Do you know of a pleasant place to live in England?

Question

I am seeking to move early next year and am looking to buy a 2 bed roomed property with a reasonable sized garden in a quiet picturesque location.

Any suggestions, and an idea of what sort of price I would be looking to pay?

Answer 1

Bristol or Swindon !!

Answer 2

I'm in North Essex (13 miles from Stansted Airport). There are many nice villages near here (have a look at Thaxted, Clavering and Finchingfield). A good website to search for properties in a known location in the UK is:
www.rightmove.co.uk
Expect to pay at least £200K for a 2 bedroomed place here.
Finchingfield is a very pretty village with a river/duckpond and a windmill in the centre. Thaxted is a historic village, but right on the flightpath from Stansted Airport, so might not be quiet enough for you. All of these places make you feel that you really are in the country, but you are only around 50 miles from London - the best of both worlds. These places are part of Uttlesford District Council and a few years ago Uttlesford came up as the top place to live in the UK (they looked at several factors like transport, schooling, crime and the general quality of life). Can also go shopping in Cambridge which is a historic city.

Answer 3

I would reccomend rural Essex. A lot of my family live out there and it is simple BEAUTIFUL. The local pubs often run past streams with swans, it's very picturesque with beautiful scenery and it's quite. It's also a good distance from London - not so far that you can't go for a day-trip shopping, but far enough that you would never know you were even in the same country as it. It has some lovely towns with shops, but still maintains the quiet and peaceful nature that most people would look for. It's always seemed quite a retreat - it's got a lot of farming land and the people are nice.

I'd suggest having a look online at houses for sale. I'm afraid I can't advise on prices, but i'm sure there would be estate agents that could help :o)

Good luck! Hope the move goes well, wherever you decide to make it to!

Emma
xXx

Answer 4

That is a very open-ended question! Where do you need to be for work, family & transport links? Do you want countryside or an attractive town?

If it does not matter where you go then for the best value I would say look for an attractive part of an unfashionable region - like NE England or the E or W Midlands, rather than the expensive south.

For example in somewhere like Beverley, on Humberside (which has a beautiful old abbey and is near breathtaking moorland) you can get a 2 bedroom home for between £100k and £150k whereas in SE England you cannot get anything for that money.

Use a national property website like www.primelocation.com to see what you can get for your money in different localities and what style of home you want.

Answer 5

I live in Kendal (somewhere that someone here has recommended). It's a town, but nearby villages are all quiet and picturesque - although being in or near to the Lake District makes house prices very expensive.

Answer 6

I live in a little village between Bristol & Bath. The area is know as South Gloucs. We are a very friendly and socialable lot. Expect to pay around £150,000 to £175,000 unless the prices have gone up again. There are lots of green hills around and lots of wildlife. Today the sun is shining and it's a beautiful day, most ofl the trees still have their leaves and the birds are singing. Everywhere I look it looks beautiful. Best of luck with your house hunting.

Answer 7

Depends on your needs, rural/town warm/cold sea/mountains. The more remote you are the better deal you can get on property. Cornwall is remote, has beautiful countryside and coastline, is warm and prices tend to be lower. But is really difficult to get to anywhere from. North Norfolk is similar, but is more agricultural than wild.
See link for a list of Estate Agents, but a quick search of two bedroomed houses gave prices starting at about 100,000UKP.
If you want to be within fast commuting of London, then hop of the channel to rural Normandy. Prices starting at 35,000UKP and High Speed rail network to London.

Answer 8

Northants. Property prices are still low and stone cottages are two a penny.

Although rural, the county is not as picturesque as some. However, excelent transport links and fascilities.

Answer 9

The Dorset Coast Swanage in particular

Answer 10

Shrewsbury in Shropshire is picturesque, surrounding area is countryside and not much else. House prices very reasonable (considering) and fab local food

Answer 11

There are loads of countryside locations, particulary in the north. But in the south, I would say either Suffolk or Dorset offer the best chance for finding what you want.