Last Visit before Move! What should I prioritize!

In April my family of four will be making a 3 week visit to the UK to hang out with family, attend a wedding, and do some research for our impending move [20 months to go!]. I am trying to work out a budget, so we can make sure we have enough funds for the trip and I am kind of at a loss as to what I need.

It's looking like a job transfer is likely, as opposed to my husband quitting and looking for another job. If this happens, he will be working directly across the street from Marylebone Station in London.  This gives us lots of options for living along the Jubilee line.  Would you plan a day in London [without kids], to research the area?

 I was thinking of taking a train or driving down early in the am and staying the whole day and driving back [we will be based out of Coventry at my MIL's for this trip]. The train cost is very high, so we were thinking of parking near the tube on the outskirts instead. I have no idea if this would be cheaper.  Should we take more than one day?

What would you do? I don't want to miss out on seeing anyone by spending too much time researching London, BUT I would like to check out our options in person.

Thanks!
Wren

btw. We were hoping for a 2 bedroom flat with an open floor plan for under £2000 pcm. Have already spent hours on rightmove to get ideas of costs in certain areas, but any advice on gems we haven't discovered would be AWESOME.

Can you take a National Express coach, or Megabus from Coventry to London? It could be a lot cheaper than the train, and National Express takes you right into Victoria.

Hint: if you use National Express the code "bristoluni" might give you a 10% discount, I used this last year when booking coach tickets and there is no need to show any affiliation to get the discount.

Thank you! That's very useful indeed.  Have just been on the UK Unschooling fb page I'm part of, and another Mum was able to help me sort out a few areas to look at, as well. It's nice to have some sort of idea.

You may want to determine how much commuting pain hubs is wiling to endure on a daily basis and go from there.

For instance - is he ok taking the Tube 45 minutes each way, or would a suburban rail service into a terminal an a walk be more his preference?  Does he just want to walk?  Would he ride a bike? etc.  Here is a potential option: http://www.where-can-i-live.com/londonproperty  although there are lots of others....

There is an app I keep reading about and forgetting the name of that can help you search for housing within a specified commuting time.  That could help you narrow down preferred locations that are within your budget and housing preferences.  From there I would pick three areas to research in a day in London.  It can be exhausting getting around the city, and to get a good feel for each location can take some time.  If you stay over one night you could probably do another day of three, or at least give yourself some extra time.

Given the way housing prices keep going up, you may want to rank your preferences and have a few further out of the way locations that may tradeoff cheaper rent for longer commute so you have a clue should you get here and realize you can't afford your first preference anymore.

The Jubilee Line goes into Baker Street Station, not Marylebone Station.  The Bakerloo Line serves Marylebone Station.

Your budget is going to put you in Zone 3 and beyond.

Lifestyle is also a big question.  I know you have a couple of small kids.  Are you okay with being in a flat with no garden?  While city parks would be good for kids to play, it also means all your washing will be hanging all over the house as you won't have outside space to dry clothing, etc.  Would you prefer to live in the countryside and your husband commute into the office?  How far is he willing to commute each way?  What types of things are important to you in your local community?  Would you rather get more space for your buck or live close to work?

I personally would recommend staying over in London for a night or two to get a feel for several different areas.  London is a very different city depending on if you live east, west, north or south, so best to explore for what feels right for you and your family.  Secret Escapes always has offers going for London hotel rooms that are very reasonably priced.

You may want to determine how much commuting pain hubs is wiling to endure on a daily basis and go from there.

For instance - is he ok taking the Tube 45 minutes each way, or would a suburban rail service into a terminal an a walk be more his preference?  Does he just want to walk?  Would he ride a bike? etc.  Here is a potential option: http://www.where-can-i-live.com/londonproperty  although there are lots of others....

Thanks! We've had a bit of a commuting nightmare here in Atlanta when my husband changed jobs and went from working in town--where we lived--to working in the burbs.  After much stress and car troubles, we've moved out to near his work so he can bike to work.  I think he's hoping to carry on biking, but he's willing to commute for up to 20 minutes, I think.

The Jubilee Line goes into Baker Street Station, not Marylebone Station.  The Bakerloo Line serves Marylebone Station.

Your budget is going to put you in Zone 3 and beyond.

