Where to retire in the UK
Discussion
Any suggestions as to go towns/cities to move to if you are retired (so don’t have to worry about the job market)?
Somewhere big enough to have enough to do and facilities without being overwhelming. Preferably with access to decent countryside and importantly, reasonable house prices.
Cities that we like and have considered in the past eg Bath seem to have suffered from their popularity and house prices are nuts. Our idea is to sell up and downsize whilst releasing some capital but it seems you can easily pay £500k for a two bed flat in Bath.
My wife has done some preliminary research and come across Lincoln. Not somewhere I would have considered but seems a bit like Bath/York but much more affordable.
Somewhere big enough to have enough to do and facilities without being overwhelming. Preferably with access to decent countryside and importantly, reasonable house prices.
Cities that we like and have considered in the past eg Bath seem to have suffered from their popularity and house prices are nuts. Our idea is to sell up and downsize whilst releasing some capital but it seems you can easily pay £500k for a two bed flat in Bath.
My wife has done some preliminary research and come across Lincoln. Not somewhere I would have considered but seems a bit like Bath/York but much more affordable.
I can heartily recommend north wales.
Moved here in 2014 after 30 years in London.
We're 10 minutes from Chester, which is a great city (think york without the crowds), snowdonia is 20 minutes away, we're only an hour from Manchester or Liverpool if you really want crowds, amd the countryside is literally across the road.
Houses are (relatively) cheap too.
Moved here in 2014 after 30 years in London.
We're 10 minutes from Chester, which is a great city (think york without the crowds), snowdonia is 20 minutes away, we're only an hour from Manchester or Liverpool if you really want crowds, amd the countryside is literally across the road.
Houses are (relatively) cheap too.
Vale of Glamorgan. Vibrant city nearby in Cardiff, easy access of Glamorgan coast, Gower and West Wales. Easy access to M4 for road and rail links into. Bristol and London. Cardiff Airport is small, but links to hubs like Qatar and Schipol are easy. Short haul European flights from Bristol.
Is climate a biggy? If so you are perhaps looking at Devon and Cornwall. (I live in Somerset on the Devon border).
Cornwall - Terrible transport links, generally to be avoided
Devon - Better, and Exeter is quite nice. Way better transport links than Cornwall.
Dorset though would be my choice. Towns like Dorchester, Blandford Forum and Wimborne Minster are well worth a look.
Me though, I'm heading north and shall be moving to Scotland once the COVID stuff is over. All I want is a little cottage with a log burner, not too far from a town and pub. Books to read, beer to drink, hills to climb.
Cornwall - Terrible transport links, generally to be avoided
Devon - Better, and Exeter is quite nice. Way better transport links than Cornwall.
Dorset though would be my choice. Towns like Dorchester, Blandford Forum and Wimborne Minster are well worth a look.
Me though, I'm heading north and shall be moving to Scotland once the COVID stuff is over. All I want is a little cottage with a log burner, not too far from a town and pub. Books to read, beer to drink, hills to climb.
SCEtoAUX said:
Is climate a biggy? If so you are perhaps looking at Devon and Cornwall. (I live in Somerset on the Devon border).
Cornwall - Terrible transport links, generally to be avoided
Devon - Better, and Exeter is quite nice. Way better transport links than Cornwall.
Dorset though would be my choice. Towns like Dorchester, Blandford Forum and Wimborne Minster are well worth a look.
Me though, I'm heading north and shall be moving to Scotland once the COVID stuff is over. All I want is a little cottage with a log burner, not too far from a town and pub. Books to read, beer to drink, hills to climb.
I wanted to live in North Devon all my working life. Now I do and I love it. We've been here 4 years .Cornwall - Terrible transport links, generally to be avoided
Devon - Better, and Exeter is quite nice. Way better transport links than Cornwall.
Dorset though would be my choice. Towns like Dorchester, Blandford Forum and Wimborne Minster are well worth a look.
Me though, I'm heading north and shall be moving to Scotland once the COVID stuff is over. All I want is a little cottage with a log burner, not too far from a town and pub. Books to read, beer to drink, hills to climb.
However, the rain fall is astonishing .
My parents moved here in 76 and despite hundreds of visits I really didn't appreciate how much it rains. We haven't had 3 consecutive days without rain since October. This year is by no means exceptional .
There are no big towns except Barnstaple and there is no culture at all. All the good restaurants are in the South or Cornwall .
Would I live anywhere else ? No.
