Possible move to Yorkshire - property market? Places to avoid? Land?

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MagicMelon

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So... nothing confirmed yet but OH may be about to be offered a job in Sheffield (so needs to be up to 1 hour commute). Im freaking out as we currently live in NE Scotland where house and land prices are cheap (and land plentiful). Our "happy" figure would be around the £350k mark. Maybe push up to £400k. Needing 4 bed (ideally 5 but know my budget wont stretch) in a semi-rural/rural location, ideally on outskirts of a village would be great. Need good (non private) schools as well (which I know pushes property prices up!). But Id really REALLY like a 1 acre paddock (ideally more of course but doubt possible). Obviously we live far away, the thought of moving and ALSO having to try and find a field to rent sounds so stressful and I dont think we'd suit a livery yard (plus I dont think I could afford it!) But how likely is it to find 1-2 acres to rent or share with someone else? Everything Im seeing suggests I could do with another £100k to have my own paddock. Could do some work to a property (new kitchen etc.) as long as its liveable :(

Is this even remotely doable and if so, where would be best to look and also what areas are best to avoid as we come from a very safe rural area? Also, anyone with this type of property within budget thinking about selling?! Thanks in advance x
 
We ended up moving from Sheffield to the border of East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire, but still withing South Yorkshire, just because this was the only way I could afford to keep the boys at home. It is much cheaper than Sheffield and the commute was do-able.
 
Red-1 said:
We ended up moving from Sheffield to the border of East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire, but still withing South Yorkshire, just because this was the only way I could afford to keep the boys at home. It is much cheaper than Sheffield and the commute was do-able.
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Thanks Red-1, so what sort of areas does this cover please? Is it Epworth, Crowle, Skunthorpe etc.? Just looking on a map!
 
tda said:
Generally, anything towards the east coast will be cheaper, but also some flood risk. I think you might struggle with that budget for a 4bed plus paddock unless you want a doer upper
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Thank you, yeah the ones that are just within budget seem to be far more East into Lincolnshire, but the commute would be rather far for all the ones Ive favourited so far (over 1 hour)
 
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MagicMelon said:
Thanks Red-1, so what sort of areas does this cover please? Is it Epworth, Crowle, Skunthorpe etc.? Just looking on a map!
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They would be cheaper but are actually outside South Yorkshire and further than I would want to commute to Sheffield.

I would look close to the M18 as it is pretty reliable for commuting.

This one is local. 5 bed in a village with many horse places nearby. £375000


This one, 4 bed (but I would enquire about flooding) new build, £370 000

4 Bed detached £300 000

4 bed massive garden, £300000

Just had a quick look as I'm supposed to be tidying up!!!
 
The commute from E.Yorks will be too much, definitely over 1 hour. A friend used to commute by train from Selby to Huddersfield and found it too much, as soon as her OH retired they moved much nearer to Hudds.

I recommend looking on the W.Yorks/East Lancs/Greater Manchester border. Lots of semi- rural villages with land suitable for horses, so long as you don't want flat land. Or have a look in the former mining areas in W.Yorks/S.Yorks. Properties often have what my farmer friend used to describe as the equivalent of a garage - enough land to keep a pony and a few sheep, in the days when people grew and wove their own wool and took the clothes to market.
 
Re the commute, I'd check routes and alternatives like trains etc. I was travelling from the south yorks/Derbyshire border to Nottingham and moved jobs to West Yorkshire. Even though my mileage doubled, traffic is much better and it takes me half the time. If he is travelling into Sheffield I'd definitely look at train commuting. West Yorkshire has some lovely villages, and good links
 
I lived in Epworth and travelled to outskirts of Sheffield to work daily and the length of time it took very much depends upon the time you set off…I went 7.30 latest. The area around Doncaster does have property with land , not for £350k though. The east of Sheffield is ex coal mining and steel, some very nice places Tickhill, Bawtry, Spotbrough and some less so. You would have to visit and research the schools. To the west of Sheffield is the Peak district and Lady Bower reservoir ( I used to teach and ride in this area decades ago). Might be worth looking at Chesterfield area. North of Sheffield towards Barnsley and Wakefield there are lovely areas but very lovely prices too. I must point out that the amount of traffic and people in this area will come as a big shock after NE Scotland.
Is this move instead of to Stirling area? It must be emotionally exhausting researching places to move to and then not doing so.
 
Im afraid chesterfield area is £££ for anything with land, as is north notts which would be travelable. It does however have a big equestrian community so land may be possible to rent
 
We're between Sheffield and Huddersfield.

When we were looking we found land prices around Sheffield/Barnsley were very high so moved a bit further out to get what we wanted.

Prices here have not come down much post-covid madness and I haven't seen anything with land under £700k.

The only area I can think that would be on the cheaper end would be around Bradford and that would be too long a commute.

Have you thought of buying house and land separately? That might make your money go a bit further, though the logistics of it might make it less easy to achieve.

ETA ive noticed prices in some areas of Derbyshire have dropped a bit recently, especially for doer uppers.
 
If your OH is changing company don't do anything until he's passed his probation and confirms he's happy in new role. He can commute weekly until end of school year which gives you plenty of time to find somewhere and resettle.

As somebody who moved 23 times both in UK and abroad due to father's job and then worked in European HR relocation roles, unless you can afford to rent in Yorkshire and keep current property take your time.

