WolfieThai

Hello Everyone!

Well it looks like its time for me to return to the homeland after some 12 years away working in Thailand. Armed with my savings, my beautiful Thai wife and a ever growing feeling i want to be closer to my aging family.

We are both admirers of nature, and want to be in a more rural location, plus i intend to ship over my dog (who has only ever known a concrete jungle at 30degrees) so i want some green around me and access (by walk or short drive) to wooded areas, rivers or lakes etc. I definitely need a small-to-medium garden for the pooch though.

However i also need access to work, as i intend to return to work as quickly as i can in the UK, so i need to be in a location that is commutable to work. My career field is in IT Software development, however i feel a bit long-in-the-tooth these days so would accept a non-IT related job possibly.

We are planning to start a family in the next couple of years, so schooling options need to be considered (i don't want to really have to sell/buy a new house later to get closer to a good school - if i can help it)

I should have a modest sum to invest in a house, but still hammering out details of the financial requirements at the moment, so not entirely sure how much i would have to invest right now, but should be in the region of 200k GBP.

All of my family and friends are in Warwickshire, but i don't really need to be living on their doorstep, an hour-to-two drive away would suffice (don't want the buggers turning up unannounced all the time - lol!)

So after rambling about my situation a bit, i would like to seek advice from the forum members on possible locations/areas that might be suitable. I know i need to go look at places myself, but i am not able to travel to the UK right now, so want to do as much internet research as i can in the mean time.

Having been away from the UK for so long, i feel a bit unsure how relevant my old knowledge of the country will still be, so any advice, tips or suggestions would be awesome!

kirstyp

first up, welcome home in advance

It might be a little far from Warwickshire (google says 2hrs 20) but Tunbridge Wells in Kent is lovely. Big enough of a town to have a great choice of restaurants, bars, shopping but small enough not to feel too hectic. Lovely parks and walks in and around the town (Tunbridge Wells Common is a wooded and grass area in the center of town and Bewl Water reservoir with a long walk around the lake is about 20 mins drive) and some beautiful villages on the outskirts with all the country pubs and rural atmosphere you're looking for as well as being within an hours drive of the coast for long dog walks on the beach (one of my favorite Sunday pastimes!)

It's also 45 mins by train from central London for work and not far from the M25 if you're going to be traveling to work but also probably alot of options for employment in your field in the town itself.

Tunbridge Wells center is pricey, but if you look at some of the villages on the outskirts then you can sometimes get alot more from your money.

Pistolpete2

I would agree with you that T-Wells is a good choice and you left out the big parents positive that there is an exceptional range of schools at all levels.

My only concern is that you are paying a premium because T-Wells is a London-type atmosphere without London prices but also because it is pretty commutable as you say. So the question is whether the OP is going to get full advantage ......in terms of property costs versus earnings potential...... from this in his field of IT or whatever he opts out to. Further to your employment comments, there are indeed plenty of company headquarters in T-Wells particularly in insurance and investments and there could be opportunities in IT in situ, without any need to commute.

There's a nice-sized park lake IN T-Wells.

I think that in urban T-Wells, property in Southborough, High Brooms and Rusthall could be at the OP's budget.

holly_1948

Find the job first, then housing that works with the job. A living wage is a lot less far from London so the London jobs pay more (but you end up being in more poverty overall).

You almost certainly will have to switch fields. IT is a quite depressed field and ageism is more rife therein than with most pursuits. They will tell you that you are "over qualified" if they tell you anything at all.

WolfieThai

Thanks for the tips, I'd try to find work with a SME somewhere on a low salary if i have to, or worst case scenario we will both work minimum wage jobs for a few years to get through all my wife's settlement visa stuff. I'm not that interested in Central London positions generally, but being close enough to go visit with relative ease would be a bonus!

I looked around T.Wells area, seemed to be properties around the 250k mark for a respectable 3 bed semi with a garden... not sure if i was looking at the right areas/villages. I will check again. If any one could help with suggestions on villages or small towns in the area/district that would be helpful.

If i can keep the property price down to 200k, then i might have a little money to invest in something (business, stocks or long term savings etc) also less pressure to earn bigger salaries then...

Thanks for the advice so far, its given me another area to consider outside of the handful i keep looking at (Worcester, Evesham, Warwick no name a few) so any other suggestions for nice spots in England within a few hours of Birmingham/Warwickshire area would be great!

WolfieThai

Well my severance package has been presented, we are game on for the visa application next month and a move back to the UK in August/September!

Still looking around for locations and property... if anyone else has any suggestions on a good location/area, please let me know so i can start my research and house search... thanks in advance!

holly_1948

If you have family in Warwick, I would have doubts about being on the far side of London.
Cheshire or South Wales would be better for weekend visits. Hereford and Hay-on-wye are gorgeous places if earning a living is not a problem. All a lot cheaper than TWells.

