Moving to Leeds - up and coming areas

Moving to Leeds - up and coming areas

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lewisf182

Original Poster:

2,084 posts

187 months

Friday 20th June 2014
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Hi,

I'm from Sheffield but recently got a job in Morley, and the commute (although not long compared to some) is starting to annoy me.

I own a flat in Sheffield in an area called Kelham island which is really up and coming, looks very nice by the river and has lots of nice little pubs, values are steadily (and rightly so) rising with it's close proximity to the centre of town.

So the question is really, are there any similar places in Leeds? I've looked and a few flats around the £100k price backet look decent (within a mile of LS1) but really not sure about the area.

Any Advice on where to live/move is welcome. Ideally want to be within 20 minutes of my workplace just below Morley off the M62. But want it to be an OK and vibrant place, rather than in the suburbs with nothing there (i.e. Morley).

Thanks

lewisf182

Original Poster:

2,084 posts

187 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
quotequote all
Any views on this area? http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/prope...


Really like the house, just worried the area is dog rough. No bars across windows/doors indicates it's decent enough..

Going to book a viewing ASAP just getting opinions.

dave_s13

13,813 posts

268 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
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Armley is a bit of a hole tbh.

If you want the metropolitan vibe then chapel allerton is the default choice, lots of bars and places to eat nearby. Getting to Morley is a bit of a drag though.

Depends what you want, city bustle, semi-rural , somewhere in the middle??

roystinho

3,767 posts

174 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
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As above, Armley isn't the nicest of places. North and West Leeds are generally the nicer bits, but it will be a commute across the city for you. Depends if you could hack that

ETA - from your description I'd go Horsforth or Chappel Allerton as a starter point if you are wiling to commute a bit. Also depends at what times you work as to how long it will take you

Edited by roystinho on Tuesday 24th June 13:59

Slowped

184 posts

145 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
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Chapel A - I just moved over here and it is a good place for eating, drinking, getting to town (10 mins bike ride)

skip_1

3,459 posts

189 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
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Morley is ok, no worse than say Horsforth with plenty of young professionals and some good warehouse/mill conversion flats. A few decent eateries about too.

lewisf182

Original Poster:

2,084 posts

187 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
quotequote all
Yeah Chap al would be perfect but I think the commute would just be too far, it'd basically be the same time wise as me commuting from sheffield so no real benefit, i'd be worse off financially infact.

That'd what I'd like somewhere like Chap Al but a bit closer to Morley so thought best to ask on here! I know it's unlikely as south Leeds and just west of the city Centre are pretty dire.

I'm moving in with my brother who works in the centre of leeds, so just trying to find a happy balance really! Lower headingley may be the best option but is that a dive too?

BlackGT3

1,445 posts

209 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
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Rodley is OK and less expensive than Horsforth. Their are some good pubs/eateries by the canal and your brother could cycle to work. You will be very close to the ring road for easy access to Morley.

dave_s13

13,813 posts

268 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
quotequote all
Not all South Leeds is st. In fact large parts of it aren't.

I live in Methley and it's a lovely place. Semi rural but ten minutes to the m62/m1. I work in Morley too a few days a week, I can there in 20 mins.

Rothwell, Woodlesford, Swillington, Great Preston et al are all nice places but they are not geared up for the cosmopolitan crew like chap a is.

Only trouble with north Leeds, in your case, is working in Morley, there's no easy route through.

lewisf182

Original Poster:

2,084 posts

187 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
quotequote all
dave_s13 said:
Not all South Leeds is st. In fact large parts of it aren't.

I live in Methley and it's a lovely place. Semi rural but ten minutes to the m62/m1. I work in Morley too a few days a week, I can there in 20 mins.

Rothwell, Woodlesford, Swillington, Great Preston et al are all nice places but they are not geared up for the cosmopolitan crew like chap a is.

Only trouble with north Leeds, in your case, is working in Morley, there's no easy route through.
Thanks for the leads, will look into these areas on google maps and rightmove!
Yeah that's the main problem. According to google maps Chap Al to my work is 20 minutes, but it goes straight through the centre of leeds, no way in hell in rush hour will it take 20 minutes, probably double if not triple that time.

Thanks for the help so far!

soxboy

6,060 posts

218 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
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lewisf182 said:
Thanks for the leads, will look into these areas on google maps and rightmove!
Yeah that's the main problem. According to google maps Chap Al to my work is 20 minutes, but it goes straight through the centre of leeds, no way in hell in rush hour will it take 20 minutes, probably double if not triple that time.

