Relocating to Devon/Seaside

[Slyvie M]

Hello All

We are looking for some good advice on relocating to Devon.

So we are early 40?s, have 2 kids, 4 & 7. We love Dulwich but can?t afford to move up to the next level on the property ladder and are squashed in a two bed flat. And so we want to relocate, to a seaside town, always been a dream and once lived in Cornwall for 3 years pre kids. My husband is a plumber and I work in an accounts department so we are not tied to London for any work reasons.

We were thinking Devon might be a good place, it?s in the all the ?great places to live? charts, close to Exeter for work, it?s a great city we've heard, nice coast line.

Thing is we are still quite young at heart. We like good music and a place to be lively, not too rough or full of old people either (a good mix Is what we want I suppose) with a decent beach and within half hour of Exeter.Anyone from around there? In the next few months we are going to look at Lime Regis & Exmouth. But really, any advice would be great.

Thank you x

[pinecone]

just watch out for flooding!

[Louisa]

Hi Slyvie M,

I am in a similar situation to you currently, and Exeter is one of the places I've been considering. If you relocate to Devon you must be aware that facilities are sparsely spread, and a car is an absolute necessity. If you have a young family I cannot sing the praises of Exeter highly enough. Low crime, lots of green spaces, historic city centre and pretty decent shopping choices. You're also fairly close to the seaside towns of the south coast, notably Exmouth. On the downside, Exeter is one of the most expensive cities in the South-West to buy in (although you get a lot more for your money than you would in London of course), and it is a good two hour drive to any noteworthy urban areas (Bristol being the closest). You're located on the M5 and trains from both Exeter and Tiverton are regular and quick to other places. The outdoors life is on your doorstep (Dartmoor and Exmoor national parks/ the coast), and the city has a relatively young population compared to other cities of a similar size. Hope this helps.

Louisa.

[PeckhamRose]

Deal. Got voted best villagey town or something.

Broadstairs. Hmm, very expensive now though.

Ramsgate - cheaper but still nice.

Whitstable, forget it!

Hernia Bay - indeed.

What about Rye?

Some ideas, anyway.

[Slyvie M]

It does help Louisa, thank you! Yes we both drive and are totally convinced about Exeter as a great City. We want to live really close to Exeter but on the beach. Do you think Exmouth would be a good place to start?

Good luck in your search too!

[Louisa]

Exmouth is a great start, if it's proximity to Exeter you want then it's ideal- good facilities and beautiful beach. There's also Dawlish/Dawlish Warren which is more sleepy but a stunning place and right on the estuary opposite Exmouth (just a little further along the coast). Further afield (depending how far out you want to expand your search) Paignton (A385 about 25 minute drive) is a lovely town fairly mixed population and not as rough as some of it's neighbouring towns. Then there is Salcombe which is stretching the travel times a bit but is absolutely stunning. And thank you, same to you, it's a stressful but worthwhile thing doing your research!

Louisa.

[Slyvie M]

OK will have a look Dawlish - read lots of good things about it. You are right, where do you start? Hopefully we will get a feeling about a place and can work from there... Good luck Louisa, an exciting journey ahead!

[StraferJack]

if you plan to work in Exeter, roads from dawlish are a pig in the morning

Exmouth is ok but a bit stuck in the past (and showing it) (mrs Strafer lived there when she was younger)

Sidmouth has a rep as an old folks place but I prefer it to Exmouth

Exmouth does have a train station tho, so is much handier

[adonirum]

@SylvieM Does it have to be Exeter? As you are thinking about Devon, what about the north of the county? The area of Barnstaple is great, and as you say you are still young at heart, the surfing paradise of Croyde/Croyde Bay is nearby and that gets really lively!!!Great bars and restaurants and the Tarka Otter railway line from Barnstaple to Exeter really is quite stunning if you had cause to go to Exeter. Not that this would be a practical commute, takes about an hour.

[fl0wer]

If you'd like to explore the less costly and equally beautiful inland towns/villages, many of which offer good junior schools, humming communities & plenty of outdoor freedoms for growing children, take a small train which goes northwards out of Exeter St David's. Both Exeter and Crediton took a massive 30% house price leap when the Met.Office relocated to Devon.

But this, in turn, brought prosperity and helped keep that train running. Much favoured over daily commutes to work by car, which from outside the city often entail slow, hazardous labyrinths of lanes.

http://www.greatscenicrailways.com/tarka.html

Also think about the Tavistock area which has Dartmoor on its doorstep, the seaside a short journey away. Streets of generously proportioned Victoriana give good value for money and it has strong cultural life.

[Louisa]

I agree about north Devon. The A361 is a part dual carriageway which takes you around an hour to get to Exeter, and there's a train service into Exeter direct from Barnstaple which also takes an hour. Barnstaple has most of the basic facilities, and is incredibly cheap compared to the south of the county. More importantly, north Devon is home to some of the best quality surfing beaches, Exmoor national park and some excellent gate to plate produce which in turn has led to some fine restaurants opening up. There's also a Waitrose due to open in Great Torrington haha.

