More and more people are swapping their hectic London & Home Counties lifestyles for the leafy and rural lifestyle benefits provided by living in the New Forest National Park and surrounding areas, however what are these and why should I move?

The benefits of living in or close to a National Park such as the New Forest are easy to spot, quieter environment, less traffic, lower house prices than some parts of London, good transport links and oh yes, there’s also the beaches.  But does this mean you have to quit your high paid job in London?

Well the answer is no!  Using a simple example.  Let’s assume you bought a property in Sway, New Forest as compared to say Esher in Surrey.  The average price of a 4 bedroom detached house in Sway (according to Zoopla as at August 2015) is

Whereas the chart below shows a typical commuter location, i.e. Esher in Surrey.

As can be clearly seen from the above examples, property prices in a typical London Home Counties location are much higher than those in a leafy New Forest Village such as Sway.  Yes I hear you shout, but I work in London so how can I live in Sway?

Travel time to a City location, such as say Bank of England from Sway is roughly 1 hour 55 minutes (to London Waterloo) with a further say 10 minutes on the Underground.  The cost of an annual season ticket on South West Trains being roughly £6,536.00 (including zones 1-6 on the London Underground).

Travel time to Bank of England from Esher (public Transport) is roughly 1 hour 16 minutes, lets say another 10 minutes on the London Underground.  The cost of an annual Season Ticket for this journey being roughly £2,344.00.  So a saving of say £4,192 per annum say.

Assuming a mortgage required at 60% LTV for a detached house at purchase price of £575,000, then Sway would be circa £1,727 per month (£20,724 per annum).  Assuming a purchase price in Esher of say £1.25Million at 60% LTV £3,755 per month (£45,000 per annum) say.  So whilst it seems the travel time isn’t that different, the cost of living in London compared to Sway does seem to be massively different (these are indicative only by way of an example and used for illustration purposes only).

It the finances alone are not sufficient to convince you to move to the New Forest National Park then the lifestyle may do so, we have New Forest Ponies roaming freely, seaside and beach leisure facilities, Lymington and its Yachting/maritime facilities, Christchurch Harbour within striking distance and the Southampton and Bournemouth facilities nearby.  Do your research and have a look for yourself, you might even find it’s easier than you think!

At Castle Surveyors we have our MoveAssist service and would be happy to help you find that dream home in the New Forest, Christchurch, Ringwood, Lymington, Sway, Lyndhurst, Brockenhurst, Milford on Sea, New Milton, Highcliffe on Sea, or surrounding areas.  Please call to discuss on 0800 246 1002 or email enquiry@castle-surveyors.co.uk to find out more.