so - what's it like living in the south of England nowadays?

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so - what's it like living in the south of England nowadays?

75 posts & 29 voices | Started 11 months ago by spekkie | Latest reply from spekkie

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spekkie - Member

I've been in South Africa for the best part of 3 years, with just short trips back here every 3 or 4 months. Now I'm thinking about the possibility of coming back here to live.

It's easy to get homesick when your away and that can/does distort your memory somewhat. When it's hot & sunny there almost every day you can forget how long and dark the winters are over here. We pay about 80p a litre for petrol and our house (worth about 120K in UK money) is a 3 bedroom, 2 lounge, 1 dinning room, 3 bathroom detached house with a pool, a pub, a double garage and a 30m drive - on a 2000m2 piece of land. Over here I'd be looking at a (small) flat for that money

We have a great and affordable social life, good jobs and a car each. We have a gardner and a maid two days a week. Going to the movies will cost you about £3 each, a pint of beer will cost you about £1.20. The scenary is fantastic and last week we saw a hippo in a dam whilst MTB'ing.

On the other hand . . . . . there's poverty for lots of people. People begging for money at the traffic lights etc - and if your not used to it, it can be quite upsetting. (of course they have the same stories over there that we have here regarding beggars earning "more money than they can do working" etc. Not sure how true they are, if at all) And there's crime. Car windows can be smashed and personal belongings grabbed from inside your car whilst your at a red traffic light. House robberies and dog poisoning (to aid house robbery) happens a fair bit. You really need to have a house alarm with Armed Responce (ADT or Chubb), an electric fence or razor wire along the top of your 7ft boundary walls and really good insurance!

So - tell me about the pention age going up, petrol at £1.36 a litre, heating bills rising, house prices falling etc - I want to know how people REALLY feel about living here. Are people generally ok but, being brits, like to have something to moan about? Or is it the case that it really IS getting too tough to make ends meet? Obviously it depends what your earning, I appreciate that - and the "national average" wage never reflected MY wage when I worked here - I was always about 20% below that.

I've specified "the South of England" because this is where I'd come back to if I came back. Friends & family and all that.

cheers guys & girls . . . . your thoughts pls?

Posted 11 months ago #
ernie_lynch - Member

How are things here ? Well apparently all public sector workers are lazy shysters. But that's alright 'cause loads of them are going to lose their jobs, and the ones who don't, are going to get hammered.

And the undeserving poor, apparently deserve to be poor. So the government is going to make certain they get poorer. HTH

Posted 11 months ago #
CountZero - Member

It's more the same now than it's ever been.

Posted 11 months ago #
globalti - Member

I've lived abroad for three years of my life and what I missed most was British culture; music, the BBC, pubs, beer and of course real weather.

Life is certainly tough at the moment, people have less cash than ever or they're holding onto it. If you do come back, come and have a look around the north, it's big, spacious and cheaper.

Posted 11 months ago #
don simon - Member

Life is certainly tough at the moment, people have less cash than ever or they're holding onto it. If you do come back, come and have a look around the north, it's big, spacious, cheaper and full of dour northeners.

Posted 11 months ago #
Garry_Lager - Member

We pay about 80p a litre for petrol and our house (worth about 120K in UK money) is a 3 bedroom, 2 lounge, 1 dinning room, 3 bathroom detached house with a pool, a pub, a double garage and a 30m drive - on a 2000m2 piece of land. Over here I'd be looking at a (small) flat for that money

Your house in S Africa contains a pub? That's impressive - I'm guessing the beer must be ordinary, but still - your own personal alehouse. What was the question again?

Posted 11 months ago #
TheBrick - Member

The south of England is as conservative as ever if not more so (politically and socially), which makes progress on many fronts difficult.

The impact of fuel prices depends on your dependence on a car of course. Manageable for most office workers unless you have a silly commute more of a problem for tradesmen as it's hard to pass on the cost everyone is squeezed a little bit more due to the general down turn.

Some sectors of the economy are doing well despite all of the doom mongering.

Houses are still expensive but this is a crowded island.

If your life style involves large amounts of credit you will be badly impacted if not your will be impacted but by no where near as much.

Posted 11 months ago #
yunki - Member

life here in the SW is ace.. almost no discernable difference to the last 30 odd years as far as I'm aware other than the summer has split into two halves and shifted slightly to the left..

prices have changed almost imperceptably unless you're the type to let yourself get bogged down by that kind of thing.. still poor.. still happy..