Louisa.

[fl0wer]

Beware the hideous North Devon College for your teenagers.

Also I would never sign up for an hour on that A361 link road morning and evening, nor an hour-long drive into Exeter and back along the Crediton road.

Beware the possibility of kiddies, too, having hours of daily bus rides into school. This is a real problem, it tires children out too much especially in wintertime.

Many from mid-Devon opt for schools that offer weekly boarding, or find town families to offer them weektime lodgings.

[Slyvie M]

This is all really, really helpful information, thanks everyone. North Devon looks totally up our street in terms of the surf thing etc but concerned about getting work there. We thought Exeter way might be a safer bet and would also be somewhere for the kids to get the train to when they turn into teenagers and want to escape.

Perhaps we will consider inland too - though we really wanted to be by the sea.

Deal & Rye look lovely too Peckham Rose, thanks for the ideas......

Thanks again...

[fl0wer]

To see what is happening at Dawlish today turn on the national TV news. This won't be a reliable train line any more.

Exmouth seafront is closed and many other coastal towns along there are getting a real hammering as well.

http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/East-Devon-coastline-issued-severe-flood-warning/story-20563521-detail/story.html

[Louisa]

The flooding is always going to be an issue by the coast and/or rivers. Unfortunately in the coming years it will get worse not better. However, don't let this put you off, flooding is often quite isolated and if you do your research you should be able to buy in a location where flooding is never an issue. The A361 can be quite infuriating in summer, but never really experienced it in winter so can't comment. I completely forgot to mention Tiverton (15 minute drive to Exeter), good facilities, right on the M5 and more importantly it has the fastest route into London Paddington at just under two hours.

Louisa.

[????]

My missus is from Cornwall...

she says for 3-4 months a year it's absolutely glorious

for 9-8 months a year your thoughts turn to heroin or suicide

[StraferJack]

to be fair, Devon is quite different to Cornwall (and that's to a grockle like me - to the locals its life and death stuff)

I can easily imagine Cornwall being bleak in winter, but places like Exeter are something else entirely. 6 happy years there (well, excluding the divorces, breakups and money - but most of that had nowt to do with Exeter)

[StraferJack]

If seaside isn't a MUST have, towns like Honiton and Ottery St mary are worth a look too

[Louisa]

SJ I think it's all relative to what you want from a location. Devon is a tale of two halves, the south of the county is more built up and relatively (until the train line at Dawlish collapsed into the sea) well connected. The north of the county is more isolated, rural and has a lot in common with Cornwall. I agree Exeter is a different story. If I lived in Cornwall I think I'd have to be near Truro.

Louisa.

[Voyageur]

Maybe have a think about Bridport in Dorset too - a mile from West Bay and the Jurrasic Coast, just over half an hour from Exeter, 15 minutes from Dorchester (county town) and 25 minutes from Weymouth.

I have spent a lot of time in Bridport (my partner lives there) and it is a truly special place - a lovely market town (2 markets a week) with a lot going on music/arts/food wise. It is a vibrant place to live with plenty of good pubs/bars and restaurants. It also has a strong tradition with live music locally and it's own 1920's cinema, the Electric Palace.

Very highly recommended so much so that I am moving there myself in Sept after 33 years in London. You get a lot of house for your money there too compared to ED. It has an amazing Hat Festival in Sept too.

A few links about Bridport by local artists etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWR976GRCcQ

[steveo]

The Dawlish line closing is a tragedy because they'll use it as an excuse to close it forever.

That was one of the great railway journeys

[Louisa]

steveo I disagree. The Dawlish line is absolutely critical to the survival of the mainline into the whole of Cornwall and the city of Plymouth. There is now way on this earth they will ever close it, how else would people get into and out of Cornwall and south Devon? It's not a branch line, it's a mainline.

Louisa.

[steveo]

I hope you're right but it's an expensive bit of line

[Annette Curtain]

Littlehamton maybe

[fl0wer]

On BBC TV yesterday evening a railway historian was reminding us.[sorry, cannot find a link to post]

When the Beeching cuts were applied to Devon's railways they axed an inland route westwards through Okehampton and Tavistock.

The seaside Brunel line now in the frame from the rough weather, the trainline nicknamed "Cornish Riviera" was the one which remained open.

So the SW travel debate will re-focus that Oke-Tavi line. Many townspeople would be delighted. Commuters from Okehampton -> Exeter presently burn down the A30. As petrol prices rise and Exeter's streets choke up with cars, the train services become more crucial.

People in Teignmouth and other coastal towns SW towards Totnes, whose train journeys cease for at least the next 2 months while engineers deal with storm damage, will face further negative impacts if that inland railway route re-opens.