Reading

[cutedog]

199k is quite a reasonable price for a property in that area

[fandanman]

Moronic post number 31382, you really are a terry feckwit

[adarmo]

On 2/25/2018 at 10:17 PM, fandanman said:

You missed Nokia, Huawei , Kyocera, SSE, Bayer, Cisco, Dialog, Thales, Pepsico, Pierre Fabre etc etc etc etc

 

More moronic posts, I really don't know why you bother commenting on a town you only use to meet up with your counsellor..............

 

"Reading and Bracknell really are the UK’s answer to Silicon Valley - according to a report into the country’s digital economy.

High-tech businesses in the two towns turn over £10 billion a year - second only to London"

" Huawei, a Chinese multinational networking and telecoms equipment and services firm, moved to Reading in 2013 and employs 600 people at Green Park "

 

Go on tell me all these are wrong and you are right

 

http://www.bqlive.co.uk/london-the-south/2017/12/11/news/reading-forecast-to-be-one-of-the-uk-s-fastest-growing-cities-says-ey-

https://www.inyourarea.co.uk/news/reading-is-one-of-the-best-places-to-do-business-in-europe/forecast-29412/

https://www.inyourarea.co.uk/news/reading-among-best-places-for-wages-start-ups-and-productivity/

https://www.pwc.co.uk/press-room/press-releases/good-growth-for-cities-2017.html

https://technation.techcityuk.com/cluster/reading/

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/revealed-the-uk-city-where-house-prices-are-growing-fastest-and-its-not-london-a3772826.html

Spyguy has a weird thing about Reading and the Thames Valley. 

I moved to the area for a new role in a firm and decided to give it everything for twelve months. Glad I did in teh end because while my new role didn't really work out I ended up working for a cracking firm in the tech sector and it's done wonders for my career progression and the best thing is there's several other jobs for mine so if I'm ever made redundant or decide on a change I can move without suffering a commute. 

Also, the W'ham stab is only half true. It is a boring place, but the transport connections are pretty excellent. M$ in under 5 minutes in rush hour. I'd sooner live in the boring areas but have the exciting crazy areas on my doorstep. 

The whole crossrail thing is overblown and tbh if I'd been a BTL spiv trying to capitalise on that I'd be selling up well in advance of it opening. Nobody would pay London prices on top of a 45 minute commute for £8k (dunno but maybe the price?) per year with training running every 30 minutes. 

[adarmo]

On 2/28/2018 at 4:23 PM, Funn3r said:

Housebuilding in Wokingham has gone crazy. Everywhere you go there are new builds. Not so sure who they are expecting will buy them.

About half the people I work with/used to work with are getting in on it. The funny thing is that despite the increase in house building I think it will be the other less convenient/desirable areas that take the hit as people are pulled out of them when they relocate to Wokingham. The prices of some of those new builds are really jolly high for what is a cardboard house with a patio for a garden. Not my bag but there's no shortage of punters. 

In honesty for anyone within 10 miles on a half decent salary and thinking kids in the medium term it's probably the best bet in the area. It's good value for money compared to Twyfod, Henley and the other 'posh' places around but has excellent schools, a decent tow, mainline station and excellent road access (329M linking the M3 and the M4). Heathrow is 25 minutes away and Waterloo is just over an hour (not great I grant you but if that was any quicker prices would be less decent).

The other sweet thing is that all the house building seems to qualify Wokingham for two or more relief roads which will make certain roads much nicer to live on. Not sure if it is also supporting funding for the Town Centre redevelopment project. 

[adarmo]

On 3/21/2018 at 5:11 PM, spyguy said:

All those links are nothing more than subject spin.

The business on the M4 corridor are just sales offices. 80% low paid admin.

Hauwi does no development in Reading.

Presumably these sales people must have some procurement too otherwise who are the sales guys selling to? 

Then accountants to add it all up who report into FDs 

Lawyers to draft and review terms 

Recruitment agents milking the whole bonanza 

etc. 

