Windsor, Ascot, Maidenhead, Sl4 Region..

[uforia98]

I have been on this site for quite a while but have not seen (m)any posts regarding the Windsor area. There must be some out there who follow the market in this region, right ? We started looking at some houses in this area last summer but stopped after viewing around 10 houses or so, since prices seemed insane. We even ent as far as Bracknell because prices were lower, but we did not like the area as much (even though they have nice areas too). We were looking at the 250k region and since Windsor seems one of the most expensive regions outside of London it was simply frustrating...

Now what I have seen is that the market is going really slow but still it seems estate agents and sellers have not realised that prices are far too high. I have seen houses in the weekly property news from last week which we have looked at back in August (!), and believe it or not, some of these asking prices are still the same !! Have vendors and sellers not realised that the market is going downwards, or do they not want to realise or is my perception simply wrong that prices are too high here ?

What is the experience of people on this forum with regards to the SL4 region and also Staines Egham etc. (maybe even Slough but I would not be interested in buying there). We decided to sit and wait for now, as long as we need to, but as it stands right now, we feel with prices not really moving downwards in the area we are not sure if we ever willb e able to afford a decent house in this area...

would really like to hear other peoples views and experiences.

[zzg113]

Windsor seems to be one of the most expensive regions outside of London

Yes, and always has been (as well as Ascot and Maidenhead; Staines, Egham, Bracknell, etc are the poor relations). Is there any particular reason why you have to buy in Windsor? I presume you're limited in where you can look by distance from work, etc? Otherwise why not look in a cheaper area?

[Wurzel]

What is the experience of people on this forum with regards to the SL4 region and also Staines Egham etc. (maybe even Slough but I would not be interested in buying there). We decided to sit and wait for now, as long as we need to, but as it stands right now, we feel with prices not really moving downwards in the area we are not sure if we ever willb e able to afford a decent house in this area...

would really like to hear other peoples views and experiences.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I sold a place in Bracknell two years ago, £169K, still only worth £175k now. I had to relocate in 2002 as I was working in Slough, I looked at all areas, right up to Aylesbury and Hungerford, from my experience;

1. Forget Windsor, its overpriced and your under the heathrow flightpath.

2. Maidenhead is as overpriced as Windsor.

3. Areas that should get you a nice place in a village type setting for 250k are,

Crowthorne

Binfield

I know the areas around windsor pretty well, and was in the same position, let me know if you need any info.

[Bearfacts]

I have been on this site for quite a while but have not seen (m)any posts regarding the Windsor area. There must be some out there who follow the market in this region, right ? We started looking at some houses in this area last summer but stopped after viewing around 10 houses or so, since prices seemed insane. We even ent as far as Bracknell because prices were lower, but we did not like the area as much (even though they have nice areas too). We were looking at the 250k region and since Windsor seems one of the most expensive regions outside of London it was simply frustrating...

Now what I have seen is that the market is going really slow but still it seems estate agents and sellers have not realised that prices are far too high. I have seen houses in the weekly property news from last week which we have looked at back in August (!), and believe it or not, some of these asking prices are still the same !! Have vendors and sellers not realised that the market is going downwards, or do they not want to realise or is my perception simply wrong that prices are too high here ?

What is the experience of people on this forum with regards to the SL4 region and also Staines Egham etc. (maybe even Slough but I would not be interested in buying there). We decided to sit and wait for now, as long as we need to, but as it stands right now, we feel with prices not really moving downwards in the area we are not sure if we ever willb e able to afford a decent house in this area...

would really like to hear other peoples views and experiences.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Check out the Maidenhead Express article on page 5 ... prices down 5% in Windsor and Maidenhead .. Wrigglesworth reckons they are still overpriced ... no sh*t. Properties getting 88% of asking. Local agent (Maidenhead) told me things were as quiet as shes ever known last week.

[uforia98]

Yes, and always has been (as well as Ascot and Maidenhead; Staines, Egham, Bracknell, etc are the poor relations). Is there any particular reason why you have to buy in Windsor? I presume you're limited in where you can look by distance from work, etc? Otherwise why not look in a cheaper area?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Correct, I work in Slough and like the proximity to work (in the summer I can ride my bike). Plus we have been renting a detached for 3 years now in Windsor so my wife likes the fact that she can walk with our toddler into the town center (and not having to drive). On the other hand, you are right, we should look at cheaper regions and that's what we have already done but it seems not that much better there. Any suggestions for areas ?