My mistake. I was thinking of Baker St Station. He'll be close enough to both to use either, and I've heard great things about the Jubilee line! Also, I've found lots in our budget in zones 1&2 within that price range on rightmove.co.uk. We are not looking for anything very big. More space = more crap we don't need = more time managing crap, lol.

Lifestyle is also a big question.  I know you have a couple of small kids.  Are you okay with being in a flat with no garden?  While city parks would be good for kids to play, it also means all your washing will be hanging all over the house as you won't have outside space to dry clothing, etc.  Would you prefer to live in the countryside and your husband commute into the office?  How far is he willing to commute each way?  What types of things are important to you in your local community?  Would you rather get more space for your buck or live close to work?

Great questions! We've talked extensively about this and we know we want to live in a flat with no garden.  Hopefully close to a park, but I'm willing to walk up to a mile or so. We currently live in a flat and actually chose to downsize because we were sick of the garden and all the work [and mud]. My kids couldn't care less, and nor could my Greyhound, lol. I'm hoping to budget the laundromat, but if I can't, I'll stick to my routine of washing everything one day a week and we already have a huge clothes horse.

There is no way on God's green earth I'd live in the country at this point in my life.  I have OCD and managing anything larger than about 900 sq ft would drive me right off the edge.  Except for books, we are VERY minimalist in our belongings. Anyway, life is about DOING stuff, not HAVING stuff, so to us space isn't a big issue.

We definitely want to be close to work and shops and things to do! We try to eat a cleanly as possible, and from scratch, so good options for fresh food is a must!

Thank you all!!!!

The London property market moves fast.  The stuff on rightmove is generally really out of date. Do you understand that London rents are quoted weekly?  That puts your budget at £460 /week.  You simply will not find a 2 bedroom flat in Zone 1 at that price.  If you do it's more than likely for 1 bedroom in a flat share.  Don't underestimate how small flats can be. Closets are hard to come by so in addition to a bed or beds you'll need wardrobes as  well as chests of drawers.  That shrinks a typical 10x10 bedroom pretty quickly.

The London property market moves fast.  The stuff on rightmove is generally really out of date. Do you understand that London rents are quoted weekly?  That puts your budget at £460 /week.  You simply will not find a 2 bedroom flat in Zone 1 at that price.  If you do it's more than likely for 1 bedroom in a flat share.  Don't underestimate how small flats can be. Closets are hard to come by so in addition to a bed or beds you'll need wardrobes as  well as chests of drawers.  That shrinks a typical 10x10 bedroom pretty quickly.

This. Keep in mind they calculate rent at about 4.3 weeks per month (more accurately rent per week * 12 then divided by 52) Do not forget to factor in council tax in your budget. Also be sure to read ads carefully. For example, it may say or even be labeled as in Central London Southwark (zone 1 by Waterloo) when the flat is actually in Walworth. Or it may say transport links to Paddington when the flat is actually in zone 4 Southall.

There are plenty of 2 bedroom flats that can be rented in zone 1 for £460 per week or less.  E1, for instance, has loads that are not in dodgy areas and close to tube stations.  It's not impossible. But you will definitely need to determine the length of commute that your husband can deal with, and you will actually want to see these places in person so you can get a better sense of how small they are versus what you think you can be happy with.  And that does not include council tax, as mentioned previously.

The London property market moves fast.  The stuff on rightmove is generally really out of date. Do you understand that London rents are quoted weekly?  That puts your budget at £460 /week.  You simply will not find a 2 bedroom flat in Zone 1 at that price.  If you do it's more than likely for 1 bedroom in a flat share.  Don't underestimate how small flats can be. Closets are hard to come by so in addition to a bed or beds you'll need wardrobes as  well as chests of drawers.  That shrinks a typical 10x10 bedroom pretty quickly.

