. Now it is likely back to square one and I think I will definitely consider giving up on the south East altogether and moving North for a less stressful and expensive experience!

I had the same, and ended up posting a note through the door to let the vendors know the agent was blocking offers.

Don't give up!