Crowthorne, as suggested by Wurzel, seems too far (Bracknell already seems quite far) and Binfield is a bit far as well but I guess we might check that out again. Anyway, as I said, at the moment prices are still far too high, I just looked at the latest propertynews and still see the same places with (almost) the same prices, so I still hope prices will drop significantly in this area. Do you think this will ever happen in such an area like Windsor ?

Wurzel, do you have any other suggestions/recommendations for the area ? One factor for me is also to get away from Heathrow. It is still hard to understand why people pay so much money for houses when they sometimes have planes flying over their houses every 2 minutes.... On the other hand Windsor is simply a pleasant place (at least the town center), Thames etc...

Bearfacts,

I hope sellers and EAs realise thenselves that prices are still far too high. Seems someone like A&K however still did not get it:

(Quote from the Express):

"It's unlikely prices will go down any further, and we would recommend that now is a good time to buy. I think people were waiting to hear that prices were not going to crash. And since Christmas economists have grouped together and said that is not going to happen. "

I can not believe that he sincerely thinks that prices will go up (or not down like he says), they simply must go down. Sureley there must be more people in the same situation as I am in and I won"t buy until they dropped significantly.....

[ncw0505]

Correct, I work in Slough and like the proximity to work (in the summer I can ride my bike). Plus we have been renting a detached for 3 years now in Windsor so my wife likes the fact that she can walk with our toddler into the town center (and not having to drive). On the other hand, you are right, we should look at cheaper regions and that's what we have already done but it seems not that much better there. Any suggestions for areas ?

Crowthorne, as suggested by Wurzel, seems too far (Bracknell already seems quite far) and Binfield is a bit far as well but I guess we might check that out again. Anyway, as I said, at the moment prices are still far too high, I just looked at the latest propertynews and still see the same places with (almost) the same prices, so I still hope prices will drop significantly in this area. Do you think this will ever happen in such an area like Windsor ?

Wurzel, do you have any other suggestions/recommendations for the area ? One factor for me is also to get away from Heathrow. It is still hard to understand why people pay so much money for houses when they sometimes have planes flying over their houses every 2 minutes.... On the other hand Windsor is simply a pleasant place (at least the town center), Thames etc...

Bearfacts,

I hope sellers and EAs realise thenselves that prices are still far too high. Seems someone  like A&K however still did not get it:

(Quote from the Express):

"It's unlikely prices will go down any further, and we would recommend that now is a good time to buy. I think people were waiting to hear that prices were not going to crash. And since Christmas economists have grouped together and said that is not going to happen. "

I can not believe that he sincerely thinks that prices will go up (or not down like he says), they simply must go down. Sureley there must be more people in the same situation as I am in and I won"t buy until they dropped significantly.....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

First post. I have worked in Maidenhead for a number of years and lived in and around the town in that time. House prices in the town have always amazed me although by my reckoning they have plateaued completely over the last couple of years. I believe that a lot of mediocre housing has appreciated on the back of rises to better quality properties - inevitable perhaps but unjustified nonetheless. The current market will expose the weaker property for what it is worth, and I expect a more general correction to take place in the town and roundabouts but would be surprised if this was more than 15-20 per cent.

Although Maidenhead has a truly forgettable town centre (too close to Windsor, Reading and Slough for comfort) it does score very highly on transport commumications (M4, M40, trains and very close to Heathrow though not necessarily below the flight path), and in this situation it will always be attractive - in fact there's talk of CrossRail receiving approval now and this is set to terminate in the town. To my mind, south of the M4 is overrun by the motor car and with a young family you might like to be nearer the countryside of the Chilterns. Given your current location, you might like to consider Farnham Common, Stoke Poges, Burnham/Taplow, or Twyford.

Incidentally I looked at several Maidenhead properties in November as a prospective FTB-er - two were withdrawn from the market and two are currently still on the market at an identical asking price. I got rather twitchy when one of the vendors who hadn't lined up his next purchase and started talking about going into rented accomodation if it would assist the process. that was hardly a vote of confidence in the state of the market and caused me to lose interest fast. I have learnt a lot from this site so far and hope to put it to good use at the RIGHT time.

