Moving to Aylesbury
Discussion
Apologies if I've posted this in the wrong section first of all. My dad is currently in the process of selling our house in London and myself and him will be moving to Aylesbury with me purchasing the house there as a FTB. We've already got 2 properties we've booked visits for on the northern edge of the town in what looks like a quiet cul-de-sac and I've tried to do as much googling as I can but that hasn't been much help, for anyone with experience is there anything we should be wary of, areas not to live in the town and what is it like in general? I know rail connections to London are decent, and there seems to be a fairly well sized town centre with all the usual shops etc. Thank you!
eps said:
Hmmm....
It depends where you are moving from - so what you are comparing it with.
Some areas seem less than good, but others are quite nice. Whilst my father was in Stoke Mandeville hospital we went through some areas which were a bit run down (that's being kind), but that is on the other side of town to where you are looking.
If I were you I would investigate the local area around the street/road you are looking at. A few minutes drive around should tell you what you need to know.
We live a few miles north of Aylesbury in a small village. We tend to dip into Aylesbury as opposed to spend a lot of time there. Pre-Covid it did have some benefits, the theatre, cinema, waitrose and a few others.
Personally it seems a bit rundown in terms of housing stock and shops in the centre, or possibly just a bit tired. Most of Bucks County Council services are now based there - if not all - moved from High Wycombe (or rather the southern half of them moved up there).
Train wise, the Aylesbury lines are the slow ones or possibly less frequent ones. If we go to London we use Haddenham & Thame or sometimes Bicester.
There is the new Berryfields area and some new development on that side of the town - but not sure where you are looking.
Personally, if possible, I would live in a village or smaller town around Aylesbury and dip in to the facilities there when needed. But it depends on you and your circumstances. Of course a similar property in a village may well be more expensive or smaller than a comparable property.
ETA : If moving to the North side of Aylesbury be wary of HS2 and the impact that may have - we knew it was coming, about 1.5 miles away from where we are, but it may be closer for you.
There certainly seems to be some investment in Aylesbury in certain areas, but then not much in other parts of it.
The area we're going to see the houses on Saturday is called Elmhurst but we're quite literally going to be on the edge of town, estate called Cleveland Park, we're moving from Zone 4 NW London, area called Greenford, we're currently on the borders of Greenford/Northolt/Harrow. Last week we went on a sort of recce run to Aylesbury, checked out the area we have visits for this week and liked what we saw but wanted some opinions before we make any concrete decisions, which might have to be done quickly as we had 4 visits for our house today and it was only put up yesterday morning. Right now anything is better than London and I'm in the habit of over-researching things.It depends where you are moving from - so what you are comparing it with.
Some areas seem less than good, but others are quite nice. Whilst my father was in Stoke Mandeville hospital we went through some areas which were a bit run down (that's being kind), but that is on the other side of town to where you are looking.
If I were you I would investigate the local area around the street/road you are looking at. A few minutes drive around should tell you what you need to know.
We live a few miles north of Aylesbury in a small village. We tend to dip into Aylesbury as opposed to spend a lot of time there. Pre-Covid it did have some benefits, the theatre, cinema, waitrose and a few others.
Personally it seems a bit rundown in terms of housing stock and shops in the centre, or possibly just a bit tired. Most of Bucks County Council services are now based there - if not all - moved from High Wycombe (or rather the southern half of them moved up there).
Train wise, the Aylesbury lines are the slow ones or possibly less frequent ones. If we go to London we use Haddenham & Thame or sometimes Bicester.
There is the new Berryfields area and some new development on that side of the town - but not sure where you are looking.
Personally, if possible, I would live in a village or smaller town around Aylesbury and dip in to the facilities there when needed. But it depends on you and your circumstances. Of course a similar property in a village may well be more expensive or smaller than a comparable property.
ETA : If moving to the North side of Aylesbury be wary of HS2 and the impact that may have - we knew it was coming, about 1.5 miles away from where we are, but it may be closer for you.
There certainly seems to be some investment in Aylesbury in certain areas, but then not much in other parts of it.