WolfieThai

being 2-3hrs away from the folks in Warwickshire works for me, whilst i love my family dearly i'd like to be an 'arms length' away from them to ease any pressure/expectations etc.

For me, its more about the location i buy the house, i have expectations there that i dont want to compromise (too much) with, i am prepared to work minimum wage if i have to, but working somewhere in IT would be preferable.

I guess i should research where has good employment opportunities (both cheshire and TWells work well for that) but also interested in other locations... will research the areas you have suggested as well

rebs

My location on the Dorset/Hampshire border is within that 2 -3 hours away from Warwickshire.

There are a reasonable amount of employment opportunities here in Bournemouth, Southampton, Winchester etc..

If you go much further East of here it starts to get a lot pricier as you hit areas that are more easily commutable to London, but our area is not too bad, price wise (IMHO).

holly_1948

The thing is that family may not be important to you, but if they get on well it could be hugely important to a foreign wife in a strange land.
Same thing with being walkable distance from some traditional shops and so on.
On the other hand, T.Wells is two and a half hours drive on a good run with a confident driver. And the roads to get around London are notorious for horrible traffic snarl-ups that make you not want to do the journey again soon. Again this affects women more than men.

So I would restrict my search to the quadrant no further South than London and no further East than London. Bath and Chester are both beautiful ancient cities.

For myself, I am still considering Hoylake next summer 2014.

WolfieThai

Does anyone have any opinions/advice on Nottingham (village/town outskirts)

I've been recommended to look there and have been told to the south of Nottingham is very pleasant.

ldollard

I'm going to suggest Altrincham, we lived there 10 years ago before we moved to the USA, easy access to Manchester and Liverpool. I actually worked in London and lived there, but mostly only came home for the weekend. Very nice place.

ldollard

The only thing i know about Nottingham is the gun crime, but thats probably because thats all they report. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...shire-12776492

I dont know, i'd avoid it personally. Have you thought of scotland as well?

Victor Meldrew

I am guessing you have looked closely at the whole non-EU wife visa issue and the associated financial conditions - particularly if you don't get a job.

Even a minimum wage job probably isn't going to bring in enough to satisfy the minimum requirements.

I realise that you say your severance package is good, but is it enough to satisfy the requirements for if you are unemployed? and would you be happy using this to live on/gradually spend it on living costs? Are you planning on using any of this to purchase your house?

I only ask these things because I am in a similar situation and have been looking very closely at it (though sometimes I think maybe not closely enough).

Regards locations, I would suggest somewhere between South Birmingham and North of Worcester. The countryside is good with lots of open spaces and parkland. Birmingham will probably have more job opportunities and will also provide a multi-cultural environment which your wife may feel more comfortable in.

Have you considered how your wife may feel living in a predominently white area? Again I ask because I am in a similar situation and am looking at places like Birmingham because it will have the benefit of being a more multi cultural place to live, where my wife will feel more comfortable.

Herefordshire is also a beautiful place but possibly a little remote in some areas.

Good luck!

WolfieThai

Thanks for the advice, We have looked very closely at the visa rules and we believe that we should be in a position to satisfy the financial requirements and still get a house, we both intend to work so hopefully the joint income will be enough to cover the renewal of her visa.

My only dilemma is whether to use some of the money we need for the visa application on the house or just bank/save it for a few years and have that to fall back on later... but that will depend entirely on the cost of the house etc.

My wife is pretty westernised, having lived and studied abroad quite a lot, shes also the one keen to move the the UK, we are both fairly private kinds of people who socalise occasionally, so whilst its something to consider, i am not overly worried about multi-cultural vs white environments.

The real key for me will be somewhere commutable to a city/big town, if i decide to bring my IT skills upto date and seek employment in an office, having a fairly straight-forward commute would be a bonus.

I would prefer to be within 1-2hrs drive of Warwickshire to make it easier to get to see close friends and family, but far enough away to make it something we plan instead of just 'popping round for a cuppa' - like i said we are fairly private kind of people and whilst i love my friends and family dearly, its like to be an 'arms length' away.

South of Nottingham seems to have a good reputation, Beeston and Long Eaton side - also has easy access to the M1 and Derby, Nottingham for work, a preliminary search a few days back showed a fairly healthy job market in that area. Cheshire area also sounds interesting as it would have fairly straightforward access to Manchester and Liverpool, but that in itself is also a concern (crime, accents etc)

I have considered places such as Scotland (and also southern Ireland, Wales etc) and whilst the environment seems lovely (rural, hills, woods, forests etc) i am concerned about employment opportunities. I have enough cash to live on for a period of time but not forever!

Thanks for the advice, and keep those suggestions coming. Its really very helpful and enlightening getting other peoples perspectives and points of view on locations