[letitcomedown]

I grew up and in Maidenhead and lived (as a homeowner) there until a couple of years ago, I still go back occassionally and watch the market via the net.

>House prices in the town have always amazed me although by my reckoning they have plateaued completely over the last >couple of years. I believe that a lot of mediocre housing has appreciated on the back of rises to better quality

>properties - inevitable perhaps but unjustified nonetheless.

Agree completely on both points. It is incredible some of the junk out there, but in the last couple of months I have seen a few comparative bargains.

However I would disagree at that point, and say Maidenhead is really, really due a 50% fall if you exclude the crossrail factor, which I agree will help things. Rental values vs purchase values certainly seem to indicate that a 50% overvaluation is about right, but mostly that is through knowing what sort of person lives in houses of various prices and roughly how much they earn. Also there is a huge overhang of debt from the technology crash, lots of IT people earning far less than they were 4 years ago and relying on MEW for new cars and paying the mortgage

Anyway the clever money from Maidenhead has slowly been moving to outlying villages, particularly just across the river in Bucks (Marlow etc) for schools that are regarded as better (still grammer system). Maidenhead town center is getting pretty dangerous by night and not good for the 30+ group, a lot of the good restaurants have shut down, lots of binge drinking dens. Hard drugs are on the rise, they are planning to build on a toxic pit potentially leaking cancer-causing chemicals into the water table, a lot of the town is on a flood plain etc, the train times to London are much worse now.

Still it is better than Bracknell :-)

[uforia98]

To my mind, south of the M4 is overrun by the motor car and with a young family you might like to be nearer the countryside of the Chilterns.  Given your current location, you might like to consider Farnham Common, Stoke Poges, Burnham/Taplow, or Twyford.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

That might be an idea. I always had the feeling Farnham Common, Stoke Poges, Burnham/Taplow are is too close too Slough though and hence I did not really consider, but maybe I should just drive around the area a bit and check it out, for when the time has come to enter the market again

Isn't Stoke Poges mainly filled with 1 million+ villas ? At least that was my impression when I last drove through....

Anyway, good to hear some advice from people who lived in the area for many years. I am in the UK only since 2001, lived in London for less then a year before moving to Windsor, and with Windsor being quite nice, I think I am a bit spoiled....

Anyone else know good places to live in the Windsor area which might soon give good value for the FTBs money ? Ascot seemed not too bad to me....

[Wurzel]

That might be an idea. I always had the feeling Farnham Common, Stoke Poges, Burnham/Taplow are is too close too Slough though and hence I did not really consider, but maybe I should just drive around the area a bit and check it out, for when the time has come to enter the market again 

Isn't Stoke Poges mainly filled with 1 million+ villas ? At least that was my impression when I last drove through....

Anyway, good to hear some advice from people who lived in the area for many years. I am in the UK only since 2001, lived in London for less then a year before moving to Windsor, and with Windsor being quite nice, I think I am a bit spoiled....

Anyone else know good places to live in the Windsor area which might soon give good value for the FTBs money ? Ascot seemed not too bad to me....

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Stoke Poges, Burnham etc. ARE too close to Slough, for this reason I would not recommend. There are some pretty grim areas of Ascot, just main roads with houses and no soul or community, have you thought about Camberley, this is a quick ten minute drive through the forest from Windsor, pretty expensise but cheaper than Windsor, my cousins live there and seems OK.

My wife was an EA for a local chain and worked in Burnham, Lower Early, Taplow etc. go south of the M4 is my advice, the schools and environment are better, just my opinion.

[StrangeTimes]

I feel I must write to sing the praises of Twyford, where I lived for 6 years up until 2003.

The village still has a half decent village feel to it with a good sense of community unlike maidenhead, slough burnham etc . Still a lot of green space depite the pressure. Good shops, restaurants and pubs including a new Waitrose (gives you a clue as to the type of resident these days). Many "locals" still have old fashioed Berkshire accents (i.e. Ricky Gervais) unlike the mockney that is found in the youths of maidenhead slough etc!!

Transport links are superb as the village is on the mainline to Paddington. Maidenhead is 9 mins, Reading 7 mins. Access to M4/M40/M25 Heathrow etc is easy.

