Some opinions please? Relocation to Cheshire/Shrops/Wales

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Llanali

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Silly title on phone has been chopped off!

Advice on relocation sought :)

I wonder if I could get some opinions please.

I have always been a South East dweller, and worked in London or Home counties. An opportunity has arisen to change career path, to what I always considered my 'ideal' job. The territory for this would be Shropshire, North Wales, Cheshire and part of Stafford; I'd need to live in the area.

I am broaching the subject with my OH, who is in a ubiquitous profession and is fairly receptive to the idea.

So- equestrian property, and equestrian competition venues. This would be a lifestyle change for us- I'm tired of the underground, long train journeys and being surgically attached to the conference call setting on my iPhone. Could anybody advise how the area is catered for in an equestrian sense? What are property prices- I do appreciate how long is a piece of string- but I'm assuming cheaper than Buckinghamshire!

Any help greatly appreciated. Following last night's drama in the office, I have espresso and red bull available. There might even be some left over Chinese?
 
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I've got family that live Shrewsbury/Ludlow way and it is a beautiful part of the world. You definitely get more value for money but it's a popular area, particularly with equestrians and so property does command a fair price.
 
I grew up in shopshire and I think its a stunning part of the world. (I live in Worcestershire now- just south of shrops- as they couldnt drag me too far away!)

I lived in Bridgnorth which is stunning. House prices are considerably lower than those in the SE but land is still of premium price esp those considered to be smallholdings. Our 2 bed bungalow with 2.5 acres which we sold in 2010 just outside of Bridgnorth in shrops sold for £205,000 despite the downturn in market we believe because of the land (and we had a borehole so our own private fresh water!)

Lots of horsey venues and oodles of large argicultural shows. Dressage is a bit thin on the ground though I found. PM me if you have any specifics.
 
I live in the Welsh Marches [Shropshire/powys border] not far from Ludlow. Its great horse country with a strong hunting tradition and several hunts.
 
I'm right on the border! Within half a mile of our house is Shropshire and Clwyd, our post code is Shropshire but we actually live in Cheshire.
Beautiful part of the country; quite rural but not remote; Chester, Stoke, Wrexham and Shrewsbury within half hour; Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham less than an hour usually.

Centre wise, we have Tushingham and South View close by plus Somerford also not far from Prescott and Church Farm (there are loads others but as I don't use them don't know how far from us - ask in Comp' for more) Some places are better suited with bridlepaths than others, we don't have very many at all here but the lanes are quiet so pleasant to use; seems the closer you are to towns, the better tracks you should have.
Cheshire is more costly, even the southern tip where we are and Shropshire seems far better price wise, Clwyd is even better, their council tax is almost half ours! An SY13 post code is cheaper than SY14 (nearer Chester) not too sure about Stafford but of course you have better motorway links there if you need them.
Locally we have hunting and polo plus plenty of shows and events and we also have a great bunch of vets and farriers with Leahurst Vet School only less than an hour away; also have Bangor on Dee, Haydock, Chester, Uttoxeter and Wolverhampton racecourses in easy reach.

People are usually very friendly and helpful, it was like coming home for me, settled straight in and I was a southerner before too!
Estate agents locally are Wright-Manley, Halls, Denton Clark, Strutt & Partner, Bagshaws etc so plenty to choose from.
 
Apart from Horse and Hound to look for properties, try Farmers Weekly, they usually have a great selection of small holdings and small farms. You also have Weston Park, and Stafford Showgrounds within easy reach. I think Maesfen covered absolutely everything else! I was born in Cheshire moved to Shropshire and now live in Northern Ireland, but go home very often.
 
We are Cheshire, just south of Manchester and very well served for equestrian events and centres. There's lots going on and it's an excellent location for human amenities too. In terms of house prices I'm not sure how we'd compare with your current location. I think if you go a little further a field or somewhere less picturesque you can probably get a good deal more for your money than where you are now. However we are part of what's know as 'the triangle' which is a wedge of south manchester/cheshire around Alderley Edge, Prestbury, Wilmslow, which is expensive. My nearest town in Knutsford which is lovely.
 
North Wales is cheap.

I'm originally from the south coast. Moved up here in 1999 when my mum and dad purchased a big 4 bedroom house up here for the price of a 2 bedroom flat down south! They came up here on holiday, saw the property prices, rang the estate agents back home to cancel their offer on a flat and put an offer in on a house up here!

By the time they got back down south their offer had been accepted and they asked me and my sister if we wanted to move up with them for a fresh start. Which we did. And we've all been up here ever since!

There's plenty of liveries up here. There's also plenty of cheap smallholdings to buy or rent. The further north or west you go the cheaper the property prices. But some villages can be a bit anti-English but as long as you attempt to speak a bit of the lingo most of them warm to you.
 
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Cheshire is the most expensive of the areas you are looking in, the closer to Chester and/or Manchester the more expensive. Shorps is somewhere in the middle, with North Wales offering the best bargains especially if you don't mind a more isolated location (but beware it may be quite isolated and lonely).

We were in SY11 and there were plenty of horsey events around. I only do BD but I could get to a show a week in the summer and two shows a month in the winter all within an hour's drive.

