Advice New job in Gatwick, any advice?

[itdoesntmatterwhatthissay]

I've been offered a job in Gatwick and I've accepted it but I live in Birmingham and know nothing about the area.

 

Crawley looks like an obvious place to look but I really don't know the place, or whether its worth living further afield, either London or Brighton and getting a train/driving in.

 

Anyone do anything similar or know Gatwick at all?

[blandy]

There are people with better local knowledge than me. I've only visited Gatwick for work to see the CAA or to go on holiday from the airport oh and a girlfriend who lived fairly nearby.

General advice when moving to a new location is to think about your requirements.

By that I mean things like:

Is it important to be able to get to work quickly (longer in bed)?

is it important to be able to travel somewhere (e.g. Brum or central London) quickly by tube/train/car at the weekend?

Is it important to have lively local amentities etc. - pubs, clubs, bars, venues...

What sort of place would you like to live in - Large house/small house/flat/shared accomo?

Schools for kids?

There will be others on your list, I'm sure. But once you have a bit of a list, you can start to make a choice of possible locations, then go visit, find out costs for rent or buying and all that.

If someone says "avoid [area]" then don't just take them at their word - they might like peace and quiet, and you might want a bit more nightlife, or whatever. Find out why they recommend where they do.

Good luck.

[Xela]

I've been offered a job in Gatwick and I've accepted it but I live in Birmingham and know nothing about the area.

 

Crawley looks like an obvious place to look but I really don't know the place, or whether its worth living further afield, either London or Brighton and getting a train/driving in.

 

Anyone do anything similar or know Gatwick at all?

 

Yeah, traffic is shit by the airport. Crawley is the obvious choice as you say, as Gatwick Airport is in Crawley. 

 

Living in London and working in Crawley is back to front isn't it? It's usually the other way round. Depends on your budget I guess. 

 

There are nice little villages not far from Gatwick that I have driven through, although I'm not sure if you are looking for the quiet life?

[tonyh29]

You'd be better looking at Horsham over Crawley tbh  or Southwater if you are feeling a bit flush

 

or better still Redhill or Dorking then you are still in Mighty Surrey rather than Sussex with the tractor drivers and their 6 toes

 

but the traffic from Redhill to Gatwick can be pants during the rush hour

[itdoesntmatterwhatthissay]

Thanks Blandy and Xela.

 

I guess my questions could have been more specific! 

 

Good info on the traffic, I wasn't sure how bad it might get because my interview was at 12 and the roads were empty.

I think i'll look for places near train stations, it's definitely the wrong way round but I'm okay travelling and have friends in London so it's good to be close to them (and nightlife), but on the flip side 'm happy being closer to Brighton and a bit of sea fishing, maybe even surfing. 

It's a career step and I'm a versatile fella so I'm happy to set myself up somewhere a bit more rural, the south is amazing for public transport so I'll be able to reach life somehow...I don't want to waste money...easy to do down south!

 

Budget wise it seems I'm looking at £700 monthly for my own flat, may have to house share as that seems steep but I guess I don't really have much choice. Need to call the train company and find out how much monthly passes are.

[itdoesntmatterwhatthissay]

You'd be better looking at Horsham over Crawley tbh  or Southwater if you are feeling a bit flush

 

or better still Redhill or Dorking then you are still in Mighty Surrey rather than Sussex with the tractor drivers and their 6 toes

 

but the traffic from Redhill to Gatwick can be pants during the rush hour

Edited December 22, 2014 by itdoesntmatterwhatthissay

[sharkyvilla]

I live in Horsham and have a one bed flat in the town centre for £620 a month which is about as cheap as you can get. I should think you can find something fairly decent for £700 if you look hard enough, though prices are going up so I dunno. Horsham is smaller than Creepy Crawley and nicer, it's about 10 mins further on the train from Gatwick. There's no station in Southwater so you'd have to drive if you lived there. If you've got any questions feel free to ask.

[sharkyvilla]

There's a flat right next to Horsham station just gone on for £635 a month

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-to-rent/property-49678286.html

Here are some more, including my old flat. Gone up £100 since I moved out two years ago! Wouldn't touch it with a barge pole

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-to-rent/Horsham.html?maxPrice=700&minBedrooms=1

[itdoesntmatterwhatthissay]

There's a flat right next to Horsham station just gone on for £635 a month

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-to-rent/property-49678286.html

Here are some more, including my old flat. Gone up £100 since I moved out two years ago! Wouldn't touch it with a barge pole

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-to-rent/Horsham.html?maxPrice=700&minBedrooms=1

Really kind of you to pick out some places, I'm looking far and wide but when I get stuck expect a PM.

[benireduk]

Spent quite a lot of time round that area when I was seeing my now wife. She lived in Redhill which is you're usual town with usual shops and restaurants. Could get the train to Gatwick in about 10mins I think.

Reigate is close by but is a lot more upmarket and pricey. Similar to Sutton if you're looking for a comparison closer to home.

Other than that there's Horley which is literally next to Gatwick. Not a lot there but your commute would be non existent. From memory I think you can nearly see Gatwick station from the platform at Horley.

All in all, quite a nice part of the world and easy to get to London/Brighton at weekends

[Kingman]

Cant go wrong with Haywards Heath pal.

[AVTuco]

I know nothing about Gatwick, but congrats on the new job!

[Demitri_C]

the commute from london to gatwick everyday will drive you crazy avoid doing that would be my advice as others have said crawley seems like a good option. brighton isnt too far even

 

congrats on the new job!

[itdoesntmatterwhatthissay]

Cheers for all the replies and congratulations, my uncle sorted me out a lodging with one of his friends a mile from Three Bridges station, going tomorrow.

 

Am there for about 6-8 weeks for £100 a week so it's a good starting point, will have a look at all the areas mentioned and see if I can sort something more permanent....also cheers for the London to Gatwick advice, I think for now I will heed that warning.

[NurembergVillan]

Good luck with it all mate.  When I started my career I was working in Leatherhead and rented a bedroom in a family home in Epsom.  I really liked Surrey and still miss it now.