Thanks for the help so far!
I used to do Moortown (next one up from Chapel A) into Leeds City centre in 20 minutes or less in rush hour, so taking off a bit of that time I don't think it's unreasonable to take 30 mins to get to Morley - don't forget once you've cleared Armley Gyratory you're going against the traffic.

pauluspaolo

12 posts

117 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
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I feel as if I should stick up for Armley having lived on Moorfield Grove - the street behind Moorfield Avenue - for the best part of 14 years. Personally speaking I experienced zero trouble - no burglaries, break ins, drug dealing (that I know of), muggings etc etc. Some of the neighbours weren't the most pleasant but they kept themselves to themselves for the most part. It's in the upper part of Armley - close to Bramley - & it really isn't that bad an area. Armley's rep isn't helped by having a prison but that's a fair distance away from the house you've linked to, it'd probably take you the best part of an hour to walk there from Moorfield Avenue. I also know 2 people who have lived on Moorfield Avenue for donkeys years & they've not experienced any problems either that I know of.

Having said that for socialising it's crap - though there are plenty of pubs - & Chapel Allerton is much much much better in this regard, presumably house prices will be higher though?? I'm an old duffer now (50) & the few times I've been to Chapel Allerton it's been kinda grim (to my mind) with the pubs/clubs/restaurants open late & drunk youngsters everywhere. It all depends on what you want - I want peace & quiet where I live & if I want a night out I'll go into Leeds - but you may well want the opposite.

Just thought I should stick up for Armley a bit smile

SpamDisco

319 posts

123 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
quotequote all
Farsley, a few nice bars, pubs, restaurants and cafes, not as posh/pricey as Chapel Al or Horsforth.
20-30 mins to Morley, not far from Canal at Rodley.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@53.812035,-1.671598...

Smaller properties for your cash though...
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/find....

lewisf182

Original Poster:

2,084 posts

187 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
quotequote all
Very good to know, cheers.

For £100k im not expecting much, but as long as the area isn't a ghetto i'd be happy as the interior is very nice imo.

I would like some nice local pubs close by as im still young (24) and do like to go out mid week for drinks etc after work when possible. I don't want student areas though really as I'm long past the days of partying till 5AM everynight. Then again most of these areas are a £5-£10 taxi into leeds centre or headingley so it's not a massive deal breaker!

thetapeworm

11,191 posts

238 months

Wednesday 25th June 2014
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Morley has pockets of "OK" and while the nightlife isn't exactly top-class that's why buses and trains etc exist so you can escape to Leeds - having said this once the Wetherspoons opens it's going to be like a party town! Maybe.

Personally I'd just look at Morley, Churwell, Gildersome, Upper Batley etc and use what you save in petrol to pay for trips out of the town when the need arises. At the end of the day you can get a good meal, a decent pint and nice coffee in Morley plus you can buy tripe in the market. You also get an inflated sense of self achievement when you wander through the town and see how bad life could have turned out.

Morley has the potential to be up and coming as a commuter town (lots of new builds in progress / planned along with town regeneration) but unfortunately 90% of the population probably needs to die first or evolve into something more human-like before this can happen.

pauluspaolo

12 posts

117 months

Wednesday 25th June 2014
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lewisf182 said:
Very good to know, cheers.

For £100k im not expecting much, but as long as the area isn't a ghetto i'd be happy as the interior is very nice imo.

I would like some nice local pubs close by as im still young (24) and do like to go out mid week for drinks etc after work when possible. I don't want student areas though really as I'm long past the days of partying till 5AM everynight. Then again most of these areas are a £5-£10 taxi into leeds centre or headingley so it's not a massive deal breaker!
There are a couple of pubs within easy walking distance of Moorfield Avenue - The Travellers Rest springs to mind & was a my Thursday night haunt for many years, the beer/lager was ok & I never experienced any trouble there; the other pub that's within easy walking distance is The Commercial but that's much more of an old mans pub, again not bad but much more "traditional" in terms of decor & customers. There used to be another pub close by (The Barleycorn) but that's closed I think - shame really as the 3 pubs being close to each other made for a semi-decent mini crawl (back in the day when I used to do such things).

The old West Leeds Boys High School has, comparatively recently, been turned into flats & is very close to Moorfield Avenue. I've no idea what's available, how much they go for, or even if they're for rental/purchase but it may be worth having a look there for something a bit more modern/upmarket. The through terraces on Moorfiled Avenue though, & even the back to back terrace that I lived in on Moorfield Grove, are deceptively spacious, often having 3 floors + cellars for storage.