Most importantly for young families are the excellent primaet schools including the Colleton School which is consistently in the top few in Berks.

On the downside:

If you want to get into the Colleton, you have to live pretty damn near due to its popularity.

Petty vandalism - but no where near as bad a Slough/Maidenhead/Burnham etc

High house prices

Not only were we very happy in Twyford, but manager of a local footie team I spent time in all the surrounding areas. These all made me very happy to be in Twyford.

[ncw0505]

I feel I must write to sing the praises of Twyford, where I lived for 6 years up until 2003.

The village still has a half decent village feel to it with a good sense of community unlike maidenhead, slough burnham etc . Still a lot of green space depite the pressure. Good shops, restaurants and pubs including a new Waitrose (gives you a clue as to the type of resident these days). Many "locals" still have old fashioed Berkshire accents (i.e. Ricky Gervais) unlike the mockney that is found in the youths of maidenhead slough etc!!

Transport links are superb as the village is on the mainline to Paddington. Maidenhead is 9 mins, Reading 7 mins. Access to M4/M40/M25 Heathrow etc is easy.

Most importantly for young families are the excellent primaet schools including the Colleton School which is consistently in the top few in Berks.

On the downside:

If you want to get into the Colleton, you have to live pretty damn near due to its popularity.

Petty vandalism - but no where near as bad a Slough/Maidenhead/Burnham etc

High house prices

Not only were we very happy in Twyford, but manager of a local footie team I spent time in all the surrounding areas. These all made me very  happy to be in Twyford.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Spent just over a year in Twyford five years ago and enjoyed my stay. Rented on the Broad Hinton estate, a bit too much like Brookside for my taste and now very over-priced - Concorde used to pass straight over which was quite a sight, and it does suffer at times from being under the flight path depending on the prevailing wind. Some older properties also around but not cheap. Town centre is nice enough, good selection of Indian restaurants in particular. Town still has a rural feel about it despite its proximity to Reading although Prescott may have other ideas for the Greenbelt that surrounds it..

[uforia98]

High house prices

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

so how would you compare these then to, let's say Winsdor on one hand, and then Burnnham, Taplow etc. on the other ?

We knew people who lived there, but we only drove through once or twice so I don"t know much about it Twyford.

[Grime- skint wouldbe ftb]

I've been renting in the area for 2 years, moved here as its handy for work, (although leave the house much after 7am and it takes an hour to drive 8 miles) and although i'm a lead developer for an international company, I haven't a hope in hell of getting a property in the area that would fulfill my requirements. I'm currently single, which in a way is quite a blessing- if I had a combined salary to play with and a partner to settle down with there would be big pressure to purchase at the current level of insane prices.

Having moved here from Dorset, near the sea, I find it quite hilarious how such pretentious areas with such a low quality of life - constant Heathrow noise, incredibly busy roads which gridlock whenever there's an incident on the M4 or M25, poor air quality, distance from "real" countryside, etc, command such massive prices.

Have just been flipping through the weekly property news that drops through the door (http://www.propertynewshomes.co.uk/customers/qs_buy.php) and marvelling at the madness therein. As you'd expect there are plenty of luxury homes commanding vast sums, but even in Slough (!) you'd be hard pushed to find a 3 bed house in the town centre for less than a quarter of a million pounds. Why you'd actually want to do that is beyond me, but I guess it takes all sorts.

What prompted me to register and post this message was one particular advert from Barratt Homes for Orchard Grove - http://www.barratthomes.co.uk/site.cfm?intDevID=549 -- note there's a mistake in the first paragraph where it mentions Newbury and J13 -- anyhow- anyone familiar with the drive in to Slough will be aware of the ghastly bit just after the M4 junction.. (OK, selecting just one area as ghastly is a bit tricky, but you know what I mean).. on the left there's one of the biggest electricity sub-stations I've ever seen, a massive industrial complex of wires and steel. Beyond that is the grim modern Copthorne hotel where all the little David Brents in Vauxhall Vectras have important business conferences. Between the two and with the M4 providing a constant reassuring roar to the south, and a busy dual carriageway to the East, is the hilariously named "Orchard Grove" ("Stop Press, 50% sold!")