My in-laws live in Exmouth and it rains far less there
Esceptico said:
Not too far North as have family and friends in the South. Up to £400k
That would drive my thinking too...I love Scotland, but knowing v. few people there AND having lots of friends/family would make it madness to up sticks and move there!Transport links, WiFi, plus for proper long term planning, decent healthcare (A&E, hospitals!) would be up there on the list too.
Derbyshire for decent scenery perhaps? Bakewell, Matlock Bath always look nice.
A pal retired to a smallholding in Shropshire a few years back (after years in tech!) & seemed happy last I heard. Cornwall is lovely but feels like the back of beyond to me.
How about the Isle of Wight? My birthplace, has moved a bit into the 20th century now
, nice feel to much of it (but perhaps expensive ferry for regular use!)Johnspex said:
I wanted to live in North Devon all my working life. Now I do and I love it. We've been here 4 years .
However, the rain fall is astonishing .
My parents moved here in 76 and despite hundreds of visits I really didn't appreciate how much it rains. We haven't had 3 consecutive days without rain since October. This year is by no means exceptional .
However, the rain fall is astonishing .
My parents moved here in 76 and despite hundreds of visits I really didn't appreciate how much it rains. We haven't had 3 consecutive days without rain since October. This year is by no means exceptional .
Fellow North Devonian here (nr Holsworthy)
Yes it rains lots
I have been told that we get slightly less than southern Ireland
When we were looking (we moved from Bristol) the cheaper areas in the 'South' we looked at are
North Devon A30/M5 Bristol in 2 hours easy route
Some parts of Cornwall (there are some poor and deprived areas to watch out for)
Herefordshire, Staffordshire
West Wales, but again rather wet, maybe harder work to integrate,poor road links
East of Cardiff,Monmouth etc is getting expensive as poorer Bristolians move over the now free bridge
Stroud (a bit hippy) Forest of Dean ( that place is very special !)
Parts of Somerset.
We used rightmove search to get some inspiration, put in what you can afford what you want and see what comes back, we went for a 2 hour travel time back to family in Bristol and went from there,many weeks of viewings, gazumped in Herefordshire ended up in Devon
Got there in the end, 20 minutes from the sea, no light pollution, fresh air and dont miss the city at all
bristolracer said:
Johnspex said:
I wanted to live in North Devon all my working life. Now I do and I love it. We've been here 4 years .
However, the rain fall is astonishing .
My parents moved here in 76 and despite hundreds of visits I really didn't appreciate how much it rains. We haven't had 3 consecutive days without rain since October. This year is by no means exceptional .
However, the rain fall is astonishing .
My parents moved here in 76 and despite hundreds of visits I really didn't appreciate how much it rains. We haven't had 3 consecutive days without rain since October. This year is by no means exceptional .
Fellow North Devonian here (nr Holsworthy)
Yes it rains lots
I have been told that we get slightly less than southern Ireland
When we were looking (we moved from Bristol) the cheaper areas in the 'South' we looked at are
North Devon A30/M5 Bristol in 2 hours easy route
Some parts of Cornwall (there are some poor and deprived areas to watch out for)
Herefordshire, Staffordshire
West Wales, but again rather wet, maybe harder work to integrate,poor road links
East of Cardiff,Monmouth etc is getting expensive as poorer Bristolians move over the now free bridge
Stroud (a bit hippy) Forest of Dean ( that place is very special !)
Parts of Somerset.
We used rightmove search to get some inspiration, put in what you can afford what you want and see what comes back, we went for a 2 hour travel time back to family in Bristol and went from there,many weeks of viewings, gazumped in Herefordshire ended up in Devon
Got there in the end, 20 minutes from the sea, no light pollution, fresh air and dont miss the city at all
We moved there too early as we were both still working (me in Yeovil and south coast, partner in Bristol) and found the commuting too much which resulted in not taking advantage of what we had on the doorstep.
After moving back to the lovely Leicester !!, we both can’t wait to get back down there at some point, hopefully fairly soon so out baby boy can grow up down there.
bristolracer said:
Stroud (a bit hippy)
Haha, there is a slight hippy aspect & flair to Stroud but it doesn't really impact your life. Recently there have been one or two clowns in the town who have been particularly vocal about their feelings regarding the Covid situation. This led to some silly 100+ people marches in town & a protest or two in the park. On the whole though, Stroud isn't bad at all, it offers some wonderful countryside with a bit of town life & easy access to city life. The neighbouring towns & villages like Nailsworth, Tetbury, Minchinhampton, Eastington or Uley are rather pleasant places to live with good access to facilities , the M5+M4 are only a short journey allowing efficient travel North/South/East/West. Within 2 hours you can be in either of Birmingham, Cardiff, Bristol or Oxford by car or train.
