|
Post by shrewder on Jan 29, 2015 8:50:05 GMT 1
C4 8pm tonight Shrewsbury and Wolverhampton
|
|
|
Post by darkshrew on Jan 29, 2015 9:59:55 GMT 1
Will be interested to see what they say - for me the prices in town have gone crazy - I cannot see that many jobs in the area with salaries high enough to support them and we are too far to commute sensibly to Birmingham. Maybe it's all retired folks or the offspring of wealthy farmers ?
|
|
|
Post by shrewder on Jan 29, 2015 10:26:11 GMT 1
Will be interested to see what they say - for me the prices in town have gone crazy - I cannot see that many jobs in the area with salaries high enough to support them and we are too far to commute sensibly to Birmingham. Maybe it's all retired folks or the offspring of wealthy farmers ? From the program info it seems it is a couple down sizing wanting to move to town centre. Knowing how previous programs go , I expect the search area will be wider than that.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 29, 2015 10:54:19 GMT 1
Will be interested to see what they say - for me the prices in town have gone crazy - I cannot see that many jobs in the area with salaries high enough to support them and we are too far to commute sensibly to Birmingham. Maybe it's all retired folks or the offspring of wealthy farmers ? Given the numbers already commuting regularly from Shrewsbury to Birmingham, including myself I would suggest it can be viable! What do you regard as a sensible commute?
|
|
|
Post by darkshrew on Jan 29, 2015 11:06:04 GMT 1
Given the numbers already commuting regularly from Shrewsbury to Birmingham, including myself I would suggest it can be viable! What do you regard as a sensible commute? Less than an hour and a half door to door each way - unless you live / work close to the station you're unlikely to have less than 3 hours per day travelling when commuting to Birmingham. Life is too short. That's before you factor in the time waiting for the train and the hassles when the train doesn't work and the overcrowding of course. I tried it briefly and then moved office to London.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jan 29, 2015 12:03:00 GMT 1
I agree Darkshrew that 1 1/2 hour traveling door to door should be the maximum journey time for commuting.
However there are other factors to take into account such as number of working hours during the day and earnings accrued, and whilst it will not work for some, it will for others.
Personally I buy weekly parking permit at the station caarpark next to the Buttermarket and as I catch an early train the Town is quiet so takes me less than 10 minutes to drive too the station carpark. The train journey is about an hour (should be 56 mins) and I am usually on my way home just after 4. I will admit I am working on a contract so the commute is not for a permanantly employed job, so I do have flexibility as well.
I also agree that trains can be unreliable and overcrowded, but as a rule they have been mostly reliable, and for anyone commuting to Birmingham using the car is a not an option in my opinion. As an example on monday I used the car to initially drive to Birmingham as I needed to then travel to Derby, I left the house at 6 and it me 2 1/2 hours due to roadworks and a breakdown near junction 10...
|
|
|
Post by darkshrew on Jan 29, 2015 12:11:17 GMT 1
You are right - it depends on time of the day, and for the most part travelling off peak is quite enjoyable and gives you the time to read a book or play on the ipad. I've got two colleagues who commute miles into London - one from leicester and the other from Rugby - they love it; they go first class justifying the spend by what they save in house price and school fees.
I tried the drive into Birmingham once and it was awful beyond belief - over 2 hours each way and certainly not stress free.
|
|
|
Post by ThrobsBlackHat on Jan 29, 2015 13:16:30 GMT 1
Commuting is a funny old thing - those who do it don't blink twice and those who don't can't believe they are willing to do it!
I think you pays your money and you takes your choice.
There are certainly employment opportunities locally - especially if you look at the industry and I.T. sector in Telford. It tends to be industry specific - lots of new business in Shrewsbury in the whole area of hydro sciences because we're the nearest decent place to the welsh water.
New builds are expensive but choose your area and in my view Shrewsbury is still undervalued. Getting on the ladder to improve your equity position is a key factor. Wise choices early on can reap a dividend.
I bought in Bayston Hill last year. I am 10 minutes from the foot of the Lawley, have a 6 minute journey to work, and live a 4 minute walk from my daughter's school. My friends house in Putney is easily worth six times what mine is, and he earns about 4 times more than me, but I have an extra hour a day of life (at least) and have recreational activities I prefer available daily.
But in five years time he will probably move back to Shrewsbury, and will likely live in a 7 bedroom place in Kingsland or Belle Vue Road or somewhere like that. But I am not jealous of that per se, because I am not sure I was ever willing to lose what he has lost in order to gain what he has gained.
