Would you move to the country?

We moved about 4 years ago from a busy market town in South Buckinghamshire to a smallish village in NW Oxfordshire and we have never regretted it. It took us 6 months of going out at weekends and driving around to find the ideal village (we had quite a large area to cover as we wanted to move to the Cotswolds) and then 2 years to find the house in the village. I had a long list of wants - village not to large, shop, doctors surgery and on a bus route but not on a main road, so it wasn't an easy brief to fulfil...we found out that the village even has a dentist and a library (were I ended up volunteering). We were in our late 60s so now 71 and have settled in and made many friends, become involved in the village and absolutely love it here. Villages like this do exist, they just take some finding!! We weren't fussy about the type of house however the reason why we took so long to find one was that people just don't want to move out of the village. I have not found being more mature is a block to moving and making new friends, people seem to be more friendly in the country...whatever you choose I wish you all the very best of luck and hope you find your perfect place!

We have lived in towns cities and villages I don’t really have a preference as long as I don’t have to travel too far to the main shops, as long as there are good public transport links it doesn’t really matter much to me

I'm convinced I'm a country girl, trapped on a housing estate.
I'm really discontent living amongst traffic, and noise and mess, but people here are very friendly and I love random chats with strangers.

Cabs can be expensive but, if you reach the point where you no longer drive, the expense of running a car can be taken into account. Everyone seems to underestimate how much it costs (insurance, tax, petrol, MOT, maintenance and depreciation) because they don't really want to think about it. When I broke my ankle I took cabs everywhere but it still only cost about £60 per week.

I live in a rural location now, well out of the village with my only neighbours even older than I am. There is virtually no public transport so we're dependent on cars.

I don't know if I will ever move but I think the ideal is to live within walking distance of a nice market town, with a GP's surgery, library, post office and chemist in town, and with a hospital easily accessible by bus.

I live in the suburbs of a big city, and everything is nearby - doctor's, dentist, leisure centre, 4 of the main supermarkets, library, loads of shops. They're all in walking distance, although I drive.

I would find the countryside too quiet and isolating.

ALANaV - je comprends!
And relevant to that, la langue!

My sister-in-law always told me how she wanted to live in the country. Got her wish a few years back, when she and hubbie sold their beautiful North London chalet bungalow with office in back garden and moved out to Suffolk. They were both in their very
early 70's. Nice house, and although there are plenty of other houses nearby, that is all. Ispwich is about 11 miles away, and there are no shops in their village. One bus service, which run about three times a day, and nearest bus stop nearly a mile away. My BiL even has to use his car to get his Sunday newspaper.
She has come to hate it there, and spend two or three days each week in London, to see her daughter and one of her g.sons. She admitted to me recently that she does not like the country ('Too quiet, too dark). These are the things she always felt she wanted.
At the moment both still drive, although since being there, both have had problems at times with that. My BiL has made some sort of life there as he has always been very involved in Bowls. My SiL has not settled at all.
Talking of Bowls - you do need to be reasonably fit to do this sport. I tried out at a club just round the corner when I moved. Loved it, but could not do it. My back was too painful and my COPD kicked in. Am now a social member of that club.
I moved recently from a house in a East London suburb, to my flat in a somerset seaside town. Am loving it. Block of flats is close to town centre and everything is so close. I use my mobility scooter to go to beach, high street shops, cinemas, local theatre, etc. Bus stop right outside of the flats, toiwn has hospital and GP surgery is close by as is dentist, optician, etc.
I have one more year before I reach 80 and although my driving seems quite safe, not sure if I will be able to afford the increase which will come for the insurance. Since I have been here, only use the car very occasionally.
Do not think moving into the country is wise for most older people, always amazes me on 'Escape to the Country' to see people in their late 50's and 60' loving large properties with lots of land, which will take masses of looking after, and often with many steps and stairs, and usually some miles from buses and trains. They are not future proofing at all