Edited by eps on Tuesday 26th January 16:44
Thanks for the replies so far, haven't been told to steer clear of the town in general so it's looking ok. Plus the benefits of easy access to green open spaces like the Chilterns, decent enough town centre and transport links. Will get to see more of it when we go for our viewings on Saturday and hopefully get a much better idea of the area.
Turn7 said:
VEX said:
What is the pull of Aylesbury?
Is there a reason or just a pin in a map?
Its better than Greenford I guess..... Is there a reason or just a pin in a map?
I'm too lazy to quote the most recent replies as I'm currently on mobile but from the looks of it it's mixed reviews leaning to "no don't do it", we have 2 house visits planned for Aylesbury on Saturday so will make the most of the day and see if it really is the right area for my dad and I, Leighton Buzzard is a good shout as my dad would easily be able to help with the granddaughter when parents are both are work and he's retired.
SweptVolume said:
Don't be immediately put off. I agree with others it's no Garden of Eden, but very few small towns are - even the glorious historical types have their problems. Aylesbury's problems will seem quaint by comparison to the issues that parts of London suffer from. People will mentioned traffic, but compared to London, it's got no traffic. People will mentioned crime, but compared to London...well it has crime, but it's often lower level stuff brought about by that sense of waywardness that some unfortunate people get when they live in a small town their whole life. So you might get antisocial behaviour, but you won't get knifed in the back for your iPhone.
The old town parts are classic Bucks stuff, but sadly there are not many of them. The general feel of the town is one that grew in the latter part of the 20th century. Again, not uncommon in the home counties as people fled London after the war.
Leighton Buzzard has a more varied architecture, but the bulk of the housing stock is turn of the century terraces. Prettier, but actually quite urban in regards to things like parking. The estate you found in Aylesbury is much more spacious. Also, if you believe the stories of my electrician, parts of LB are blighted by theft crimes due to our caravanning friends, particularly the South East of the town.
I'd recommend visiting both to get a feel, though note that all town centres feel a bit sad and quiet at the moment, for obvious reasons.
That does make me feel better about the place now, as others have said it's easy access to countryside, Chiltern Hills on my doorstep as well as the A41 which looks like a blast of a road to drive. While my commutes to Watford will be minimal due to WFH I'm sure I'll need to drive down maybe once in every blue moon. Either way, going to do our visits and make our decision based on what we see on Saturday.The old town parts are classic Bucks stuff, but sadly there are not many of them. The general feel of the town is one that grew in the latter part of the 20th century. Again, not uncommon in the home counties as people fled London after the war.
Leighton Buzzard has a more varied architecture, but the bulk of the housing stock is turn of the century terraces. Prettier, but actually quite urban in regards to things like parking. The estate you found in Aylesbury is much more spacious. Also, if you believe the stories of my electrician, parts of LB are blighted by theft crimes due to our caravanning friends, particularly the South East of the town.
I'd recommend visiting both to get a feel, though note that all town centres feel a bit sad and quiet at the moment, for obvious reasons.
Apologies all, and thanks for the recent posts, I haven't kept an eye on the thread, but I had taken everything into consideration! In the end, my dad and I found a 2 bed end of terrace with attached garage and big garden right on the North Eastern edge of Aylesbury looking directly at Bierton village, the road itself is a cul de sac no less in an area called Cleveland Park, looks like a somewhat recent new build type estate and relatively quiet area. The house we viewed and got accepted on had a lot of attention on the day, mainly from what looked like young couples buying their first house on mortgages. We did have a drive through the town and compared to Greenford it honestly didn't look as bad as some people are describing. If I have made a mistake, I'll let you all know in a year! 
For the time being I'm now almost a first time homeowner at 28!
Edit: The budget was between 200-270k if you were wondering, as it was splitting the proceeds of our current house roughly in half, so wasn't expecting to get a mansion. Got what we wanted and I'm pleased.
For the time being I'm now almost a first time homeowner at 28!
Edit: The budget was between 200-270k if you were wondering, as it was splitting the proceeds of our current house roughly in half, so wasn't expecting to get a mansion. Got what we wanted and I'm pleased.