Bridleways differ so best to invest in an OS map and check any potential houses out. Our area had one single bridleway with many collapsed gates and lively cattles, so a no-no there. The roads were single roads with hedgerows either side, for the most part empty but some people did use them as racetracks and then they became lethal.
 
Hi,

We live nr Montgomery (15 miles from Shrewsbury), on the welsh/shrops borders and like you, escaped the south east rat race when my son was born.

We absolutely love it and bought a small farm with 24 acres, 8 stables, menage and 4 bedroom house for a very good price. We have off road hacking straight off the yard, from which I run a small livery yard, and my 'city' husband has re-trained as a teacher so we get to enjoy the long school holidays as a family.

The area we are in has excellent hacking, a few competition centres that cater for both unaff and aff SJ and dressage, (Bow House Farm/Prescott/Kingsland), and a BE course 30 mins away (llanymynech - nr Oswestry) which offers schooling facilites as well. There are 3 RC and numerous PC's branches in the area, and several hunts, from the more adventurous packs of the North Shrops and South Shrops, to the Tanatside which is a smaller farmers pack.

Shropshire is the 'fun ride' capital whereby you can do one virtually every weekend over the summer, which our hunt horses love, and keeps their fitness and jumping ticking over.

For showing, there are several county shows that require some travelling but do-able, such as the Royal Welsh, Cheshire County etc.
Locally we have a lot of smaller agricultural shows that cater for lower level competitors, plus a lot of RC type shows nearer Shrewsbury and Telford.

In term of the areas you mention North Wales would be the cheapest, with Cheshire nearing south east prices. We found our farm via 'Rural Scenes' but 'Border Estates' are also worth a look at as cover all the areas you are looking at.

The Shrops/welsh borders are stunningly beautiful, very rural and under populated. The only downside is that we do have to travel more to get to shops and horse events, but that is a small price to pay to live somewhere so beautiful.

Good luck and hope you get to make the move!
 
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I'm in North Shropshire and would agree with everyones comments above, although we are only just over the border from Cheshire property is quite a bit cheaper. Just round me there aren't many bridleways but there is a great farm ride just south of Whitchurch which has parking and loads of off road riding. North Wales is cheaper still, and if you don't go too far over the border still quite easy to access all the facilities in Shropshire and Cheshire.

Ajn, I used to live near Knutsford (Mobberley), but moved to Shropshire on marrying as just couldn't afford anything in Cheshire.:(
 
Congleton is cheap but central/north Cheshire.

Compared to where you are now loads of that area is cheap. You could buy a large farm near me for around £1.2m with a deer herd and a building big enough to turn into holiday flats that would give you a good income. My friend has a small 4 bed farmhouse, new conversion to absolute top class spec, with 9 acres, top class stabling and pp for 20x60 in place up for £850,000 in Swythamley in glorious countryside 20 minutes from West Coast mainline station and the M6.

It's glorious up here and centre of the horse universe, but don't tell, everyone will want to come :)

A N Ex-Southerner
 
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I'm on the Shropshire / Worcestershire border, not far it would appear from Shadowboy.

It's beautiful country, a great way of life, I would recommend it to any but the most city-dwelling of city folk!

For an idea of what properties there are try Right Move and put in Bridgnorth or Ludlow, and with a fairly large radius you'll get tons of information.

There is acres and oodles of beautiful countryside to live in, hack in, hunt and and gallop around. I don't compete myself, but suggest you have a look at Kingswood Equestrian (Albrighton) as a competition venue, and for pointers of a dressagey-bent, perhaps try Leonie Smith of www.daneswooddressage.co.uk who is based at my yard www.chorleyequestrian.co.uk
 
Thank you everybody for your help and advice!

This most certainly sounds like it could be a positive move. It's very much an idea in infancy, that will require much more than thrashing out on the back of an envelope, but now that the seed has been sown, I'm feeling a bit excited!!

I'm off now to have a look at the centres mentioned, and the estate agencies! The other half has been perusing Rural Scene already, which is a bit premature as I've not even applied to the flipping job.

We've got a nice 3bed semi here in Bucks, rural village but 40mins from London, AA awarded best GastroPub in England, motorway network fabulous but non visible from village etc etc. Garden and driveway- sounds as if for this, we could get somewhere with some land in the right place oop north- or across!

Still, a start, and even if it isn't now or this job, it's something that we are beginning to think we want to do at some point.

Thanks again everyone.
 
RosieroundtheChristmasTree said:
I'm on the Shropshire / Worcestershire border, not far it would appear from Shadowboy.

It's beautiful country, a great way of life, I would recommend it to any but the most city-dwelling of city folk!

For an idea of what properties there are try Right Move and put in Bridgnorth or Ludlow, and with a fairly large radius you'll get tons of information.

There is acres and oodles of beautiful countryside to live in, hack in, hunt and and gallop around. I don't compete myself, but suggest you have a look at Kingswood Equestrian (Albrighton) as a competition venue, and for pointers of a dressagey-bent, perhaps try Leonie Smith of www.daneswooddressage.co.uk who is based at my yard www.chorleyequestrian.co.uk
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Ha ha yes! I used to walk the dogs round there and through the livery you were at! I used to live in Middleton Scriven (5min up the road!)

Now living in a village just outside of Worcester!

I agree a fab place to live. I love it :)
 
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