Possibly moving to Birmingham - places to live?

[Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 6,741
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I was wondering if someone who lives in Brum could suggest some better areas of the city and suburbs to live? I am planning to come over in the next few weeks to have a few viewings. I live in Belfast at the mo so its a big move.
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  • hayleyghayleyg Posts: 15,748
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    I'd suggest South Birmingham is better than the North (but maybe I'm a little biased:rolleyes:) It really depends on what you want.

    How close you want to be to the city centre, do you want to be near countryside, transport etc
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 6,741
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    I would like to live near the city centre and, as I no longer have a car having sold it, would like to be near the Lichfield-Longbridge train line.
  • hayleyghayleyg Posts: 15,748
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    PDJames wrote: »
    I would like to live near the city centre and, as I no longer have a car having sold it, would like to be near the Lichfield-University etc train line.

    Hmm..thats the other side to me, and not an area I'm familiar with, so I can't really help you sorry:o, but I'm sure someone will.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 2,009
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    IIRC the railway line runs through Five Ways. Five Ways itself is a bit noisy but nearby are good places to live. Edgbaston is one of the leafy suburbs ... part of the Calthorpe Estate (Chamberlain family and all that) so has been well looked after over the years.

    Brum is the biggest city in the UK (look it up before challenging ... the city of London is tiny). Even so, you might be surprised at how compact it is and how you can get from one place to another very easily. They also have a great (1st Division not Premiership) Rugby team in Moseley.

    It was a friendly city when I last went there. The ethnic mix is a joy for some and a problem for a few. So fairly normal really and nothing to be scared of.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 6,741
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    I have been to Brum on many occassions and on my first visit I was surprised how compact it was for public transport purposes. And if you mean the City of London as in the square mile a lot of towns and cities are bigger. Edgbaston is a very good idea. I have stayed there in the past and it seemed a nice area.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 24,724
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    Solihull was nice last time I went there.

    It was also a very friendly place.

    Be wary where you park your car in the centre - ours got nicked.
  • SomnerSomner Posts: 9,412
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    Bournville is probably the nicest part, a little pricey but the trainline you want goes right through it. Edgbaston as somebody else said is quite nice too, and Harborne is a very nice part too - not too far from the city but no trains.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 6,741
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    Somner wrote: »
    Bournville is probably the nicest part, a little pricey but the trainline you want goes right through it. Edgbaston as somebody else said is quite nice too, and Harborne is a very nice part too - not too far from the city but no trains.

    Persumably Harborne is well served by buses though.

    You've given me a fair few suggestions. I'll be incontact with a few estate agents next week and have a nose around on Right Move.
  • SomnerSomner Posts: 9,412
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    PDJames wrote: »
    Persumably Harborne is well served by buses though.

    You've given me a fair few suggestions. I'll be incontact with a few estate agents next week and have a nose around on Right Move.

    Yep lots of different bus routes go through it and the buses in Birmingham are very often. You rarely wait more than 15 minutes at any time, even on a Sunday evening as the major routes (which there are loads of) run very frequently and there are plenty of non major routes. The 50, for example (doesn't go through Harborne) runs every 2 minutes during the day and every 15 in the evening. They also run very late, up until about 1am, and start again around 4ish.
  • SystemSystem Posts: 2,096,970
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    I'd say Harborne, Moseley and Edgbaston are the nicest suburbs. Not far from the centre either.
    I'd also reccommend Sutton Coldfield. It's a fair way out from Birmingham, but it's on the cross city line from Lichfield to Longbridge.
  • SystemSystem Posts: 2,096,970
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    Oh yeah and Bournville's nice too. It has its own chocolate factory. What more could you want?!
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 6,741
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    Miss Mel wrote: »
    I'd say Harborne, Moseley and Edgbaston are the nicest suburbs. Not far from the centre either.
    I'd also reccommend Sutton Coldfield. It's a fair way out from Birmingham, but it's on the cross city line from Lichfield to Longbridge.

    I had thought of Sutton/Wylde Green direction
  • SomnerSomner Posts: 9,412
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    Miss Mel wrote: »
    I'd say Harborne, Moseley and Edgbaston are the nicest suburbs. Not far from the centre either.
    I'd also reccommend Sutton Coldfield. It's a fair way out from Birmingham, but it's on the cross city line from Lichfield to Longbridge.

    Yep I forget to mention Moseley, quite nice too there, and Kings Heath isn't too bad either. How can you not mention Bournville though? It's the best in the whole city by far!
  • BigearsBigears Posts: 633
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    The problem you have with Birmingham is that the nice parts still have edges that are not so nice: Edgbaston for example if you are on the north side of the A456 is not so nice. Moseley north side not so nice, Kings Heath very south part of it not so nice, and this could be said of all areas of Birmingham. If you are looking for up and coming Longbridge may be a bet due to the redevelopment of the Rover site, the same could be said of Northfield. Bournville village trust is beautiful and the houses in this area are generally better examples of their era due to the Cadbury's influence. Going north on the Longbridge to Litchfield line past Birmingham NS I have less knowledge on but generally unless you are looking at Sutton (and even that has some bad areas) then the South is seen as better. Best thing is to spend some time in Brum before choosing an area as you have a better idea of what you will require then. (I relocated from Scotland to Brum 6 years ago and moved to a completely different area to where I started). I alos looked to be close to the Five Ways line
  • TanequilTanequil Posts: 366,155
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    Look toward the south of the city rather than the north. There are a number of suburban areas, decent train links and the majority less than 10 miles from the city center.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,320
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    It depends a lot on your budget tbh, Harborne, Mosely and Edgbaston all sound great in theory, but if you're looking around for budget prices you could end up in some not so nice parts that fall under the classification of those areas - Edgbaston especially is a bit of a minefield - a lot of the bigger houses have been turned into bedsits and there is a prostitution problem in some parts.