You can either spend your life disappointed with what Shrewsbury lacks or enjoying what it does have, and what it does have is really quite brilliant if you appreciate it.
|
|
|
Post by percy on Jan 29, 2015 13:38:40 GMT 1
Interesting what you say about moving back to Salop - recently met up with five old school friends in London. We all moved down south after University to get jobs - we all have families down here and are all happy with our choice. We all have family ties back in Shrewsbury and we all keep track of the housing market - fair to say we all think it a bit pricey given the distance from London, but we didn't appreciate the growth of the hydro industry maybe.
ALL of us plan to come back to Shrewsbury in the next ten to fifteen years when kids disappear off to uni and we can work from home or retire into NED roles. I don't think it is too suprising when you see the big old town houses sell in a couple of days - the one in Quarry Place went for £1m this time last year and we didn't even get a chance to see it. This older affluent influx I think is the reason prices will rise and I'm not sure it's wonderfully positive for those that chose to stay put.
|
|
|
Post by darkshrew on Jan 29, 2015 17:10:16 GMT 1
I am also planning to come back to Shrewsbury - 7 years if all goes to plan.
No idea what the world of work will be like then, but with a good internet connection working from home should be an option rather than straight retirement.
Looks like there will be a lot of competition for houses if all those who left in the 80s and 90s to find work down south all sell up the London piles to move back home.
|
|
|
Post by lenny on Jan 29, 2015 17:20:13 GMT 1
As someone who's just started a degree about as down south as it gets, I haven't thought too much about where I'll be living in the future (beyond sorting out a student house next year!) but would quite like to return to Shrewsbury/surrounding areas at some point. As I'll be expecting to work in finance, I'll probably initially be working in London and, to be honest, I wouldn't want to live in Shrewsbury as a young person - I think experiencing living in a big City is something I would like to do. Hopefully, once I've made my millions and started a family, I can settle down in a secure job back in Salop and watch the football, with the cheaper price of everything justifying the likely lower salary.
So just watch out for me now tie down a job here in Exeter as a cleaner for the next 50 years!
|
|
|
Post by shrewder on Jan 30, 2015 8:39:34 GMT 1
Thought the filming on the program did an excellent job in showing off the towns historical buildings.
|
|
|
Post by JohnG on Jan 30, 2015 9:38:43 GMT 1
Thought the filming on the program did an excellent job in showing off the towns historical buildings. I was thinking the same. The town looked very nice, definitely the place to be!:-) Sent from my D5503 using proboards
|
|
|
Post by percy on Jan 30, 2015 9:47:53 GMT 1
I agree - showed all the nice bits and made me want to come back sooner rather than later. If working from home using the internet becomes more accepted I can see the town doing really very well. The council will need to buck its ideas up though and get the infrastructure sorted - moving everything to Telford is plain stupid.
|
|
|
Post by shrewder on Jan 30, 2015 10:09:09 GMT 1
I agree - showed all the nice bits and made me want to come back sooner rather than later. If working from home using the internet becomes more accepted I can see the town doing really very well. The council will need to buck its ideas up though and get the infrastructure sorted - moving everything to Telford is plain stupid. Yes, thought I could live there.
|
|
|
Post by ThrobsBlackHat on Jan 30, 2015 10:55:42 GMT 1
ALL of us plan to come back to Shrewsbury in the next ten to fifteen years when kids disappear off to uni and we can work from home or retire into NED roles. I don't think it is too suprising when you see the big old town houses sell in a couple of days - the one in Quarry Place went for £1m this time last year and we didn't even get a chance to see it. This older affluent influx I think is the reason prices will rise and I'm not sure it's wonderfully positive for those that chose to stay put. Shrewsbury has always had expensive areas. The old county money sees to that! You can't compare where the average locals live to them. Try Ludlow for a really crazy disparity! Money coming out of London might affect prices here but only after it's affected prices in the Cotswolds, Bath, Dorset, Sussex, Cambridge etc for the last 50 years... And money coming out of London will only really affect the expensive areas anyway. Because they're the places people want. Kingsland, the Quarry, bits of Belle Vue, Lyth Hill. Comparatively Shrewsbury is still one of the least expensive 'nice' places. It's isolation geographically might be something to do with that The 'distance from London' thing matters, but then I work with someone who goes to London pretty well once a week and it's an extra hour each way compared to other places, but that's an hour you lose every day if you live in London. What you don't get in a small town is choice, variety or breadth of experience. But of the small towns, Shrewsbury has a lot of all three comparatively.