Hope it all works out
 
Midlifecrisis said:
I lived in Epworth and travelled to outskirts of Sheffield to work daily and the length of time it took very much depends upon the time you set off…I went 7.30 latest. The area around Doncaster does have property with land , not for £350k though. The east of Sheffield is ex coal mining and steel, some very nice places Tickhill, Bawtry, Spotbrough and some less so. You would have to visit and research the schools. To the west of Sheffield is the Peak district and Lady Bower reservoir ( I used to teach and ride in this area decades ago). Might be worth looking at Chesterfield area. North of Sheffield towards Barnsley and Wakefield there are lovely areas but very lovely prices too. I must point out that the amount of traffic and people in this area will come as a big shock after NE Scotland.
Is this move instead of to Stirling area? It must be emotionally exhausting researching places to move to and then not doing so.
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Thanks, yes sadly the job in Stirling didnt work out (company had to lay off a load of staff) - wish it was Stirling at thatd be a much easier move! Yes it is exhausting I have to say. This move is definite now though as OH has already moved to a rented flat in Sheffield to get going with the job. Leaving me to try and get house ready for market and get it sold up here...

So we've worked out we can get up to £500k which thankfully gives us a little more but even with that Im realising that a decent size house with land isnt going to be doable so I will just have to find a house first then see if I can desperately rent a field somewhere (and one I can afford as terrified itll be so expensive there) :( Ive got 3 kids and visiting relatives so we have to have a 4 (ideally 5) bed house and pets so decent size garden. And the biggest priority is schooling for the kids which Im really struggling with. Rightmove lists several local schools on a property advert, but that doesnt really help as surely I need to know the exact primary and secondary school that house is in the catchment zone for? Or in England can you choose other schools (but this surely comes with an element of risk that you might not be accepted into an out of zone one)?

I did go down to Sheffield recently and we drove south through Chesterfield etc. and if Im honest I hated it. It seemed really quite built up (like we hadnt even left Sheffield!). I much preferred North with the little villages round Pontefract. My OH is concerned about the schools in these areas though? We were looking in the villages surrounding Doncaster too since we can get more for our money, but again OH is very concerned about schooling.

Yes, Im already freaking out about the traffic and just shear amount of people down there. Which is why Im so keen to try and preserve as much "country" living as possible by choosing a leafy quiet village with a house with large garden surrounding it so it feels private. Im sure a lot of families want the same though!
 
southerncomfort said:
We're between Sheffield and Huddersfield.

When we were looking we found land prices around Sheffield/Barnsley were very high so moved a bit further out to get what we wanted.

Prices here have not come down much post-covid madness and I haven't seen anything with land under £700k.

The only area I can think that would be on the cheaper end would be around Bradford and that would be too long a commute.

Have you thought of buying house and land separately? That might make your money go a bit further, though the logistics of it might make it less easy to achieve.

ETA ive noticed prices in some areas of Derbyshire have dropped a bit recently, especially for doer uppers.
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Thanks - can you recommend any nice, leafy and family friendly rural villages in your area? We can now go up to £500k which helps a bit. Ive realised that Ill just have to try and rent a field as like you say, my budget just wont stretch to anything with even an acre of land.

Schooling is super important and I dont think Bradford is know for good schools is my concern there. Im really keen to stay North of Sheffield as I will be heading "home" to Scotland nown and again so its just that bit closer.
 
Magic melon contact the local education authority where you think you might like to live and ask for the schools list then look them up via Ofsted reports. There are some very good schools honestly. If you were over on the Doncaster side of the A1/M1 I can be more helpful regarding areas as I lived there..I mainly worked Sheffield/Barnsley/Leeds.
Perhaps you could sell your house to the poster from Wiltshire who is wanting to move to Scotland lol.
 
I’m not an expert on Sheffield but OH hails from there, and I do know Grenoside is a very ‘nice’ location, fairly horsey too. Also Oughtibridge, nearby, is supposed to be ok.
Here’s one which you’d have to make a low offer on as it’s on for £550, but it’s pretty, borders on fields and look: horses in a field next door.
www.rightmove.co.uk

Check out this 4 bedroom semi-detached house for sale on Rightmove

4 bedroom semi-detached house for sale in Whitley Lane, Grenoside, Sheffield, S35 for £550,000. Marketed by Saxton Mee, Hillsborough
www.rightmove.co.uk www.rightmove.co.uk

Cheaper at £450K but still 4 beds and in Grenoside
www.rightmove.co.uk

Check out this 4 bedroom semi-detached house for sale on Rightmove

4 bedroom semi-detached house for sale in Middle Lane, Grenoside, S35 for £450,000. Marketed by Hunters, Hillsborough
www.rightmove.co.uk www.rightmove.co.uk

Totley is also a nice area, I heard - never been through it though and know nothing about it. Grenoside has beautiful woods to the North of it and has more of a village feel.

I would have to agree with you that much of Sheffield looks pretty awful - it has a lot of older council estates, and well - it’s a big city so also some really rough areas, as in all cities. They’ve done a fair bit of work on the city centre, but there is a lot left to do. It is really vibrant in many ways though - a student city, too.

Your OH should be able to get some intel from his colleagues about good (or bad) schools, and good (or bad) locations to live? I do think getting something with land within a commutable distance will be a tall order.

ETA yes there are some nice villages around Pontefract and also Doncaster - what you need is a local parent who can give you the low-down on schools :/
 
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