Posted 11 months ago #
bigyinn - Member

I tell you what your post had me thinking WTF does he want to move back here for, until I read the bit about cars getting windows smashed, razor wire and armed response.
I worry needlessly if I've left the shed door unlocked or a window open.
My lifestyle isn't excessive, but I get by. I wouldn't trade that for worrying about whether I'm gonna get robbed every day.

Posted 11 months ago #
molgrips - Member

Depends on how much money you make I'd say - as anywhere of course.

I find the South a bit busy but if you've only been away for 3 years then you won't notice much. Houses are cheaper than they were three years ago

Posted 11 months ago #
spekkie - Member

Garry_Lager - Yes there's a pub in the house, or rather "in an extension off of the side of" the house. Full sized bar, furniture, dart board, fridges etc. Just for when people come round

bigyinn - that's the catch exactly Great weather, good job, swimming pool parties and BBQ's, but might get "smash and grabbed" at the traffic lights . . . . bummer.

I'd be quite keen on the SW. I was born in Cornwall but that was when the tin mines were still open! I've spent time around Poole etc too - very nice area and I like the New Forest. The problem would be the occasional commute to see my son in Guildford when petrol is so dear.

cheers for all the advice though - I can't rely on sky news!

Posted 11 months ago #
molgrips - Member

The problem would be the occasional commute to see my son in Guildford when petrol is so dear

Petrol's not that big of an issue to be honest, esp for the odd trip, if you are earning. House prices are more so.

Posted 11 months ago #
nickjb - Member

Petrol's not that big of an issue to be honest, esp for the odd trip, if you are earning

That. Also I suspect you'll end up driving less that in SA so it won't be a big issue. House prices aren't falling round here either (Bristol)

Posted 11 months ago #
roper - Member

We were thinking about the possibility of moving back to the SE so took a holiday there, with living there at the back of our minds.
I haven't lived in the UK for eight years or so and do find it quite different, sort of foreign to what I'm used to. Also at the risk of offending the people in the areas we visited, we found some people to be quite down trodden. Quite a few people we spoke to seemed to be in jobs they didn't really like but felt pressured to do. We live in a small village/town so some of the places we visited seemed overcrowded and busy, but not necessarily in a good way.
obviously there are lots of good things there too and we also met lots of people who were happy and friendly too.

For now we are staying where we are though.

Posted 11 months ago #
trailmonkey - Member

'the south' is a pretty big and diverse area. i wouldn't live in the south east for any reason that i could think of. the south west is the number one region of the country that i would ( and do ) choose to live in. as for the bit in the middle - pretty uninspiring but there are worse places to be i guess.

Posted 11 months ago #
Mostly Balanced - Member

It's crowded down here in the central south. My own personal measure of how crowded somewhere is is how often you use main beam on the road. Locally it's 'never'.

Posted 11 months ago #
spekkie - Member

trailmonkey - I have lived in and around Worthing for the last 12 years (before the 3 away) so I'd gravitate here I guess - but further west does apeal to me. I actually loved the IOW when we went there the other year on holiday - but not sure if that's a very practical choice to actually live there. I lovely pace of life - but then I was on "holiday" which is very different to living somewhere.

I don't need to be near London or anything like that.

Posted 11 months ago #
molgrips - Member

i wouldn't live in the south east for any reason that i could think of

For me, the reason would be good work possibilities. Lots of companies doing lots of interesting things in my line of work - which is IT. Usually if you can get work outside that area it's really dull and usually not very well paid.

Posted 11 months ago #
hofnar - Member

What income bracket are you in South Africa? If you are close to the better income bracket say 15K rand after tax there is no way you are going to afford a better life in the UK

Say bye bye to sunshine bye to gardener bye to maid and it does suck to do it yourself if you haven't done it for year, eating out so much more expensive holiday in B&B also so much more expensive.

Also important mortage? Are you mortagage free in RSA then it tops for RSA easily finacially. Though if you are quite deep into your mortgage Realize that 100K is not 100k interest in South Africa is a lot higher so for full mortage your repayment on 135K UK will be same as 100K in RSA on 20 years if longer even more if economy picks up and the prime rate goes up in RSA it will also become an even bigger difference.

Though the crime sucks it depends where you are in RSA. What keeps me away is to have to cycle in groups for safety stay away in so many places and IMO its only getting worse. Here in the Lakes i just sit my bum down in a field in RSA I first have to check the safety perimeter and keep pepper spray nearby though depends on the area.