|
|
|
Post by Uncle_Monkey on Jan 30, 2015 11:26:49 GMT 1
Shrewsbury is - unequivocally - the very best place on Earth. This is not a matter of opinion, it is a matter of fact.
|
|
|
Post by Minormorris64 on Jan 30, 2015 12:45:40 GMT 1
|
|
shrewinspain
Midland League Division Two
Grumpy old retired git
Posts: 125
|
Post by shrewinspain on Jan 30, 2015 14:04:34 GMT 1
|
|
|
Post by percy on Jan 30, 2015 14:28:08 GMT 1
For the last 50 years average house prices have fluctuated between 3x and 4x average earnings - apart from
a) 1998 - 1991 when it went up to 5x and then we had an abrupt crash down to 3x
b) 2004 to 2008 when they went close to 6x and then we had a bit of a crash that was dampened by government support down to 4.5x.
We are now at about 5x so the market looks a bit toppy in the macro sense but the government cannot let it crash while the bank balance sheets and the economic recovery so fragile. Expect the madness to continue.
£400k for a two bed flat in Shrewsbury ? Seems a bit mental to me and I'd wager those 2 will be on the market still in 6 months time if they don't come down in price before.
|
|
|
Post by mightyshrew on Jan 30, 2015 14:35:14 GMT 1
I cycle with John, the guy looking at properties in Shrewsbury. Good to see he got some media exposer for Nova Raiders on the programme too lol
|
|
|
Post by ThrobsBlackHat on Jan 30, 2015 18:35:10 GMT 1
The luxury penthouse overlooking the river, fields, that's 3 mins walk from the station is hitting a certain clientele.
A two bed in Abbey foregate walkable to town would be about 140k!
|
|
|
Post by atcham jack on Jan 30, 2015 19:20:29 GMT 1
I would love to move back to Shropshire, and would consider 3 areas, all rural. 1st Clive/yorton or as far as, but not in, Wem. because of my favourite pub in rural Shropshire, the Railway inn Yorton. 2nd Withington/Upton Magna area, because my late great uncle rented a farm at Withington and I knew the area and canal well as a child 3rd Hanwood area where my family came from on my late fathers side. my great great grandfather and his wife kept the Cock Inn Hanwood.
as I grow older I realise it is all a pipe dream without a lotto win, but to dream is enough, just grateful to visit Shrewsbury when I can.
|
|
|
Post by ThrobsBlackHat on Jan 30, 2015 21:48:29 GMT 1
So I finished work early today and got home just after 1pm Quick bite to eat and by 2pm I could take this photo. You have just got to enjoy what we do have
|
|
|
Post by mattmw on Jan 31, 2015 10:29:50 GMT 1
I would love to move back to Shropshire, and would consider 3 areas, all rural. 1st Clive/yorton or as far as, but not in, Wem. because of my favourite pub in rural Shropshire, the Railway inn Yorton. 2nd Withington/Upton Magna area, because my late great uncle rented a farm at Withington and I knew the area and canal well as a child 3rd Hanwood area where my family came from on my late fathers side. my great great grandfather and his wife kept the Cock Inn Hanwood. as I grow older I realise it is all a pipe dream without a lotto win, but to dream is enough, just grateful to visit Shrewsbury when I can. Think the lease to run The Cock Inn at Hanwood is available at the moment. Get buying those lotto tickets and turn it into a Salop hot spot!
|
|
|
Post by atcham jack on Jan 31, 2015 20:26:24 GMT 1
if ever I was to run a pub, it would have to be a free house. could not stand working for a pub company, but I wish the new landlord well at the Cock Inn
|
|
|
Post by frankwellshrews on Feb 1, 2015 15:37:18 GMT 1
Having in the last 18 months switched from renting in the town centre a five minute walk from work to owning a place outside of 'the loop' with a job based in Birmingham city centre, it's been interesting to read other people's views/experiences on this.
Commuting-wise, Birmingham certainly does seem to be seen as a realistic option by many; I usually aim to arrive at the station a good ten minutes before the 7:33 to New Street leaves in order to be sure of a seat. It's usually very busy by the time it leaves Shrewsbury and, as fairly often happens, they have to reduce it to two carriages it's standing room only before you've even reached Telford. I generally leave the house at about 7:10 and am at my desk about 8:45. If I'm able to get the 17:23 back, I can be home just after half 6, so just about within the 'hour and a half each way' bracket identified by an earlier poster as a 'sensible' commute. It takes a bit of getting used to but I'm a keen reader so enjoy a couple of hours a day to read or can use the time to catch up on work during busy periods without having to take it home. I can genuinely say, cutting through the hysteria, the service is generally pretty good; my main gripe being that the 17:23/17:49 services on the way back are usually extremely overcrowded between New Street and Wolverhampton which isn't the best way to end a busy day.