I do understand that, and my husband is from the UK and has even lived on the outskirts of London before. We were originally not considering London because of the cost, but it's on the table now and I have been planning accordingly.  My MIL lived in a tiny 2 bed flat when I met my husband [barely 500 sq ft] and I have kept that place in mind during the massive purge I've undertaken over the last year and a half. At the time, I thought it was the tiniest place I'd ever been, but now I think we'd be perfectly comfortable there as my outlook and priorities have changed so much. We really don't have that many clothes.  I mean REALLY. I am seriously a minimalist, now, and I am working on purging even more. Also, I'm proud to say I'm the master of staying organized in small places.  I don't expect closets or any sort of storage and during this last move into our current flat I kept that in mind when I decided what to get rid of.  There are MANY more things on the chopping block. Locations and experience and time together as a family are much more important to all of us than things. I do really appreciate your concern, though. Many people are not so thorough as me

Also be sure to read ads carefully. For example, it may say or even be labeled as in Central London Southwark (zone 1 by Waterloo) when the flat is actually in Walworth. Or it may say transport links to Paddington when the flat is actually in zone 4 Southall.

Thanks for the tip! I am very obsessive and thorough.  I will be checking the addresses and area before I see the properties.  I made the mistake of moving fast on our last two rental houses, and it turned out they both had toxic levels of mold and very inattentive landlords.  I will have the advantage of having my Mother-in-Law to help when the time comes, and I should be able to come spend a few weeks [without kids] looking nearer to our actual move.  Right now I just want to narrow things down to 3-4 areas to look in and research.

Lol, so now hubby has decided he really doesn't want to live in London, and is even hoping to change jobs soon [more $$], and a transfer won't even be possible. [I am having a big sigh of relief because this was a very stressful idea for me, lol]

Due to this and our visit being moved to the holidays [Thanksgiving until New Years], I have more questions along this vein.

I will essentially be settling in with my family in Coventry for 5 weeks.  It will be a good opportunity to get a taste of what living in the UK might actually be like. In light of that, I'd like to ask: What should I be doing?

We are going to leave toiletries and other things behind and try to experiment with things available in the UK. I also plan on cooking with only things I can find there. We will be taking a few day trips and a couple of other 2-3 day excursions, but mostly we will just be hanging out with the inlaws.

What would you do if you had this chance?  I think it would really help me mentally to have this time to really settle in and learn some things with out the added pressure of completing a move.

Any advice on what to check out would be much appreciated

What would you do if you had this chance?  I think it would really help me mentally to have this time to really settle in and learn some things with out the added pressure of completing a move.

Sort of similiar position - my husband's transfer request was granted so we'll be moving next summer (date TBD early 2015) - hoping before the school year.  If I had the chance to go over for 5 weeks - I would definately want to find out how it will be settling my two daugthers in (at that time they will be 1.5 and 3.5 years).  So I would want to understand more about the school options/nursery options (even if I stay at home, I would like my older daugther to do the 15 free hours) and also what sorts of activities they have for kids (are playdates common?, town sport teams, town hall activities, etc). 

I've lived in the UK before (and have been there at least once a year since) so I'm comfortable with the brands (and I'm sure they have more now then before) - but the big 'new' factor is my husband and I have two kids...

Anyway, good luck and would like to hear what you got up to and what was most beneficial!  My husband has already been twice this year and is going again in the fall but I won't be there until early next year for a visit (before the move) so hoping I get a little time to prepare as well.

Yes. Exactly all of those things DtG. I have a two daughters, who will be 6 and 4 during our visit, so I will be checking all of this out as well. I fully intend on snooping around Dance Studios, finding out about sports and swimming, and just generally seeing what's going on there for them. Fortunately my SIL's older kids are young teenagers, so she's been through it all before, and her little one is the same age as my youngest, so they will have a cousin around to play with.

Another problem we need to solve is that I have Celiac and my little daughter is allergic to or sensitive to dairy, gluten, beef, chicken, turkey, mustard, and eggs, so figuring out how to manage food issues in a new place will be tricky. Although I hear both gluten and mustard issues are more common there than here, and so there should be some systems in place [lots of great gluten free recipes I use came from a pal in Malvern, who hubby used to work with]. We are hoping that the meats and mustard will fade and we can start to reintroduce them soon, but I'm not holding my breath on the eggs, dairy, and gluten.

I just wanna all the places on our list of where we want to live, and get comfortable with money and shopping and all.

You can certainly find lots of gluten free foods in all major supermarkets and there are plenty of health food shops about too.  My sister has coeliac and also has food allergies and she loves coming to the UK, because she can find plenty to eat in regular places, rather than in speciality places.  And so many restaurants cater to food alergies and gluten intolerances now and it's getting better all the time....