The asking? 1 and 2 bedroom apartments, £149,950 to £183,950. OK, so not as hilarious as £250,000 for a flat in a tower block in Basingstoke, but ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY THOUSAND POUNDS to live in THAT SH1THOLE???! Wimpey have done the same thing with "Metro", Windmill Road, Slough... 1 beds= £146,995, 2 beds=£185,995.

As I said before, thank god I'm single and have no savings or equity or maybe I'd've been suckered in to this madness. On my salary I could possibly stretch to £140,000, but £120,000 is nearer my comfort zone allowing for uncertainties in the future. So my choice is to buy a "studio" flat (ie, the claustrophic remains after a greedy developer has turned one flat into two) or continue giving money every month to a landlord who spends it on whores in soho........

Life's a comedy .... Viva le Crash

[uforia98]

I know what you mean skint ftb. prices are ridiculous in the area. and still, they build new flats and houses everywhere, the only problem being they are not affordable.

We have been driving around North Ascot today, seen one nice semi from the outside, but the asking price is 285k. we have seen the same house last summer, and I could swear the asking price was around the same at the time and it came under offer shortly after we saw it. either someone has bought in between for below 250 and tries to make quick money, or the sale fell through (which seems more likely). what I still not get, how can they ask for the same price as last summer, when we were clearly at the peak of the market ?

With mortgage lending at its all time low, I wonder when sellers and EAs realise that they have to go down with their asking prices... otherwise I will be renting much longer (which I don't really want).

Has anyone else suggestions for good places to live in the area with reasonable prices and good primary schools ?

[MarkG]

A little further out, in the wilds of SL5, the builders in Sunningdale still appear to be advertising two-bedroom flats under construction for 340,000. God knows who's going to buy them at that price: certainly there's no way I could do so, even when I could make a 100k down-payment. Meanwhile, where my girlfriend lives in Canada for the equivalent of 340,000 you could buy a house with five bedrooms, two bathrooms, two garages, a dozen acres of land, and still have enough change to buy a 'his and hers' set of Ferraris to keep in the garages.

I haven't really been watching the market around there, but from my cursory glances at the numerous estate agents now infesting Sunningdale and the nearby villages, it does seem that prices have dropped a fair amount in the last few months: some even starting to look almost affordable.

I did live in Taplow for a while about ten years ago: at the time it was quite a nice place, and other than chav-scum breaking into cars left at the station, we didn't get much of the bad stuff from Slough and Maidenhead spreading out that far: don't know if it's degenerated since I left. Don't think I'd have wanted to live in Burnham though.

[uforia98]

A little further out, in the wilds of SL5, the builders in Sunningdale still appear to be advertising two-bedroom flats under construction for 340,000. God knows who's going to buy them at that price:

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

340k for a 2 bedroom flat. I know exactly what you mean. As long as there are still buyers who fall for the speculators in the market it wont get better i think.

For instance there is a house around the corner where I live, which we were interested last year in august (thank god we did not buy at that time). someone bought it for 245 (nethouseprices). now, 7 months later, they updated it, put in a new kitchen and bath, and put out an asking price of 320 k !!! for a 3 bedroom shoebox mid terraced !!! this is insane ! last august was the peak of the market, it would be only fair if they would make a loss on it. who pays 320 k for a terraced when you can get a detached for the same price in some parts of Windsor ?

I agree, some dropped their price, but overall, there are still a lot of speculators around and a lot of vendors with unrealistic prices, as the 2 examples above show.

[uforia98]

anyone with recent experience and/or anectodals of the area ? this is what I posted on a different thread, based on nethouseprices it seems activity slows down a lot, but not as much as in other areas of the country it seems:

= = =

SL4 (Windsor) sales went down 27% from 56 to 44 sales (Jan 04 compared to Jan 05).

And a house in my (quite popular) street just got sold after being 3 weeks or so on the market (at least the sign outside got switched to 'sold' so the sale needs to go through first...)

Anyway, still quite some activity here but 27% is just the beginning of more drops to come IMHO...

= = =

what are others thinking of the area ?