Have lived in Stellenbosch and Durban temporarily, visited S-A many times and nearby Mozambique now temporary resident of UK(although more north then you.

Other item do you have any? Where do you wan't to see them grow up I personally wouldn't want to have a teenage daughter in the RSA of today and definitely not in the RSA of Julius Malema.

In short wanna be pampered pick RSA want freedom choose UK country side.

Posted 11 months ago #
gwj72 - Member

i wouldn't live in the south east for any reason that i could think of

For me, the reason would be good work possibilities. Lots of companies doing lots of interesting things in my line of work - which is IT. Usually if you can get work outside that area it's really dull and usually not very well paid.

That's a bit misleading. I work in IT and have generally worked for banks - nearly all of whom have IT centres oop norf and pay pretty damn well. Manchester and West Yorkshire have tons of financial services companies employing lots of IT people.

I could earn a bit more living in the south east but it would be sucked up by living costs and there are no (proper) hills in the south anyway!

Posted 11 months ago #
yossarian - Member

I could earn a bit more living in the south east but it would be sucked up by living costs and there are no (proper) hills in the south anyway!

Don't the north & south downs, chilterns, quantocks and Mendips count?

What's the south of england like? As diverse as ever. Plenty of hustle and bustle around if you like it, quite a few peaceful corners if you know where to look. Not quite as crowded and unpleasant as people who don't live there would have you believe.

Posted 11 months ago #
molgrips - Member

That's a bit misleading. I work in IT and have generally worked for banks - nearly all of whom have IT centres oop norf and pay pretty damn well. Manchester and West Yorkshire have tons of financial services companies employing lots of IT people

My experience is IT contracting. There is naff all outside the SE, seriously. If you can find me well paid work elsewhere then let me know

Posted 11 months ago #
gwj72 - Member

IT is a broad term. I'd be looking at 500 a day up here if I went contracting. Could be more down there but I'd spend it on crystal and hookers.
As it happens I'm going to work for a company based in the SE but work from home. Best of both worlds

Posted 11 months ago #
ernie_lynch - Member

What income bracket are you in South Africa? If you are close to the better income bracket say 15K rand after tax ........

So £13k will get you a 3 bathroom detached house with a pool, a pub, a double garage and a 30m drive - on a 2000m2 piece of land and a gardner and a maid in South Africa ? Whilst a quarter of the population lives on less than US $1.25 a day ?

Well this thread is proving to be an interesting insight into why South Africa has such a high crime rate. There are of course many causes of crime, but nothing, just nothing, contributes more to crime than social injustice. And nothing, just nothing, contributes more to social injustice than unemployment.

In South Africa over a quarter of those available for work are unemployed. And the majority of 15 to 24 year-olds (51%) are unemployed. That has to be seen in the context of a life expectancy of 52 years for men and 54 years for women.

Nothing comes without a price, and those who are fairly relaxed about Britain becoming an ever more unfair society where the gap between the haves and the have nots increases, causing ever greater social injustice, must also be equally relaxed about living in a more crime-ridden society. This is not a concept which some Daily Mail readers seem to fully understand.

Of course if you are at the very top of the tree, as the Bullingdon Boys are, you can protect and isolate yourself from much of the crime and misery by living a detached secluded existence well away from it all, and only occasionally witnessing it whilst driving through in your car. In South Africa gated communities or guarded compounds, are increasingly seen as a solution (although car-jacking is an increasing problem). You could call it segregation, separate economic development........or even apartheid, to use a fancy Dutch word.

Posted 11 months ago #
molgrips - Member

IT is a broad term. I'd be looking at 500 a day up here if I went contracting

What line of work?

I can't get that kind of money even in the SE Although to be fair I don't look way up North usually but I get the odd email.

Posted 11 months ago #
gwj72 - Member

Security. For some reason it's in high demand at the moment...
(Although with Lulzsec quitting last night it might dip again!).

Practically everyone in IT should be working at home by now. The technology is there we're just not using it. Think how much easier it would be for everyone to commute / reduced carbon footprint / decreased overheads for employer / happier employees etc..

Posted 11 months ago #
RichPenny - Member

I live on the outskirts of Salisbury. Earn above the average wage, wife on Maternity leave so on about £500 a month. Fairly soon into the mortgage, and we couldn't buy bigger than what we have (2 bed flat) in a nice area. It will be tough when we have another kid, but things are ok financially. Mind you, we don't run a car.

