How do families afford to relocate to Devon?

[TakeMeToTheSunshine]

Desperate to move back to Devon (Exeter area) to be nearer family but there aren't jobs that pay enough to reflect the cost of houses!

I naively assumed that as there are fewer "big jobs" in Devon that house prices would be alot lower, but it just doesn't seem to be the case!

I think you can only live there if you're medical/solicitors/teacher etc where you can work anywhere!

The career I'm in would mean I'd have to take a 40% pay cut but a similar house is basically the same price 😭

What's going on!

I hear you! I did make the move though and bought the cheapest do-er upper I could find. Never regretted it.

Remote working is allowing us to do a similar move , is that an option at all ?

Yeah that's definitely an option but I worry about lack of jobs and limiting options massively if the role you move for doesn't work out!

Yeah definitely an option I'm just amazed with the house prices! I think COVID has something to do with it, but the number of houses £700k+ is madness!

It’s because it’s a tourists place. 2nd homes and all that push all prices up.

Whereabouts are you looking and what is your budget- also where are you moving from?
west of Exeter, eg Crediton way, is cheaper I find. Good train connections to Crediton, lapford, Yeoford

Second homers and the mass exodus from London when over covid people found they could work from home

I think we'd have to be near Exeter to be close for schools/work commutes but also near to the sea.
Moving from Hampshire, budget around £700k but dreaming of rural views and peace and quiet!

Yeah think it must be! Oh to be earning enough for a second home 🤣

Yep houses went mental prices during covid I guess alot of people moved who had remote jobs.

What's wrong with the rural views, and peace and quiet in Hampshire?

We don't have the sea in Hampshire (really crap coastline). Or nice countryside, Dartmouth and Exmoor at so much better.
I'm off to Devon when I'm older too.

Try Plymouth! £700k is mansion money (ok, not quite but not too shabby). I live in Plymouth, work for a company with offices in Plymouth and Exeter and make plenty for our needs. I am none of the things you mentioned.

I live in the teign valley we are about 10-15 minutes outside Exeter and the same ish distance from beaches. I’m an apprentice nurse and DH is a bin man, we have a combined salary of just under 50k and one child in paid nursery with no additional income other than a small amount of child benefit. We have a 3 bedroom semi here with garden and driveway, and our mortgage is 900 PCM we had a 5% deposit for our house in 2021. O
There are lots of lovely places such as Hennock Teign village chudleigh, Christow, doddiscombleigh and so on.
If you don’t mind being further away from Exeter, but nearer to the beach, places like Kingsteignton, Newton Abbot, Teignmouth and Dawlish are fairly Nice.
Exmouth is also reasonably priced.
The new estates on the edges of Exeter like Matford, Pinhoe, Tithe barn and cranbrook are all great too.
We also really rate Exminster, Starcross, Kenton and Kenn.

I’m not all that familiar with the other side of Exeter but places like Crediton and Collumpton And Tiverton are considerably lower priced than other areas.

Golly your budget is Massive.
Certainly look at places like Ide, Exminster and Christow!

Exeter has fallen victim to student housing. My mum lived there in our childhood home. On her death my brother and I sold the house - we wanted it to go for family housing, but the house was in a bit of a state and was bought by a builder, who immediately redeveloped it to become a HMO. Just an ordinary two bed terraced house, which now houses up to six students and probably brings in a fortune.

As a PP said, try out towards Tiverton. My brother currently lives in Exeter but is looking to relocate a bit further out and that's more affordable.

I can see the sea out of my window and there are loads of houses here under 700k 🤨

Are you wanting too much house for your money?

(Also, jobs and schools exist outside Exeter)

What @Libre2 said!

I'm in Plymouth in a really nice area for that money! It's a good balance for work, moors, beach etc and I'm not in one of those professions.

Are you expecting a mansion for £700K? You won’t get that around Exeter, you will need to head for mid Devon for more bang for your buck, but obviously they are cheaper for a reason. Exmouth might suit, by the sea and close to Exeter.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/146149853#/?channel=RES_BUY

Our family aren't here 😭

You could do this up:

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/125639123#/?channel=RES_BUY

There's plenty of homes for that budget

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/145747892#/?channel=RES_BUY

This is close to my family and there's a grammar school not too far

Nearer to the sea look at exmouth area

Torquay is actually lovely, despite the slating it gets on this site.
You can get a good property here for 700

Exmouth area for sure (my parents are in a nearby village and visiting them always feels like a mini holiday). They previously lived in mid Devon for ten years and it rained so much. Much nicer in east Devon and I love Exeter. We’re an hour north and houses were cheaper in our area but seem to have caught up a bit with Kent (where I’m from) - mil will tell us we’d never afford our house in Kent… but we’d actually get about the same size in Folkestone/Hawkinge area (furthest from London).