Like it or not the area is pretty lucky in terms of jobs, pay, prospects and quality of life. Almost London weighting on salary and yet far more affordable a place to be with much more space and easier access into the countryside. 

Even if it is all sales people, sales people in the tech sector earn a lot on their basic and if they're hitting their number they're into six figures fairly easily. 

[spyguy]

9 hours ago, adarmo said:

Presumably these sales people must have some procurement too otherwise who are the sales guys selling to? 

Then accountants to add it all up who report into FDs 

Lawyers to draft and review terms 

Recruitment agents milking the whole bonanza 

etc. 

Like it or not the area is pretty lucky in terms of jobs, pay, prospects and quality of life. Almost London weighting on salary and yet far more affordable a place to be with much more space and easier access into the countryside. 

Even if it is all sales people, sales people in the tech sector earn a lot on their basic and if they're hitting their number they're into six figures fairly easily. 

It depends.

Most tech companies tend to be run on a shoestring/skeleton.

A couple of contracted for, 80% of the heads were on fuxall money. Sure there were a handful who were paid but that was it.

Not surprisingly, most of the sales people I worked with lived well outside of the M4 corridor. I think closest one was Brighton.

For a good example, take a google map walk up Western Rd in Bracknell.

When I was working in that area 20+ years ago, that was all tech companies. A good few pad out big bucks - they had to, if they were based in Bracknell.

Theres a couple left- Vodafoin, RSA, but the rest of it looks like an industrial estate -tyre company,  avis, screwfix.

 

 

[iamnumerate]

59 minutes ago, spyguy said:

It depends.

Most tech companies tend to be run on a shoestring/skeleton.

A couple of contracted for, 80% of the heads were on fuxall money. Sure there were a handful who were paid but that was it.

Not surprisingly, most of the sales people I worked with lived well outside of the M4 corridor. I think closest one was Brighton.

For a good example, take a google map walk up Western Rd in Bracknell.

When I was working in that area 20+ years ago, that was all tech companies. A good few pad out big bucks - they had to, if they were based in Bracknell.

Theres a couple left- Vodafoin, RSA, but the rest of it looks like an industrial estate -tyre company,  avis, screwfix.

 

 

A friend of mine said that when he moved to Hampshire in the late 90s there were loads of jobs in the M4 corridor now he has to commute to London - he is not very happy about this.

[adarmo]

9 hours ago, spyguy said:

It depends.

Most tech companies tend to be run on a shoestring/skeleton.

A couple of contracted for, 80% of the heads were on fuxall money. Sure there were a handful who were paid but that was it.

Not surprisingly, most of the sales people I worked with lived well outside of the M4 corridor. I think closest one was Brighton.

For a good example, take a google map walk up Western Rd in Bracknell.

When I was working in that area 20+ years ago, that was all tech companies. A good few pad out big bucks - they had to, if they were based in Bracknell.

Theres a couple left- Vodafoin, RSA, but the rest of it looks like an industrial estate -tyre company,  avis, screwfix.

I'm in the fortunate position that I used to audit many of the small and medium firms and my experience suggests that they are in general very well paid. That's just the tech, then there's all the other jobs in the area, large HQs, big accountancy, law, engineering firm etc. The place is far from being in terminal decline. Certainly over the last 20 years the place has defied all expectations. 

[spyguy]

28 minutes ago, adarmo said:

I'm in the fortunate position that I used to audit many of the small and medium firms and my experience suggests that they are in general very well paid. That's just the tech, then there's all the other jobs in the area, large HQs, big accountancy, law, engineering firm etc. The place is far from being in terminal decline. Certainly over the last 20 years the place has defied all expectations. 

Im not saying its in terminal decline. Theres been a structural shift in employment and wages.

Bracknell is in terminal decline. Give 10 more years.

[fandanman]

20 hours ago, adarmo said:

Spyguy has a weird thing about Reading and the Thames Valley. 

I moved to the area for a new role in a firm and decided to give it everything for twelve months. Glad I did in teh end because while my new role didn't really work out I ended up working for a cracking firm in the tech sector and it's done wonders for my career progression and the best thing is there's several other jobs for mine so if I'm ever made redundant or decide on a change I can move without suffering a commute. 

Also, the W'ham stab is only half true. It is a boring place, but the transport connections are pretty excellent. M$ in under 5 minutes in rush hour. I'd sooner live in the boring areas but have the exciting crazy areas on my doorstep. 

The whole crossrail thing is overblown and tbh if I'd been a BTL spiv trying to capitalise on that I'd be selling up well in advance of it opening. Nobody would pay London prices on top of a 45 minute commute for £8k (dunno but maybe the price?) per year with training running every 30 minutes. 

Spyguy has a weird thing!...... he's a total bell-end!

I agree, I work in tech, contracting and there is always plenty of roles in Reading or a 40 minute drive (in rush hour) or  up to the smoke if the rate is good enough. I agree with Crossrail being overblown but I have worked in Canary Wharf  a few times and the thought of Reading straight to Canary Wharf is much more appealing than Paddington>Baker Street>Canary Wharf  and actually I think there is another Crossrail hurrah to come when it starts opening and hits the headlines. You maybe right about the prices but I would imagine the 5 times a week into London is becoming less and less needed, therefore people may look at moving a little further out and putting up with a commute 2 or 3 times a week. Think its £5300 for a season ticket to zones 1-6.

Wokingham is pretty good for the odd meal out although they are going overboard with the housebuilding without improving the infrastructure enough to compensate. I prefer to be just outside nearer the Winnersh end so I can hit the A329-M4 easier from the Winnersh Triangle end or other escape routes out to the A4 or M3. Like you say all the connections are excellent.

Ignore the ramblings of a feckwit who used to live here in 1945. You picked a great place to live.

 

Edited April 2, 2018 by fandanman

[adarmo]

3 hours ago, spyguy said:

Im not saying its in terminal decline. Theres been a structural shift in employment and wages.

Bracknell is in terminal decline. Give 10 more years.

Bracknell gets a bad rap but it's cheap and is full of tech start ups. The startuppers though tend to not live there ?

[adarmo]

2 hours ago, fandanman said:

Spyguy has a weird thing!...... he's a total bell-end!

I agree, I work in tech, contracting and there is always plenty of roles in Reading or a 40 minute drive (in rush hour) or  up to the smoke if the rate is good enough. I agree with Crossrail being overblown but I have worked in Canary Wharf  a few times and the thought of Reading straight to Canary Wharf is much more appealing than Paddington>Baker Street>Canary Wharf  and actually I think there is another Crossrail hurrah to come when it starts opening and hits the headlines. You maybe right about the prices but I would imagine the 5 times a week into London is becoming less and less needed, therefore people may look at moving a little further out and putting up with a commute 2 or 3 times a week. Think its £5300 for a season ticket to zones 1-6.

Wokingham is pretty good for the odd meal out although they are going overboard with the housebuilding without improving the infrastructure enough to compensate. I prefer to be just outside nearer the Winnersh end so I can hit the A329-M4 easier from the Winnersh Triangle end or other escape routes out to the A4 or M3. Like you say all the connections are excellent.

Ignore the ramblings of a feckwit who used to live here in 1945. You picked a great place to live.

 

Good point on Canary Wharf, that would be useful for a lot of people, esp those higher paid sales guys.

Thanks we're pretty happy here. I would have bought in caversham but the mrs was unyielding and tbh in hindsight it's a ballache to get to and from and has a pretty rough bit. 

On the infrastructure point they are meant to be building two distributor roads around Wokingham which should push all but local traffic out. They're also redeveloping the town centre which is starting to take shape, plus the Carnival Pool leisure complex is supposedly getting fully revamped. Just a pain living with it all until 2022 or whenever it'll eventually be finished. 

Place just seems to be getting better. The extra houses will hopefully give more support to the town centre but they will all be roughly a mile or more from the town. 

[Bear Hug]

My latest Reading observation of no particular area:

Sales

- Asking house prices for all but the worst 2 bed terraces are still floored at least £250k but stock doesn't seem to be moving much

- Larger 4-5 bed houses are looking cheaper than a year ago

Rentals

In 10 years, I have never seen as many To Let signs on a few streets I regularly walk by.  Checking them online shows they highest ever asking prices but they are not moving.  If you ask over £1k for 2-bed, prepare for it to stand empty for a while

Lots of renovation still going on.  I am guessing that savvy pre-April 2018 investors are still polishing their terraced turds in preparation for marketing them for over £1k pcm and watching them standing empty.

[heffsta]

15 hours ago, Bear Hug said:

My latest Reading observation of no particular area:

Sales

- Asking house prices for all but the worst 2 bed terraces are still floored at least £250k but stock doesn't seem to be moving much

- Larger 4-5 bed houses are looking cheaper than a year ago

Rentals

In 10 years, I have never seen as many To Let signs on a few streets I regularly walk by.  Checking them online shows they highest ever asking prices but they are not moving.  If you ask over £1k for 2-bed, prepare for it to stand empty for a while

Lots of renovation still going on.  I am guessing that savvy pre-April 2018 investors are still polishing their terraced turds in preparation for marketing them for over £1k pcm and watching them standing empty.

My observation of Caversham/Emmer Green Areas is that more stock has come on sale, but anything half decent is selling if it is in price range of £350K to £450K from 3 beds. Anything not in a decent area is sticking such as Caversham Park, Caversham East.

 

Pretty disappointing, I even arranged a viewing and they cancelled it before I could see it as someone offered on it on first day of listing. I thought it looked overpriced. Still a long way to go unfortunately.

 

Weirdly though in the last two/three days a lot of Henley properties appearing for sale. It is a desirable area so prices are ridiculous, but not sure what has kicked off so many all at once to come onto market, normally one or two every few weeks in that area

Edited April 26, 2018 by heffsta

[fandanman]

Wow, Reading tops wages chart outside of london, no wonder  Reading is such an up and coming town, eh Spyguy

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-43729508

[dougless]

39 minutes ago, fandanman said:

Wow, Reading tops wages chart outside of london, no wonder  Reading is such an up and coming town, eh Spyguy

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-43729508

There is something that doesn't quite add up in Reading; it really doesn't feel that wealthy.  What Reading lacks is any significant amounts of 'old' money which is why I expect it will fall fast when the bubble bursts.

[longgone]

2 hours ago, fandanman said:

Wow, Reading tops wages chart outside of london, no wonder  Reading is such an up and coming town, eh Spyguy

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-43729508

34k a year wealthy ? yeah sure.

how does 34k salary translate into 400k houses ??

[fandanman]

7 hours ago, longgone said:

34k a year wealthy ? yeah sure.

how does 34k salary translate into 400k houses ??

Strange isn't it, its almost like saying how does the £38,000 London salary translate into 600k houses or the £31,000 Cambridge salary translate into £500,000 houses.

I wonder if its because the people on the average salaries are not going for the 400k houses at that point and are maybe settling for a 250k flat or 300k 2 bed with a joint mortgage of 2 X 34K and a deposit. Seems possible doesn't it.

[longgone]

2 hours ago, fandanman said:

Strange isn't it, its almost like saying how does the £38,000 London salary translate into 600k houses or the £31,000 Cambridge salary translate into £500,000 houses.

I wonder if its because the people on the average salaries are not going for the 400k houses at that point and are maybe settling for a 250k flat or 300k 2 bed with a joint mortgage of 2 X 34K and a deposit. Seems possible doesn't it.

Previous owners are trading up. everyone else rents or buys a hovel 

[spyguy]

Two ways:

One, they are only counting people who work. The non working (and the illegal working), of which there appears to be a vast number in he Thames Valley at the mo, dont register.

Two, I think they gather that stats on where people work rather than where they live.

On the second, I worked (briefly - thank god) in Bracknell.

The council then used to make a big fuss about 'having the highest number of higher rate tax payers'.

Then wondering why Bracknell was so, er sh1t - limited shops, limited pubs and eateries.

Again, same thing. At the time, lots of big, well paying jobs but no-one lived near where they worked. In my case, just back to West London.

 

[spyguy]

11 hours ago, dougless said:

There is something that doesn't quite add up in Reading; it really doesn't feel that wealthy.  What Reading lacks is any significant amounts of 'old' money which is why I expect it will fall fast when the bubble bursts.

No. I went to Reading ~3 months ago.

It does not feel wealthy. Its bordering on a slum town.

[fandanman]

"No. I went to Reading ~3 months ago. ....... to see my psychiatrist"?

 

You can always tell a slum town, filled with run down shops the likes of Apple, House of Fraser, Debenhams, Office,Reiss,  Superdry, Disney, Zara, Hollister, Dune, Timberland, Boss,  Gant, Yo Sushi, Jamies, Miller and Carter, Browns, Crew Clothing, TGI's, M&S, Goldsmiths, Beaverbrooks. The bosses of these companies must be complete and utter idiots, fancy putting these shops in a slum town full of unemployed, undesirables without a penny to their names.

 

Moronic post number 18033

 

 

 

[spyguy]

3 minutes ago, fandanman said:

"No. I went to Reading ~3 months ago. ....... to see my psychiatrist"?

 

You can always tell a slum town, filled with run down shops the likes of Apple, House of Fraser, Debenhams, Office,Reiss,  Superdry, Disney, Zara, Hollister, Dune, Timberland, Boss,  Gant, Yo Sushi, Jamies, Miller and Carter, Browns, Crew Clothing, TGI's, M&S, Goldsmiths, Beaverbrooks. The bosses of these companies must be complete and utter idiots, fancy putting these shops in a slum town full of unemployed, undesirables without a penny to their names.

 

Moronic post number 18033

 

 

 

HoF and Debs are going bust.

Bar Yo Sushi!, shich i like, the rest are pretty crappy.

Youll find all those in other downs - whilst they are solvent.

I like your planning project photo reality piccies

[spyguy]

Last time I went to SuperDry, Princess Waity Katey was buying her wedding dress.

I think Willy was buying a tracksuit in JD Sports....

[fandanman]

Yeah I always see these shops in slum towns, I went to Grays in Essex (Christ thats grim) the other day, full of these sort of shops. I also went to Dartford in Kent not so long ago, busting at the seams with all the big names shops.

Not sure why Reading isn't on this list? It seem to be full of Northern towns for some reason.

 

Top 20 most deprived places

1. Tendring - around St Osyth and Seawick
2. Blackpool - By Central Pier
3. Blackpool - Around the promenade near North Pier
4. Thanet - Cliftonville West
5. Blackpool - Near the South Pier
6. Tendring - Clacton-on-Sea
7. Blackpool - Between Waterloo Road and St Chad’s Station
8. Coventry - Around Hillmorton Road in Henley
9. Blackpool - Woolman Road and Clinton Avenue
10. Waveney - near South Pier in Lowestoft

11. Blackpool - around Cookson Street

    Kingston upon Hull - Around St John’s Grove

    North East Lincolnshire - Around Oxford Street in Grimsby

    Burnley - Around Tay Street and Howard Street

    Burnley - Between Belvedere Road and Church Street

    Mansfield - Around Sandy Lane

    Blackpool - Around Manchester Square and Rigby Road

    Blackpool - Around Clevedon Road and Carshalton Road

    Blackburn with Darwen - Wensley Fold

    Great Yarmouth - Along the seafront