Cost wise, if you buy a season ticket it generally works out at under a tenner a day which, considering the distance and, crucially, the increased opportunities working in Birmingham brings, I definitely feel is worth it. Whilst in my previous job, I had no travel costs, no commute time and, living in the town centre, considered myself to have a high quality of life (as part of a couple in their 20s I should add; obviously town centre life might not be for everyone), I was definitely treading water career-wise with no real opportunity to advance. Since switching to working in Birmingham, there's really no comparison in terms of long-term prospects, development opportunities and general job satisfaction. Quality of life-wise, it does mean that I'm less likely now to head to the pub on a week night but, living within a ten minute walk of the town centre, I feel we still get the best of life here at the weekend.
I know many colleagues with similar commutes from places like Worcester or Bromsgrove so it's obviously considered worth it by many (including those with children) and, with a lot of 'back office' functions now relocating from London to Birmingham in the face of improved infrastructure and lower costs (compared to the South East), the general boom in the Financial Services industry there and the migration of 'professional' jobs from smaller towns like Shrewsbury to our major urban centres, this looks set to become even more common (in this region at least).
What the effect of this will be on house prices is hard to assess. In my experience, whilst there are areas where prices appear sky-high, it's still a surprisingly good value place to buy at the moment. Even in what might be considered the 'nicer' areas, you can still pick up 1 and 2 bedroom places within easy walking distance of the station/town centre for not much more than £100k which, for a young couple earning around the £19/20k mark each (about average for Shrewsbury AFAIK), is more than manageable, provided you can get the deposit together (which, to be honest, given how cheaply you can rent in Shrewsbury, isn't as hard as people make out if you're really committed to saving ** gets tin hat out **). As the commuter culture increases though, this won't stay that way for long I don't think; some of those houses on the old Gay Meadow site were going for £400k plus; in my view, situated as they are just across from the station, these are squarely aimed at commuters looking to move out of the city. Other developments, like the ones at Sutton Farm and Bicton Heath, are looking to capitalise on good links to the A5/M54 as developments like the i54 business park grow. With the University about to come in and potentially put pressure on the local rental market, chuck in the quality of local schools and shows like 'Location, Location, Location' taking an interest and it's hard not to feel a significant upturn in house prices across the board is around the corner. With the town increasingly marketing itself to affluent commuters that way (hello Waitrose, bye bye Doncasters), it is going to get a lot harder for local youngsters to buy here unless they are willing to get very familiar with the 7:33 to New Street or 'upskill' themselves to attract the remaining well-paying jobs in town (there will always be jobs locally for doctors, solicitors, accoutants, etc but even these will likely require a period working away to train/qualify).
Then again, if interest rates rise significantly after the next General Election and the wave of precarious help to buyers defaults, we could all be back to square one so who knows?.
|
|
|
Post by Matster on Feb 1, 2015 19:23:16 GMT 1
If those houses on the old meadow were able to access the station via the path right by it then it'd be great but I believe it is only rail staff allowed up there.
|
|
|
Post by frankwellshrews on Feb 1, 2015 19:27:39 GMT 1
You're not exactly a million miles away from the Castle Walk or English Bridge there though are you? Station probably still easily within a 10-15 minute walk, not to mention the other town centre amenities nearby.
|
|
shrewinspain
Midland League Division Two
Grumpy old retired git
Posts: 125
|
Post by shrewinspain on Feb 2, 2015 12:58:47 GMT 1
The luxury penthouse overlooking the river, fields, that's 3 mins walk from the station is hitting a certain clientele. A two bed in Abbey foregate walkable to town would be about 140k! You must be an estate agent - if that is a luxuriously appointed penthouse I'm staggered by what passes as luxury at home (the other one at least looks like the fittings aren't bargain basement) and as for location - a 5 minute walk from the station it might be, but the wrong way and the views are awful. For that kind of money you should be getting a lot more - how can it be a decent price when you consider that 2 of those would buy you a fantastic 5 bed house overlooking the Quarry freehold and with no sevice charge !
|
|