Can £220k-ish Cash buy a 3 bed detached house over 90 m2 with a garage and gardens in a half way decent area?
Hello, Reddit newbie here who could do with some advice for buying our next house please...
I'm from the UK born and bred. I made the mistake of buying my 240m2 ocean view house here in the Garden Route, South Africa in 2022 after two different enjoyable month long well earned vacations here. I moved in in August 2023. I regret it for soooo many reasons, enough is enough. My fault.
However, I am getting ready to sell up and move back home to the UK with my fiancee, who is from elsewhere in Africa. She's never set foot in the UK despite having nieces and nephews here. We are a solid couple and I will prepare her as much as possible.
What we need to buy outright, is a detached house or detached Bungalow of 90 m2 or a bit bigger with any luck. 3 bedrooms that is located in a decent community that would be receptive to a mixed race couple, because with the asylum seekers and illegals arriving daily from Dover, plus the horrific xenophobia over here, I don't want to go from the frying pan into the fire so to speak.
I lived in Shepperton, Surrey for 21 years before departing for SA. Born and raised in west London. I am sociable and outgoing unlike my stereotypes. I no longer have the funds necessary to spend over £600k to live in Shepperton. I wouldn't want to live in West London if I had the money.
Can £220,000 or close to that buy us the right house in the right location do you think? (on Rightmove, we looked at Heanor, close to the Peak District, Grantham, Northumberland, Near to Edinburgh and Glasgow and a number of other places that look great on paper hypothetically!
We don't want to hear traffic noise from living near a busy road... 21 years living near the constant noise of the M3 and Heathrow jets overhead was bad enough thanks :-)
The reality is that we don't know what most new to us areas are like to live in, or any suggested areas that you lovely people may be able to point us in the direction of?
We can both work from home in our own micro businesses, so no commuting.
A good EPC would be advantageous to keep the bills low plus access to public transport because my fiancee doesn't yet drive on those rare occasions when I'm not driving or riding my motorbike with her. A community vibe would be great.
Sorry to write so much, it's just that we don't know who else to turn to, and we would humbly appreciate your kind help, TIA.