I have lived in Suffolk villages (as a child) ...no transport ...3 mile walk in all weathers to nearest facilites. Then in London where I worked, then Cambridge ...good, transport, country on doorstep …..thence to the Midlands ...a largeish town with good facilities...then to Spain ….nearest shop 12km away no transport on my island ….then to W France in a village near a largeish tow...then to a commune (not as in a hippy commune ha ha) with no transport, no shops...SO I chose to move to the N E of England when my husband died ...amazing ! THERE IS LIFE ! there is shopping, marvellous concerts, lots of things to do ….swimming, walking along the prom ...walking in the beautiful Northumberland countryside, beaches, coasts, cafes, banks, post offices, an international airport (for visiting friends in Germany and France), a ferry to Amsterdam, a cruise line from the Tyne Dock...the metro that gets you to the City, the town, anywhere and everywhere ….lots of choices of transport, and so many taxi firms the prices are competitive ...a really excellent health service with four of five Universities, some excellent health research Fellow …...and if I want, I can get a train and go to the deeper countryside, or London (I lived in Derby, too ...around 20 mins drive from Baslow ...this was lovely, with walks in the Peaks and Chatsworth on the doorstep ….and then when I can't manage any more, some CQC highly rated care homes ….or Dignitas ...No way would I chose to live in the countryside,,,,saw too many problems for the elderly in my little French commune ;;unlike the UK there were not many things to join for the elderly ….which is why most of them were still driving when they really should not have been ...no choice ! Very few taxis, and with the town 14 km away a taxi cost E30 each way …...but, having said that, why not rent for a month before you sell up and see what you feel like ! OR buy in a town and buy a mobile home (some are lovely) in the countryside ….or a camper van of which there were thousands around in France in summer (pain in the neck ! ha ha)….

I moved in my late 40s from the shires to S.W rural Scotland, best move i ever made but i know that by my late 60s i willl have to move into a town, where that will be i havent decided, maybe Scotland. maybe England, but i will have had 20 years of rural bliss

Good post MOnica.
I would love to be living in a small village here in the UK with more facilities. But we couldn't afford it - rural France was so much cheaper. Especially out in the boondocks.

I think we have found the ideal (for us), two large villages so close together they share a High Street with a greengrocer, bakers, Tesco, Co-op, two cafes, library, bank, building society, four pubs, two restaurants, doctors, dentist and an excellent bus service. The villages have a population of 11,000 combined and the city, three miles distant, a population of 120,000. The countryside is five minutes away by foot at the end of our road and the High Street is five minutes away at the other end. Schools, including a secondary with sixth form, mean there is a huge range of ages in the village and its not only retired people, although the village is big enough that it funds a parish co-ordinator for older people. Its friendly, highly convenient and should we need to in the future the pavements are mobility scooter friendly. We used to live out in the country but were 100% car dependent, whereas now the car barely leaves the drive. It is my greatest pleasure to stroll down the High Street on a Saturday morning bumping into people I know, or having a coffee with friends.

We moved in our early sixties and now live just outside a market town which has all the facilities we need and is surrounded by lovely villages. We did look at properties in villages but felt that it could be a problem if or when the only shop or pub shuts down. Where we are we have the best of both worlds farms just along the road and the town centre within walking distance. We did a lot of research before making the decision including where is the nearest hospital, GP surgery, what are the bus services like, what activities go on in the Town or villages are they things we are interested in/would like to join. If there are things you still need such as a theatre, cinema, cafes, shops then a small hamlet is likely to be to isolated. A small market town or larger village may suit your needs better. Best of luck with whatever choice you make.

Missfoodlove rural crime is not actually that high, Country lines in towns, yes, and farmers have a problem with thefts of stock and machinery, but otherwise rural areas have much lower crime rates than towns.

I live in a busy village in Oxfordshire close to a major dual carriageway and a junction on it. Most months our 'neighbourhood' police officer has no crimes to report in the village magazine, even then the best he can find is speeding through the village. Although DD did see someone running out of the local co-op with a basket of goods and jump in a car and drive off.