Best of luck in whatever you end up doing




pauluspaolo

12 posts

117 months

Wednesday 25th June 2014
quotequote all
thetapeworm said:
Morley has pockets of "OK" and while the nightlife isn't exactly top-class that's why buses and trains etc exist so you can escape to Leeds - having said this once the Wetherspoons opens it's going to be like a party town! Maybe.

Personally I'd just look at Morley, Churwell, Gildersome, Upper Batley etc and use what you save in petrol to pay for trips out of the town when the need arises. At the end of the day you can get a good meal, a decent pint and nice coffee in Morley plus you can buy tripe in the market. You also get an inflated sense of self achievement when you wander through the town and see how bad life could have turned out.

Morley has the potential to be up and coming as a commuter town (lots of new builds in progress / planned along with town regeneration) but unfortunately 90% of the population probably needs to die first or evolve into something more human-like before this can happen.
I now live in Churwell (bottom of the big hill from Morley) & tend to agree with all the above - having said that there's everything you need in Morley (+ gazillions of charity shops); if you can't find what you need in Morley itself then there's the hideous White Rose centre nearby which contains all sorts of trendy clothes shops, jewellers, sainsbury's etc etc (as well as M&S frown ) - I hate going there but I can't actually remember the last time I went shopping in Leeds. Added to which there are some great restaurants in Morley - Baan Thai & Sambuca are 2 that come readily to mind. Not sure about the pubs though The Commercial on Churwell Hill is ok & does good pub grub.

smile

thetapeworm

11,191 posts

238 months

Wednesday 25th June 2014
quotequote all
pauluspaolo said:
I now live in Churwell (bottom of the big hill from Morley) & tend to agree with all the above - having said that there's everything you need in Morley (+ gazillions of charity shops); if you can't find what you need in Morley itself then there's the hideous White Rose centre nearby which contains all sorts of trendy clothes shops, jewellers, sainsbury's etc etc (as well as M&S frown ) - I hate going there but I can't actually remember the last time I went shopping in Leeds. Added to which there are some great restaurants in Morley - Baan Thai & Sambuca are 2 that come readily to mind. Not sure about the pubs though The Commercial on Churwell Hill is ok & does good pub grub.

smile
How annoying are those traffic lights to the Millshaw Industrial park at peak times? Totally out of phase for the volume of traffic on the main road.

Anyway...

I tend to frequent The Stump Cross, Halfway House or (whispers) The Toby or Harvester if necessary, I've also taken to using the bar in the Village Hotel now and again but it's a bit expensive in there. Lots of "locals" pubs I'm too scared to stick my head into (Halfway House felt a bit like that) but if you take a local guide and play it safe you are OK.

I haven't tried Sambuca yet, had a bad experience at Kasa Rosa once it moved so perhaps the people in the old venue are the answer. Cuccina isn't bad either but generally we go down to Redbrick in Batley for lunch and visit Cafe Barca in there.

I'm looking to move at the moment and as much as it's not the greatest location in the world I'm being trapped in the Morley mindset to some degree, it's a balance between housing costs and danger that's just on the right side of OK compared with other places nearby.

All of this could change if it becomes the centre of excellence for new gypsy camps and bail hostels though.

lewisf182

Original Poster:

2,084 posts

187 months

Wednesday 25th June 2014
quotequote all
thetapeworm said:
I've also taken to using the bar in the Village Hotel now and again but it's a bit expensive .
The village is just across from my work!

Just looked and the travellers rest seems to be a decent place to have a pint after work/watch footy!

Cheers again for all the tips. Looks like the one i posted earlier could be a goer and a decent half way house, have booked a viewing for tomorrow.



Edited by lewisf182 on Wednesday 25th June 18:55

roystinho

3,767 posts

174 months

Wednesday 25th June 2014
quotequote all
lewisf182 said:
thetapeworm said:
I've also taken to using the bar in the Village Hotel now and again but it's a bit expensive .
The village is just across from my work!

Just looked and the travellers rest seems to be a decent place to have a pint after work/watch footy!

Cheers again for all the tips. Looks like the one i posted earlier could be a goer and a decent half way house, have booked a viewing for tomorrow.



Edited by lewisf182 on Wednesday 25th June 18:55
I used to work at the Travs in Armley about 10 years ago, was a decent pub to be fair. That end of Armley is ok too, my post above referred to town street mainly