Overall, I'm very happy here. Lots of very pretty countryside surrounding us. People are generally very friendly, not much crime or poverty. Riding isn't amazing as the highest local point is about 250m, but there's enough. If I could move (I can't because of work) I'd be aiming at Somerset. Quality of life for me is much greater than if I'd stayed in Essex and worked in the financial sector, though I'm considerably poorer than most of my friends.

I have family in SA who all live in gated communities. I don't think I'd want to raise my kids in that kind of environment, but clearly I haven't experienced it. I have a good friend from Rhodesia at work who lived in SA after his national service until he had children. Having experienced both sides, he said he often forgets how nice it is to feel safe and untroubled by the crime and desparate poverty that affect Africa. Ignorance is bliss?

Posted 11 months ago #
loddrik - Member

The SE is expensive and full of knobs. The SW is full of wurzels, the north is where it's at. Much better riding too..

Posted 11 months ago #
RichPenny - Member

I have family in Liverpool who all live in gated communities. I don't think I'd want to raise my kids in that kind of environment, but clearly I haven't experienced it. I have a good friend from Scotland at work who lived in Manchester after his national service until he had children. Having experienced both sides, he said he often forgets how nice it is to feel safe and untroubled by the crime and desparate poverty that affect the North. Ignorance is bliss?

Posted 11 months ago #
grum - Member

Don't the north & south downs, chilterns, quantocks and Mendips count?

No.

Posted 11 months ago #
yesiamtom - Member

all i can say is i live on the south coast (portsmouth) and crime is almost irrelevant. Yes it happens, but i still feel safe enough to go cycling or running at night. Obviously i dont go provoking trouble but i dont think i would do the same in south africa, or london or some places up north i hear stories about!

Posted 11 months ago #
gwj72 - Member

RichPenny - the "north" doesn't stop at manchester and liverpool. It's like saying the south = London, also crime ridden to a greater degree than either of the afore mentioned. Has your Scottish friend being to Slough?

The vast majority of the south is a shit hole compared to where I live in the north. And as previously mentioned - essex highest point at 250m doesn't even reach the altitude my house is at.

You can't generalise about the north in terms of quality of life. You can generalise about the south in terms of quality of ride.

Posted 11 months ago #
MrSmith - Member

the trouble with the north is it's full of people who generalise.

Posted 11 months ago #
retro83 - Member

gwj72 - Member
You can't generalise about the north in terms of quality of life. You can generalise about the south in terms of quality of ride.

Up north all the trails are straight line double track and full of tourists.

Posted 11 months ago #
spekkie - Member

hofnar - I'm on about 35K (£3K) a month and my GF earns about the same - so were doing ok. I know without doubt that I won't earn anywhere near that much in the UK and my standard of living will certainly have to drop.

There's a difference between having to give up the luxuries of a very comfortable life style, and having to give up everything just to survive. That's what I'm trying to work out I guess. I can give up the pool and the pub, because they are luxuries and I accept that, but I don't want to end up in a position where the cost of living is so high that I have to live on Tesco blue stripe food.

We would have a mortgage either way - and in both cases it's gonna be for about 120K. Rates are very low in the UK for the moment but they are not terribly high in SA. We'd just get much less house for our money in the UK.

I do miss the freedom to just jump on the bike and ride pretty much anywhere. From home here I could be on the south downs in 10 minutes and ride pretty much for as long as I wanted to without issue. The ramblers were the only real problem. For security in SA you do need to either ride in a group or ride somewhere that is secure, like a nature reserve or game farm. You just don't tend to ride randomly accross the veld like you do here.

We don't tend to ride from the house but that's more because were in the JHB subburbs with traffic etc than for crime reasons.

We don't have little ones - so no problems there.

ernie_lynch - The gaps between the top and bottom income bands is enourmous. There are people earning £8 a day for a hard days labouring (site work) and I have a friend who's a financial consultant that earns £200 an hour.

RichPenny - gated communities and complexs are definately the way to go. Once people move into them they wonder how they ever lived "on the outside". The biggest secure development in JHB (and its the size of a small town), currently under construction, is in Midrand - it's called Waterfall Park. There are houses, shops, petrol stations, pubs and restaurants, sports facilities - all behind a 10 foot wall with an electric fence and guards.

Posted 11 months ago #

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