[dinamo]

ok, here is my opinion fwiw.

had to relocate to this neck of the woods because of a job move. sadly this meant leaving bristol which is truly a fabulous place to live. it has oft been mentioned that the south east is a load of characterless commuter towns, which i broadly agree with. the attraction is a vast number of jobs within commuting distance of this area; major corporate hqs are littered around reading, bracknell, surrey, heathrow and west london plus central london is do-able on the train.

with a bit of digging you can still find places with character, though you will be struggling to find a lively metropolis. like you, i have been frustrated at the lack of price falls but in the last week or so i sense reality is finally beginning to kick in. most of the price cuts to date have only been on the hilariously priced stuff. my landlord put the place i am renting in sunningdale up for sale 3 months ago and has had 2 viewings. next door has gone under offer after a good year on the market.

SUNNINGHILL is my favourite village. Not as overpriced or overrated as Sunningdale, but a cut above most of Ascot. Bustling village centre, seems to be a friendly place. Some of the modern developments aren't great, there a couple of utility based blots on the landscape and it can be hard to escape the railway line but is recommended. Price-wise, we came close to buying a couple of victorian semis with large gardens around the £330-£350k mark at the peak of the market but will sit tight for a while and hope to pick something similar up for £250k in due course. decent curryhouse too, though they like trying to scam you on the bill.

WINDLESHAM is just up the road. I know less about this place but you may have heard of a place on the market here for £70m. I don't personally think it is as charming as Sunninghill but still well worth a look. Some of the modern stuff is OK and the Snows Ride development is *still* laughing in the face of the downturn. Houses here will be under offer within a couple of weeks, guaranteed.

VIRGINIA WATER of course has WENTWORTH but the privilege of living next to TARBIE, BRUCIE et al doesn't come cheap and the cheapest thing i have seen in this place was a dilapidated bungalow at £575k. It is stuffed with decent restaurants (the thai and italian particular highlights IIRC) but little else and for me is slightly lacking in soul, though not entirely ruled out. stray away from wentworth and you can pick up stuff at more reasonable prices though it is still not cheap. one bonus i think is that the station is on two lines into london so the trains are more frequent.

SUNNINGDALE has some nice nubiles on the tills at waitrose but that does not justify the cost of living here. i quite like CHOBHAM up the road but it is a bit too far away for me and they do not appear to have discovered tarmac up there so a 4x4 is a prerequisite.

ASCOT is, well, alright and we may end up here. I haven't really worked out whether south or north ascot is better, both have decent and less than decent parts. CHEAPSIDE looks to be the prime bit though, and would probably be my second choice after sunninghill. i like horse racing too, so the track is a bonus. i kind of like the way the old stables dominate the top end of the high street.

WINDSOR i have never quite understood completely and always found that the majority of housing stock is complete shit. I like the bottom end of town aroung st leonards road and some of the older stuff around here is lovely. cats rule living around here out though and i have struggled to find anywhere decent out of town. I had a drive through DATCHET the other day though and this probably warrants further investigation. obvious tourist issue with windsor, but the upside is that it is one of the only places in the area with some sort of nightlife.

EGHAM is one of those places that people who don't know it think is really posh where in fact it is mostly a tip, despite the largest ferrari dealership in europe. the main problem is that it is hemmed in by the m25 / bypass. some truly suicidal estates next to the london orbital, best avoided. ENGLEFIELD GREEN just up the road is probably a better bet though i don't know a huge amount about it. a lot of it backs onto windsor great park / crown protected land which is a good thing but there seem to be some relatively heavy chav estates. both areas are close to RH&BNC, i don't know whether you think students bring life to an area or are irritating (unts.

STAINES i know little about but i do quite like the modern centre. prima facie it is not as bad as is made out from the ali g gags but i am not an authority. forget WRAYSBURY unless you are deaf or have a low-flying aircraft noise fetish. upside of staines is quicker commuting into london.

BRACKNELL is bottom of the list but ironically is probably where we will end up renting until the market goes completely tits up (due to space requirements). cannot find a redeeming feature about the place other than convenient location and the EAs are utterly odious. However, if you head up towards WARFIELD and WINKFIELD ROW things do improve somewhat. winkfield row also has an utterly, utterly outstanding primary school if that is imprtant to you.

hth

[MarkG]

forget WRAYSBURY unless you are deaf or have a low-flying aircraft noise fetish

I lived in Wraysbury briefly: aircraft noise was only a problem when Concorde went over, otherwise I barely noticed it at all.