Posted too soon!
We often drive to the country or coast for a hike.
The big downside is crime.
We have had a nasty targeted burglary and though I’m aware rural crime is high, city living makes you more at risk.

There is country and there is country. It all depends on the country you want to live in.

The first country, small remote, unserviced villages, where the nearest town is 10 miles away, I would consider to be not the best place to be if you are older and have no family nearby.

The second country consists of larger villages, edges of small towns, where amenities are within easy reach and public transport is available but the peace and quiet of rural living are at hand. We currently live in a large village in Oxfordshire. In the village we have a busy Co-op self service shop, several pubs, an Indian restaurant and a sandwich bar. Regular bus services to all the local towns and the railway station, which is on a mainline to London.

As I said, there is country and there is country. We have lived in the second kind of country very comfortably for nearly 25 years.

I’ve always lived in London. I think I’ve only moved 25 miles from where I lived as a baby. I can just about tolerate the country for a couple of weeks holiday but then I start to long for pavements, buses, shops, art galleries, cinemas. Need I say more?

I would move this afternoon, if DH would only agree, but am very well aware it will take hard work and perseverance to get integrated into a new (to me) community.

As much as country living can be a choice for many, it’s not for me at this stage in my life (I’m in my mid 70’s and husband in early 80’s.) For what we planned as our ‘forever’ home when we moved here four years ago it’s ideal for our age and stage in life. We are now within walking distance of a doctors office, a dentist, large grocery store, swimming pool, recreation centre with an active seniors group and a library. There’s a bus stop is st the end of the road for when we aren’t able to drive anymore. It gives us peace of mind to enjoy each day without too much concern for what the future holds. We are happy to have made this decision to move here.

I grew up in London, and am a townie through and through. I now live in a small town with a market, station, everything I want within walking distance, but with wonderful scenery and peaceful rolling hills within a five minute drive. London is an hour away. I could not cope with some of the houses friends have moved to - a tiny village in the middle of nowhere, with one shop (now closed) and a twenty minute drive to civilisation. They now don't know what to do each day as anything involves a car journey - ok while you can drive...

well you can't say you haven't been warned!!
From the experience of friends and family, I think if you find a place you love then go for it. Chances are when it does become a burden, there will be younger people wanting it too so you will be able to sell it.

A couple we know had a holiday cottage on a Scottish island which they let through an agent, keeping it available for themselves when they wanted it. They loved it but eventually even that dream became jaded. Tenants trashed it more than once, despite cleaners coming in. The journey was long, the family grew up and got bored with it, and it's hard to live in two places. They had no trouble selling.

Strangely I also live in a small town on the south coast with a lot of development nearby. However I never want to live anywhere else. I am in my 60s and hubby 70s and although I agree a nice quiet hamlet sounds idyllic the reality as you get older might be not so. I have several friends who moved away from what they knew in retirement and it wasn't successful. It doesn't mean it won't be for you but be sure it is the right move as it may not be possible to move back. Good luck.

My husband and I are 87 and 81 and in August moved to a retirement apartment just a few hundred yards from our town centre and library. Although we both still drive it is so nice just to be able to only walk a few steps to be amongst things.
We have a small theatre and have booked tickets to see several shows there which we would not have bothered to do at our previous address which was in the same town.

Glad we made the move ???

If you need carers, living in the country is a nightmare. We are looking to downsize and my criteria has changed from a house in the middle of nowhere with a large piece of land to a place with a small garden, good transport links, accessible shops and a decent hospital. If we can watch the boats go by too, I think DH would be very happy but I think the hospital in Portsmouth might kill that aspiration.

This was our house -
www.google.com/maps/@43.3757357,0.4977388,3a,48.8y,285.12h,100.87t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sW7m41BJJ5CvqkQ2u3Foo2g!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
As you can see it was isolated, and a bit miserable in the winter. We still miss it though.