Oh an since this is PH there are many fantastic roads around Gloucestershire plus Castle Combe & Prescot hill climb track!!
I'm currently researching places to retire so interested in this thread.
We've lived in Merseyside, Cheshire, Leicestershire and now in Cardiff.
I can't wait to get out of Wales for many reasons but the main one is the wet. It' i by some measures, the wettest city in Europe.
My wife's best friends live in Lincolnshire and I have a couple of friends there too. My In laws retired there (albeit deceased ther about 20 years ago) so I've spent quite a bit of time in Lincs and recon from what I've seen so far we'll end up either Lincs, Rutland or Norfolk.
We've lived in Merseyside, Cheshire, Leicestershire and now in Cardiff.
I can't wait to get out of Wales for many reasons but the main one is the wet. It' i by some measures, the wettest city in Europe.
My wife's best friends live in Lincolnshire and I have a couple of friends there too. My In laws retired there (albeit deceased ther about 20 years ago) so I've spent quite a bit of time in Lincs and recon from what I've seen so far we'll end up either Lincs, Rutland or Norfolk.
I’m biased, having lived here most of my life, but Norfolk takes some beating.
If you want city life then Norwich has a bit of everything. A range of theatres and arts venues, decent pubs and restaurants, good shopping, lots of history. You’re never really very far away from open countryside either. I live 20 minutes/10 miles out of the city to the south and am surrounded by open fields in a well serviced village.
£400k will currently buy you a nice 3 bed terrace in the most desirable postcodes, walking distance to the centre of Norwich, or something a little further out (but not far) in a nice area with better parking and a bigger garden.
If you want country living then there’s plenty of villages within easy travelling distance of Norwich that offer proper country life with a decent village pub, where your budget will probably stretch to a pretty cottage of a decent size or possibly a barn conversion.
North Norfolk beaches are amongst the best in the country. Holkham and Wells especially. If you wanted to live coastal then North Norfolk is the place to be, but £400k doesn’t get you much up that way. Things get a bit rougher as you head east towards Yarmouth, but there are still places I’d consider living over there if the right house came up.
If I were retiring now, I’d be tempted by one of several villages North or NW of Norwich so I’d have easy access to the city and beaches.
Travelling south is a lot easier now that the A11 is dual all the way to London. I can hit the M25 in about 1 hr 40 from
Norwich. Getting out of Norfolk to the West isn’t so easy.
I’ve spent time at university in Lancaster, and have worked all over the country, and I don’t think much tops Norfolk for cost vs benefit.
I have spent a few months living in Dorset and Gloucestershire recently though, and loved both.
If you want city life then Norwich has a bit of everything. A range of theatres and arts venues, decent pubs and restaurants, good shopping, lots of history. You’re never really very far away from open countryside either. I live 20 minutes/10 miles out of the city to the south and am surrounded by open fields in a well serviced village.
£400k will currently buy you a nice 3 bed terrace in the most desirable postcodes, walking distance to the centre of Norwich, or something a little further out (but not far) in a nice area with better parking and a bigger garden.
If you want country living then there’s plenty of villages within easy travelling distance of Norwich that offer proper country life with a decent village pub, where your budget will probably stretch to a pretty cottage of a decent size or possibly a barn conversion.
North Norfolk beaches are amongst the best in the country. Holkham and Wells especially. If you wanted to live coastal then North Norfolk is the place to be, but £400k doesn’t get you much up that way. Things get a bit rougher as you head east towards Yarmouth, but there are still places I’d consider living over there if the right house came up.
If I were retiring now, I’d be tempted by one of several villages North or NW of Norwich so I’d have easy access to the city and beaches.
Travelling south is a lot easier now that the A11 is dual all the way to London. I can hit the M25 in about 1 hr 40 from
Norwich. Getting out of Norfolk to the West isn’t so easy.
I’ve spent time at university in Lancaster, and have worked all over the country, and I don’t think much tops Norfolk for cost vs benefit.
I have spent a few months living in Dorset and Gloucestershire recently though, and loved both.
SCEtoAUX said:
Dorset though would be my choice. Towns like Dorchester, Blandford Forum and Wimborne Minster are well worth a look.
North of Dorset less touristy. Sherborne is a delight, Shaftesbury less so but still nice. Gillingham not nice. Good rail line to London if that's your thing. Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff