# Moving to Manchester - advice on areas/flats



## Crompton33 (Apr 28, 2015)

Hi new to the forum and hoping to get some advice on some Manchester flats.

I am moving to Manchester later in the year, for a mix of work and personal reasons, however I don't know the area that well and am currently working abroad so can't do much in person.

Basically I am looking for a quiet (as much as can be in the city area!) area/development but is also close to stuff to do, nice place to eat/drink etc, this is why I had in mind older/more established developments. Also somewhere that is reasonably safe, both for general day to day life and as I am abroad a fair bit a secure place (for this reason will be buying a flat). Easy access to town needed. Budget up to 180k or so.

I have had a couple of recommendations on developments, any info or thought appreciated, especially if you have lived there or know anyone who has. Have linked to some properties just so you know where I am talking about as I don't know the city well

1.) The flats in Lower Byrom Street by the science museum - older development, all flats have garages. This is a typical one bedroom:  http://www.rightmove...y-48388378.html

2.) The art deco block off the Wilmslow road (Fallowfield?): Appleby lodge: http://www.rightmove...y-34066629.html

3.) Older block flats in Didsbury: http://www.rightmove...y-43423823.html

Anyone other suggestions similar developments of flat in Manchester Central or South of the Centre?

Thanks in advance for reading and advice/thought welcome



Cromp


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## farmerbarleymow (Apr 28, 2015)

Welcome to the boards.  

I live in Manchester, and know some of the areas you mention.

Fallowfield has a lot of students, so there is this to consider.  I guess there are long-term residential parts of the area too though, but as ever with student areas, there seems to be more burglaries in the area.  Also, and only going by the moans I've read in the Manchester Evening News, the residents complain about the behaviour of the students, such as noisy drunkeness, puke, rubbish and the like.  But quite a leafy area really.

I don't know a great deal about Didsbury, but it seems like a decent area from the few times I've been and what I've read.  It's a higher flood risk though in some parts, as it borders the River Mersey.  Renowned for being the Guardianista belt.  

The city centre (where I live) varies quite a bit in how quiet it can be.  Lower Byrom Street is OK, and those flats are in a decent little tucked away area, with St John's Gardens next door (which is a former graveyard with 20,000+ bodies in it by the way, in case you're squeamish).  They seem well kept too.  But they are just a street away from Deansgate, so this is worth considering.  Deansgate is the main thoroughfare in that part of town, and is busy.  At the top of Deansgate there are quite a few pubs and stuff, so plenty of drunks wandering around late at night at weekends.  Towards the bottom end where the flat you link to is, it is a bit quieter, but you'd need to consider the possibility of drunk noisy people wandering past the flats at all hours at the weekend.  The flat is also very close to the Beetham Tower, which emits a very noticable sound when the wind is blowing in the right direction and speed - you'd need to be happy with that.  Google it to listen to what its like.  

There are other areas too throughout town, from the Green Quarter near Victoria Station, the Northern Quarter (which will be much noisier), around Piccadilly Station/Ancoats, the south of the city centre/Whitworth Street corridor, Castlefield and so on.  No idea what prices are like in these areas mind.


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## farmerbarleymow (Apr 28, 2015)

Forgot to mention, I've just remembered that I've been in the Art Deco block years back when friends used to live there.  It seemed to be a nice place, and tucked away off the main road.  But the windows were single glazed back in those days, so worth checking if they still are.  Its really near Platt Fields Park though.


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## The39thStep (Apr 28, 2015)

Wouldn't worry about flooding in Didsbury lol.


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## Chick Webb (Apr 28, 2015)

What is the difference (roughly) between rent, salaries, childcare costs between Manchester and London?

Sorry to barge into the thread, but this might be useful to the OP too.


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## The Boy (Apr 28, 2015)

The39thStep said:


> Wouldn't worry about flooding in Didsbury lol.



I used to live just opposite the third flats in the OP and venturing outside was risky on a rainy day due to blocked drains.  True fac'.


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## The Boy (Apr 28, 2015)

Didsbury is a bit leafy/suburban but excellent transport links with buses and trams.  Fletcher Moss is awesome for walks in the summer too, though is a floodplain so only really any good for birdwatching outside of that.


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## Throbbing Angel (Apr 28, 2015)

Do/will you have a car when living in Manchester?

We had 2 when living in the city centre (10 years ago) and it was an expensive pain in the neck then, so I dread to think what parking is like and costs in the city cntr now.

What are your 'needs'?


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## Crompton33 (Apr 28, 2015)

Hi all - thanks for the replies so far. 

Car - I do have one, but am no sure about retaining in when I move so parking is not so much of an issue. All the flats that rozel square development on lower byrom have a garage (rare for the centre I think?)

Other needs - close (ish) to the centre with good public transport in, and a development which is well built and quiet - both in the sense of walls etc which aren't paper thin and limited noise from outside (obviously some expected in a city such as Manc) i.e blocks off the main roads, in their own cul-de-sacs for example. 

Other than that quite easy! More into decent pubs, nice places to eat than clubs and "bars"!


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## Throbbing Angel (Apr 28, 2015)

A garage is rare for somewhere so close to the city centre. Most have shared parking that costs you extra, in my experience.


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## lazythursday (Apr 28, 2015)

I've not lived in Manchester city centre other than spending a few weeks there on canal boat, but I would say it's amazing how calm Castlefield feels compared to the rest of the centre. Also I had a friend who had a flat in the Sorting House development in the northern quarter which is like a hidden oasis. 

Personally though I'd go for Chorlton / Didsbury rather than the city centre, not that I'd ever be tempted back to the city from the moors.


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## Cribynkle (Apr 28, 2015)

Crompton33 said:


> Hi new to the forum and hoping to get some advice on some Manchester flats.
> 
> I am moving to Manchester later in the year, for a mix of work and personal reasons, however I don't know the area that well and am currently working abroad so can't do much in person.
> 
> ...


Appleby Lodge is lovely and conveninent, and Thorne House next to it is also nice (though 70's rather than 30's). Even though they're in Fallowfield they're not massively studenty, buses from town are pretty much every minute but you have to go down Wilmslow road and it can take forever at busy times. The service charge for Appleby Lodge is quite high, but it includes heating and hot water and a couple of years ago residents were being asked to pay quite a bit to replace the single glazing because the sinking fund was empty (the building's listed). Looking at the photos, they've still not been done so you may be looking at a 10k ish bill in the next couple of years for that.
Didsbury's a nice area to live in and with the Metrolink it's probably quicker to get to town than Fallowfield (though I don't get the Metrolink regularly so not sure how reliable it is)


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## Crompton33 (Apr 28, 2015)

From what I have researched Appleby court's service charge is about £270 a month which is think is high even with inclusion of heating and water. Also seem to have been a issue with "roof levys" in the past for re-doing the flat roof on the blocks - some adverts are keen to state "levy paid"!

I'll have a look into Thorne House also.


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## The39thStep (Apr 28, 2015)

The Boy said:


> I used to live just opposite the third flats in the OP and venturing outside was risky on a rainy day due to blocked drains.  True fac'.


That's to do with drains not flooding from the Mersey


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## farmerbarleymow (Apr 28, 2015)

The39thStep said:


> That's to do with drains not flooding from the Mersey


Either way it's fine. There are so many Guardianistas in that area everyone uses sacks of muesli instead of sandbags to hold back any flooding.


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## The Boy (Apr 28, 2015)

The39thStep said:


> That's to do with drains not flooding from the Mersey



No, but your post only stated flooding.  I was being deliberately obtuse .


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## David Clapson (Apr 28, 2015)

If it was me I'd want to be near the centre for the cinemas, galleries, theatres, Chinatown, arty coffee bars, some great architecture....it's a pretty amazing city for that sort of stuff and it would  be great to live within walking distance of it. I've lived in Fallowfield and Didsbury and they're very pleasant with good pubs and places to eat...but that's pretty much all they have to offer IMO.


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## Throbbing Angel (Apr 28, 2015)

David Clapson said:


> If it was me I'd want to be near the centre for the cinemas, galleries, theatres, Chinatown, arty coffee bars, some great architecture....it's a pretty amazing city for that sort of stuff and it would  be great to live within walking distance of it. I've lived in Fallowfield and Didsbury and they're very pleasant with good pubs and places to eat...but that's pretty much all they have to offer IMO.



Aye, that's one of the things I liked about living in the centre, you could just walk to stuff (or get those free metro buses which I think are still going).  Even living a small distance away makes it a 'trip' and therefore a pain (in my world).


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## farmerbarleymow (Apr 28, 2015)

Throbbing Angel said:


> Aye, that's one of the things I liked about living in the centre, you could just walk to stuff (or get those free metro buses which I think are still going).  Even living a small distance away makes it a 'trip' and therefore a pain (in my world).



The free lazy bus is still going strong - very handy when you can't be arsed.  

I often just go on an aimless wander round town on a weekend if I'm bored, which I wouldnt do if I had to travel in from the suburbs.


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