Family hopefully moving to IOW next year

morecambe · Joined: 11 Oct 2011 Posts: 4

Hi any IOW residents or new IOW residents!

Myself, my partner and our 2 year old absolutely love the island and after several visits, have decided to take the plunge and move over from Hertfordshire. We want to do it soon so she is not affected by the move, so we are hoping to move by late summer next year.
Ideally we plan to rent first to be absolutely sure, and then buy after 6 or 12 months later if able. After looking through the blog here we came across a few letting agents. Any recommendations?
We are in love with Ventnor… But keep hearing about the subsidence which is worrying us…After reading through the blog someone suggested buying a house built before the 1940’s. We ideally want to be walking distance from the beach.
My partners company have work on the island and he has already had it confirmed he will have work out there which is one big tick in the box.
I am in part time office work at the moment and hope to find something similar when I am over there. If not I will take what I can.
Anyone know of any good office recruitment agencies?
Also can anyone tell us if the schools are any good? I have checked ofsted reports but just for primary.
Is it true there is very low crime rate on the island?
We would like to hear any helpful tips and advice from another family or couple who took the risk (whether it worked out or not)

Thanks

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vosperette · Joined: 01 Oct 2011 Posts: 20

Hi,
Me and my lil family are/will be moving to IOW in October next year! Yay! We have an idea of where we want to live but are planning a visit in Spring to confirm where we want to be.
My Hubby is a self employed gardener and I am a family support worker so hoping to both find work.
I cannot wait to get there. We currently live in West London. I don't really have any advice, just wanted to say hi and good luck!
We are using this year to get ourfinances sorted so we move with no debt so it really will be a fresh start for us. Looking at the local paper (the best paper there is) there are a few admin jobs advertised in there so I hope you won't find it a problem.
I am prepared to do whatever it takes to make life on the IOW work for us! We have no friends or family out there but it already feels like home, I just hope I will make friends so I won't feel so isolated. My lil chick is 1yrs old so I'm sure she will be fine!
Anyway, good luck with it and a big shout put to 'THE' Island! Whoop whoop!

morecambe · Joined: 11 Oct 2011 Posts: 4

thanks for the reply! Its nice to know of someone in a similar position...
We are popping over in November to check out the letting agencies as have pretty much decided we are going to rent our house here, then rent there just to make sure...
Same with you we are trying to clear some debt so we have a clean slate.
We feel so at home there too, and really want it to work out for us.
Whereabouts are you thinking of moving to?
Good advice re the papers i will grab some when i am there in a couple of weeks! So excited!
Stay in touch and good luck!!!!! Very Happy

vosperette · Joined: 01 Oct 2011 Posts: 20

Hi,
Did you have any luck with letting agents?

Batfloke · Joined: 01 Oct 2011 Posts: 20

Hi,

Also, check out the paper's (Isle of Wight County Press) online section for property. It's:

http://www.iwcp.co.uk/property

All the local agents seem to advertise there as well as the usual findaproperty.com sites etc.

Hope that's a help.

Cheers,

Justin

morecambe · Joined: 11 Oct 2011 Posts: 4

Thanks for the link Batfloke, shall be checking it out Very Happy

Vosperette - we made it over in November but only for one day/night - managed to look in a couple of estate agents for lettings but already got a good idea of the price range from looking online so just waiting till nearer the time for availability. It was nice excuse to pop over and see the island in November. MUCH quieter than the summer months. Spoke to a couple of locals who moved over within the last few years and they have said it can be a shock to the system at first as such a slower pace of life but now they wouldn't dream of moving off...AND they never short of visitors....

Any progress with you?

vosperette · Joined: 01 Oct 2011 Posts: 20

Hiya,
My parents were going to move over with us but dropped a bombshell that the IOW is not for them after spending a week there in November! They said it was too isolating for them.
After long chats, we have decided despite this to go for it! We have looked at other places on the coast on the mainland but nowhere feels like home like the IOW does.
Our plan is to visit in late Jan to check out the 'quiet' time for ourselves! We reckon that if, even in quiet season, if it still feels like home, we will just go for it.
Haven't decided on area yet but have seen a school I would love my lil one to go to, very good reports and has been kite marked for excellent early years, so will base our house search around that area.
We just feel so excited about moving there. I hear what your saying about it being very different in the Winter, did this put you off at all?
The only thing I will find difficult is leaving family and friends behind on the mainland. I love my friends and just hope I make some easily on the Island. We still aim to be there October next year (if not before.) What is your timeframe? Maybe we could meet up for coffee sometime? On the Island or here? We are in Middlesex, depends which part of Herts your in. No pressure, just a thought. Once I figure out how to private message, I can give you my email ad so we can chat via that (if you want.)
Do you have any family/friendson the Island?
Stay in touch
Diane

morecambe · Joined: 11 Oct 2011 Posts: 4

Diane

Have you found out how to private message yet? Maybe if we both contact the forum and ask them to exchange our private email addresses?

I will see if I can do it..

Would be lovely to meet up as your circumstances sounds sound so similar to ours the more I hear from you!

We did go over to to the island in February too, to make sure we still liked it in the winter months. The problem is every time we been there the weather has been beautiful!!!!

The island being quiet in winter doesn’t put us off – I think with the island being so busy in the summer months, the quietness in the winter would be welcomed…I admit we do have our occasional doubts as like you we have a lot of friends and close family (some do not want us to leave, and some encouraging us to go so they can have a free hol Laughing

)

No friends or family yet on the island no. Like you my parents were going to follow us over, but not 100% sure now which I will explain!

Our time frame is still not decided, we keep saying late summer but am hoping by October latest..

RSVP x

carpy · Joined: 30 Jan 2012 Posts: 19

hi,just one snippet of advice ,did the same few years ago,bad move , remember holidays are very different to everyday life

vosperette · Joined: 01 Oct 2011 Posts: 20

I know they are very different but I guess it's depends where you live on the mainland and what you are looking for lifestyle wise. Living in crowded dirty London with no outside space is no longer suitable for us as a family. We have thought (and visited) long and hard and know its where we want to be. If it doesn't work out then so be it but at least it's better to have tried it than waste the rest of life wondering 'what if'
Where are you on the mainland? How long were you on IOW? Where did you live? What kind of work did you look for?

carpy · Joined: 30 Jan 2012 Posts: 19

hi i lived in ryde and worked for a construction firm,i found the locals very suspicious of mainlanders thinking they are here to take locals precious jobs and were not that friendly,i was lured by cheap houses but soon found the cost of living very high and the attitudes encountered unbearable,the nice warm isle of wight glow wore off after 4 months we got ripped off by local surveyors when we came to sell so lost a lot of money ,please think very hard i am being truthfull in what i say here

vosperette · Joined: 01 Oct 2011 Posts: 20

Did you buy a property on the Island? How difficult was it to go back to mainland?

carpy · Joined: 30 Jan 2012 Posts: 19

hi yes we bought but should have rented,we lost around 50k was a real shame

carpy · Joined: 30 Jan 2012 Posts: 19

just to add we had house on market had a sale which fell thru was on for 10 months empty agents were utterly useless by that time we had to move back so had rent and mort,nasty time