    Don't get ripped off by paying through the nose for 'city centre living' either. It's not worth it and most apartments are slap bang in the middle of very busy pub/club partions, busy shopping areas or have been erected to try and 'regenerate' inner city problem estates that you still wouldn't want to walk around by yourself at night on.

    Generally though, the South side is pretty good, Birmingham has a fairly good bus system as well, and from personal knowledge, anywhere along the Bristol Road/Pershore road is a good starting point to get anywhere in the city. That leaves you with a load of areas - Longbridge, Northfield, Cotteridge, Kings Norton, Selly Park, Stirchley.....

    Again, good and bad areas, but you'll have to trust your own instinct when your having a look around.

    Don't discount the outer areas either, for the past few years I've lived under Sandwell district council - Bearwood is great for young people, and at the moment I'm living just bordering Quinton off the Hagley Road (another main road really well serviced by buses) and am classed as Oldbury even though I'm 20 minutes by bus away from the city centre!!


    This is a good site to get a feel for prices and what you can get http://birmingham.gumtree.com/birmingham/2360_1.html , and again public transport links tend to be quite good, most landlords/agencys will be happy to answer general enquires about local buses/trains/metro links to the City or central bus stations.
  • B3atenB3aten Posts: 4,108
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    We live in Castle Bromwich and have been here for about 4 years. Very quiet, good bus services, and a car into the City will cost about £12. It's classed as a village and is in Solihull (so you get better council services than Birmingham IMO) although it's convenient for the M6, M42, A38 and there are quite a few places to go fairly locally, such as the Fort. House prices are pretty reasonable.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 253
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    No offence but IMO Birmingham is an absolute shithole, a complete and utter dive. I would never move there if given the choice.
  • B3atenB3aten Posts: 4,108
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    3500 wrote: »
    No offence but IMO Birmingham is an absolute shithole, a complete and utter dive. I would never move there if given the choice.

    Says someone living in Wales :)

    When was the last time you visited, where abouts, and why do you think it's a shithole?
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,320
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    3500 wrote: »
    No offence but IMO Birmingham is an absolute shithole, a complete and utter dive. I would never move there if given the choice.

    Thanks for the input - I'm sure the OP found that snippet of information very useful.

    Oh and just a word on Bournville - yes it's lovely, but be prepared to spend a lot of cash renting or buying, and be aware that the Bournville village trust have a lot of control over what can and can't be done to/on your property - plus it's a Quaker zone so there are no pubs/takeaways!
  • SystemSystem Posts: 2,096,970
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    bourneville gives me the creeps a bit.

    its a faux village of course, constructed on toy town lines to give the factory brass their nice houses and village green whilst the drones were hived off elsewhere.

    i haven't been there for a while, but last time i was they still used to sound the siren in the factory for clocking on/off time, and workers suddenly appear from everywhere, all dressed the same, streaming in or out.

    all a bit 1984.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,320
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    Thin Air wrote: »
    bourneville gives me the creeps a bit.

    its a faux village of course, constructed on toy town lines to give the factory brass their nice houses and village green whilst the drones were hived off elsewhere.

    i haven't been there for a while, but last time i was they still used to sound the siren in the factory for clocking on/off time, and workers suddenly appear from everywhere, all dressed the same, streaming in or out.

    all a bit 1984.

    Lol, you're not alone trust me!

    I don't think they do the clocking off thing anymore - not since Schweppes bought up Cadburys anyway, the land by Bournville School where the Cadbury family home used to be was built on for a new housing development.

    Freaks me out personally - one of the sons hanged himself from a tree in the Garden, and the last Mrs Cadbury (well from the last generation that had anything to do with the running of the business) wouldn't open the curtains of any windows in the house that faced that tree.

    Saying all that, they invested a lot in Birmingham, and it's just a very small part of Birminghams history - there's loads of hidden landmarks and history in Birmingham. Well if thats your kind of thing!
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 3,053
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    IronCat wrote: »
    Don't discount the outer areas either, for the past few years I've lived under Sandwell district council - Bearwood is great for young people, and at the moment I'm living just bordering Quinton off the Hagley Road (another main road really well serviced by buses) and am classed as Oldbury even though I'm 20 minutes by bus away from the city centre!!

    Yey Bearwood!!! Very close to the city centre (10 min bus - and loads of them), some nice pubs, perhaps the best off licence in the world ever in Global Wines - one I long for from up here - and far more importantly, my birthright and home.

    I'd move back tomorrow if I could.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,320
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    lofichic wrote: »
    Yey Bearwood!!! Very close to the city centre (10 min bus - and loads of them), some nice pubs, perhaps the best off licence in the world ever in Global Wines - one I long for from up here - and far more importantly, my birthright and home.

    I'd move back tomorrow if I could.

    I've known people drive over from the far side of Dudley for a Neelams ;)
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 3,053
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    IronCat wrote: »
    I've known people drive over from the far side of Dudley for a Neelams ;)

    Neelams! Why do you do this to me....

    There is the singular best curry house in the world opposite Neelams, called Teknaf. It's beautiful, really nicely decorated too.

    I'm going to a gig in Wolverhampton on Monday night, I'm getting me some Teknaf after - a night crashing at the folks, back for work on Tuesday with my Bearwood fix sorted :D
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