Probably an incentive to live there, I'm sure prices must be lower as a result of people expecting it to be a much bigger problem than it really is (or you could use it to beat down an EA who was trying to sell at inflated prices ).

I'd agree that Sunninghill seems quite nice: and there was a cute new girl behind the counter at the Chinese takeaway last time I visited a few weeks ago .

Egham, yeah, is a bit of a dump. I'm not sure whether Staines is better or worse, I really can't think of much to recommend either.

[Grime- skint wouldbe ftb]

I lived in Wraysbury briefly: aircraft noise was only a problem when Concorde went over, otherwise I barely noticed it at all.

Probably an incentive to live there, I'm sure prices must be lower as a result of people expecting it to be a much bigger problem than it really is (or you could use it to beat down an EA who was trying to sell at inflated prices ).

you're kidding.. I live in Old Windsor, just a stone's throw away, and aircraft noise is a constant blight. I only heard Concorde once a day, around 7pm, and it was nice to see her go past. Otherwise its just a constant racket-, in summer you cant hear the TV if the windows are open

[uforia98]

dinamo, et al

thanks for the detailed post. I think I will definitely need to check out Sunninghill.

DATCHET:

you will find that Datchet is really far too close to Heathrow. We have seen a house there, plus have friends and with the proximity to Windsor be there quite often, but the airlines fly *far* too close over the village. It is nice yes, but I would never move there because of this.

WRAYSBURY:

I agree, it is even closer to the airport, even though it always depends if you are right under the flight path or not. Other than the proximity to the airport Wraysbury seems pretty nice. Still too expensive though it seems..

EGHAM:

sems to have some nice areas as well, I know someone who lives there. However, again, for my taste you are too close to the airport.

STAINES:

probably similar, too close to the airport, but you are right, I hink the city enter is not too bad for its shopping.

ASCOT:

we have seen houses in both North and South Ascot. Like you said, both have streets you better want to avoid, but then 2 blocks further it can be quite nice. I think North Ascot might be a bit better for us as it is closer to Windsor. New Road seems very nice.

BRACKNELL:

does anyone know more about it ? I mean this seems the only place where we could afford a detached house for 250k. And areas like Forest Park seem actually quite nice !

WARFIELD:

seems vey 'soulness', only new houses, purely residential but then also afforable. Here also you could get detached for 250k (however they are shoeboxes more or less...)

WINKFIELD ROW:

hm, need to check it out, school will be in issue for us in 2 years or so...

anyone else recomendations or experiences in the area ?

please share them.

[MarkG]

you're kidding..

Uh, no. Aircraft noise in Wraysbury didn't worry me at all.

Then again I've also lived right alongside the M40, and not far from the M4, near to a main rail-line into London, and not had any problem with it. IMHO 'noise pollution' is highly over-rated, maybe some people obsess about it enough that they can't just ignore it.

[eek]

Uh, no. Aircraft noise in Wraysbury didn't worry me at all.

Then again I've also lived right alongside the M40, and not far from the M4, near to a main rail-line into London, and not had any problem with it. IMHO 'noise pollution' is highly over-rated, maybe some people obsess about it enough that they can't just ignore it.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

My parents live by the Metropolitan line. To be honest you either get used to it very quickly or it drives you nuts.

[Diddlysquat]

Hi uforia! I work in Slough but I live in Oxford 35 miles away! My husband has worked in Newbury for the last 6 months, 20 miles away. The mileage we are doing is stupid. We can't afford anywhere that would suit us both - I really don't want to join the M4 traffic every morning.

Truth is, I'm tempted just to give up, go North and earn less. Maybe stay at home with my children. Thanks to HPC I am beginning to understand economic recession is unavoidable, with oil prices going up we really ought to lose a car.

[Wurzel]

"BRACKNELL:

does anyone know more about it ? I mean this seems the only place where we could afford a detached house for 250k. And areas like Forest Park seem actually quite nice ! "

I know Bracknell very well, sold up there in 2003 and moved back to the west country, Forest Park is OK, Good health centre and school nearby, as well as a couple of parks. Cant realy fault the area, I lived in Priestwood, which is very close, Bracknell was the only area I could afford when moving to a job in Slough in 2001.

I'd recommend it, some people see it as the Milton keynes of the area but for me it was a much nicere area to live than Windsor, Ascot etc. and you can afford a far better house for your money.