Edited by 75Black on Wednesday 24th February 16:42
RichFN2 said:
Well done on the purchase and the good news is I know exactly where you mean and that's a nice quiet area 
A mate of mine lived on The Coppice for years and he had no problems at all which is across the Bierton Road from you.
I would make The Watermead Inn your local and not The Dairy Maid, and Double Eight is a great Chinese takeaway not far from you
Thank you! I was getting second thoughts when I was reading the posts, but when we went and viewed the area we were made up instantly. Definitely seems like one of those commuter/young professional type estates, newer houses and a lot of new cars, not scruffy at all. Also good shout on the pub and takeaway, I hadn't even begun to think of that yet! A mate of mine lived on The Coppice for years and he had no problems at all which is across the Bierton Road from you.I would make The Watermead Inn your local and not The Dairy Maid, and Double Eight is a great Chinese takeaway not far from you
SweptVolume said:
I lived in a rented 18th century cottage in Chesham old town for around 7 years - Germain Street, by the grotty Red Lion pub. I always had to park 5 mins walk away, though they had introduced residents' parking just before I left.
The cottage and surrounding area were gorgeous, but it was only 1 bedroom and so very wee inside. No great shakes except the asking price for such a house went up from under £200k in 2011 to close to £300k when I moved out in 2017. Way too expensive, no matter how pretty.
Also, being so close to the high street was good in the daytime (I could watch the summer carnivals and parades from my bedroom window), but awful at night. Drunken yobs aplenty and I once woke to find foot steps up my bonnet, windscreen, and along the roof as some scrote had decided to partake in a bit of late night parkour.
OP your house sounds perfect for what you need and a lovely peaceful end of town. Wishing you well for a smooth buying process and welcome to Bucks (the best of the home counties for sure!)
Thank you, there's a Rightmove link if you wanna check it out. I'm excited to move and be able to get out and explore Bucks and the Chilterns, who knows maybe by June all will be done and dusted and there will be no lockdown to boot!The cottage and surrounding area were gorgeous, but it was only 1 bedroom and so very wee inside. No great shakes except the asking price for such a house went up from under £200k in 2011 to close to £300k when I moved out in 2017. Way too expensive, no matter how pretty.
Also, being so close to the high street was good in the daytime (I could watch the summer carnivals and parades from my bedroom window), but awful at night. Drunken yobs aplenty and I once woke to find foot steps up my bonnet, windscreen, and along the roof as some scrote had decided to partake in a bit of late night parkour.
OP your house sounds perfect for what you need and a lovely peaceful end of town. Wishing you well for a smooth buying process and welcome to Bucks (the best of the home counties for sure!)
eps said:
ah no worries - looks tidy and not requiring immediate work but also looks like you can stamp your own mark on it as well if you choose to do so.
Definitely, I'm already thinking ahead and at some point maybe planning to put in a small extension at the back to make a small dining room, plenty of space with how big the garden is.RichFN2 said:
75Black said:
Thank you, there's a Rightmove link if you wanna check it out. I'm excited to move and be able to get out and explore Bucks and the Chilterns, who knows maybe by June all will be done and dusted and there will be no lockdown to boot!
You have some good walking routes by you, easiest would be Watermead lake and across to the Buckingham Park walkway which carries onto Quarrendon Leas with a few different routes.Coombe hill and Wendover Woods are only a few mins by car and will make you glad to have them on your doorstep
anonymous said:
[redacted]
No plans to go back to London, direct links into the centre using Chiltern trains for example are adequate, plus Khan has made London a mess to drive in, 20mph zones on every street, even the wide main roads. Low Traffic Neighbourhood restrictions, cutting off "rat runs", no thanks. I'm good with Bucks probably for the next 28 years of my life.malaccamax said:
75Black said:
Thank you, there's a Rightmove link if you wanna check it out. I'm excited to move and be able to get out and explore Bucks and the Chilterns, who knows maybe by June all will be done and dusted and there will be no lockdown to boot!
Well done! Great position for exploring. As well as the Chilterns for walks, the countryside north of you is great for cycling, if you're into that. (undulating, lots of views, pretty little villages)Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff