Newcastle and Durham- What Neighborhoods to Live In?

Hello Everyone,

I'm new to the board as my husband is being transferred to Washington (just south of Newcastle) in March 2007 and I am starting the housing search (we'll be renting) now.  Unfortunately, we know nothing about this area and none of our family or friends do either.  One friend attended Durham Uni and has suggested that we would love that town, but can't remember what areas would be nice for us.  Does anyone have suggestions where to look?  We also like Newcastle as we've been told, and have read, that certain areas have undergone a nice transformation in recent years and the city has a renewed life with much to offer.  But again, have no idea what neighborhoods to focus in on.  We'd like to be within 30 minutes of his office, so I've been looking at the entire Tyne and Wear and County Durham areas.  I have fallen in love with Hexham, west of Newcastle, but would like to know if anyone has any suggestions for other lovely villages.  I see there are quite a few seaside places as well, but have no idea what any of them are like.  Many towns do not have adequate websites to help me out (that's another reason to love Hexham- great websites to give me a good flavor of what it has to offer.)  As you can see, we are open to city centers or small, quiet villages.  We're just looking for something that's nice (ideally with some "charm") a safe place and also a place with some sense of community and life.  Any and all help is greatly appreciated!

dhes,

I live in Newcastle, if you are interested in Newcastle areas just let me know which neighborhoods you are looking at and I will give you input! (some good places: South Gosforth, Killingworth, Benton, Longbenton, Kenton, etc)

Durahm is beautiful.. only 15 mins south from Newcastle.. that is during off-rush hour! I have a friend that goes to Uni there and she has a daily hour commute! Also, I hear property is much more expensive in Durahm...

I guess if you want to be closer to your husband's work just look for something south of the Tyne (river). The Gateshead area is being recentrly re-developed.. it is also bit expensive and again it is in the Newcastle area. There are also some beach areas here in newcastle such as north and south shields, tynemouth and Withley Bay... I am sure there are plenty more in the south! not familiar with those though!

Let me know how can I help you! I really found www.rightmove.co.uk very useful. I can also give you some local realtors' info if needed.

We lived in Durham for two years and it is really gorgeous, and has a wide variety of rental prices.  We were actually north in an area called Newton Hall, a big housing estate with lots of walkable shops.  Chester le Street would be a nice option for you - only about ten minutes south of Washington, and it seems clean and quaint.  (There's a nice craft store in Washington, if you're into that!)  There are lots of small villages, but for me I needed a few stores!  You'll be close to Gateshead mall, which is nice with a movie theatre in it.  Do you have kids so that schools are an issue?  Good luck with all your plans!

What a great resource this website is!  Thank you so much for your quick replies.  The neighborhoods you mentioned in Newcastle is just the type of information I was looking for and I will take a look at the areas you mentioned.  With such a large place, it's hard to discern what areas are worth considering.  I want to be able to narrow down some areas a bit before contacting estate agents, though I'm hoping they will also be helpful in looking in the right areas once we tell them what we're looking for.  I would greatly appreciate any information you could pass on in that regard- my husband's new CEO over there also offered to send some agents names to help us out.  I've also been able to find quite a few listings on the web, but I've been reading some nightmare stories of dodgy estate agents, so if you know of any in particular, perhaps one that you dealt with, that's always a better way to go, I think.  You mentioned north and south shields, tynemouth and Whitley Bay- I've seen quite a bit of property in those areas- are they nice?  We definitely want some place that has a bit of life to it- doesn't have to be absolutely hopping with galleries, restaurants, etc., but we don't really want a place that has one curry house and a small corner market.  Would like a little bit of a town center with a few shops, etc.  I have looked at Chester-le-street (the name caught my attention!) and there are a few properties for rent there as well.  Did you like where you were in Newton Hall?  I'd like to be able to walk to shops, etc.  And is there any area in Durham to avoid or would any area of town be nice?  I suppose we'll not really know until we go over in January to have a look around- will just need to visit as many towns as possible so we can see for ourselves what there is in each.  Thank you for the info about the craft shop in Washington as well- that's one of my hobbies so I'll definitely make a visit there.

Gosforth (Newcastle -- NE3) is a great neighbourhood and has a good high street.  The newer parts of Longbenton are okay.  I'd stay away from Jesmond unless you can afford to live far away from the rich (and loud) students. 

We recently moved to Forest Hall (Benton area -- NE12) and love it. 

If your husband will be working in Durham, you might want to live south of the river.  Gateshead isn't as nice as Newcastle, but the houses are certainly cheaper! 

Hi from a Yorkshire resident, but one who is very familiar with Newcastle.  It's a great city, just be prepared for those cold North Sea winds!!!

As for places to live, well, I think you need to decide whether you want urban, suburban or rural.  Newcastle/Gateshead is urban, can be 'gritty', but lots of great shopping, museums, restaurants etc ... good but expensive areas are The Quays/Quayside around the Tyne Bridge, Jesmond (inner Victorian suburb on the metro - quite chi chi), and Gosforth (bit further out, more spacious and family oriented).  On the Gateshead side, Whickham and Ryton are nice suburbs that have grown up around an old village centre, so they have some character and local shops - but you'll need to travel to get to any major shopping/restaurants etc ...

A bit further out in the Tyne Valley are the villages of Corbridge, Wylam and Riding Mill - all on the train line from Hexham to Newcastle.

If I were you, I'd take a look at these types of area:

1) Urban Newcastle (City Centre, Jesmond, Gosforth)
2) Suburban Gateshead (Whickham and Ryton)
3) Tyne Valley villages (Wylam, Corbridge, Riding Mill)
4) Country Market Town (Hexham)

Try these websites:

www.gateshead.gov.uk
www.tynedale.gov.uk
www.newcastle.gov.uk

Happy hunting!

Just came across this ... www.newcastlegateshead.com

I was trying to remember the nicer areas of Durham - Neville's Cross is nice, and close to a few restaurants and a walk into city centre.  If you wanted a great location, there are new townhomes right by city centre millburngate mall.  Newton Hall area is safe and well kept, walkable to lots, but no restaurants (only take aways), but close to big grocery store.  That area is not what I would call "cute", but it's maybe a well-kept drab would be a better description!  North of Newton Hall is a great area called Rosemount, with big US-type houses, where a lot of corporate type people live.  You still have the problem of no walkable restaurants, but it seems safer and still can walk to the grocery store and pubs.  (My only problem was that it was actually in the town of Pity Me, which I just couldn't bring myself to write on my return addresses!!!!!)  If you want to be outside of Durham a bit, Sherburn Village is cute. 

I would say it's a give and take...if you want restaurants and activities, you pay more and have parking problems and not much yard.  If you want yards, then you're out a bit further and have to walk in to restaurants and pay for parking.