Moving To/Living In London Megathread - ALL QUESTIONS TO GO HERE

Tom_Cruise

Louche Lad wrote: »

13 hours according to a map app where I entered the westernmost and easternmost points which I got from here: http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=107163173475171438908.0004380c26eb8f82e2525&z=10&om=1 which is a link I got from here: http://diamondgeezer.blogspot.ie/2009/05/west-london.html

Very informative answer,I feel like i took the lazy option instead of trying to work it out myself.

Thanks man i appreciate it.

enda1

Tom_Cruise wrote: »

Very informative answer,I feel like i took the lazy option instead of trying to work it out myself.

Thanks man i appreciate it.

To be honest Tom for a shortarse like yourself it could take double that!

Gift of the Gabbert

I'm thinking of heading over to London for a few months to see if I can get some work,what would be the best place/website to find accomodation?

LovelyLDN

In my opinion, this one:

http://www.spareroom.co.uk/

tomcosgrave

Hi folks,

If a person employed in Ireland gets a National Insurance Number in the UK with the intent of working in the UK, is there any change to their position in Ireland regarding tax etc if they keep working in Ireland until they get a job in the UK?

BrokenArrows

tomcosgrave wrote: »

Hi folks,

If a person employed in Ireland gets a National Insurance Number in the UK with the intent of working in the UK, is there any change to their position in Ireland regarding tax etc if they keep working in Ireland until they get a job in the UK?

No. The NI number is just your ability to pay tax. It has nothing to do with where or how much you pay.

Heather_Honey

Hi all,

Moving to london next week and have one week before I start work to find a room in a shared house. Some that I have been looking at have a live-in landlord so I won't be dealing with an agency. Anybody got any tips in dealing with this in terms of a deposit etc. I'm a little worried about getting scammed or ripped off.

Thanks!

Fysh

Heather_Honey wrote: »

Hi all,

Moving to london next week and have one week before I start work to find a room in a shared house. Some that I have been looking at have a live-in landlord so I won't be dealing with an agency. Anybody got any tips in dealing with this in terms of a deposit etc. I'm a little worried about getting scammed or ripped off.

Thanks!

Regardless of whether you use an agent, by law any tenancy deposit must be placed with an approved protection scheme. Have a look at the FAQ for more info on this.

enda1

Fysh wrote: »

Regardless of whether you use an agent, by law any tenancy deposit must be placed with an approved protection scheme. Have a look at the FAQ for more info on this.

That's not the case with a lodger though. https://www.gov.uk/rent-room-in-your-home/rent-bills-and-tax

Fysh

enda1 wrote: »

That's not the case with a lodger though. https://www.gov.uk/rent-room-in-your-home/rent-bills-and-tax

Interesting, did not know that. I'll update the FAQ accordingly.

Marcusm

Fysh wrote: »

Regardless of whether you use an agent, by law any tenancy deposit must be placed with an approved protection scheme. Have a look at the FAQ for more info on this.

That's only the case for Assured Shorthold Tenancies and will not apply if the landlord lives in the property.

mighty magpie

Can anyone recommend a gym for me? Working in Aldgate, living in shadwell.

I see there's a virgin active in Aldgate, anyone know what the usual joining fees are?

cloudatlas

Moving over quite soon to look for work. Is it best to stay in a temporary place and wait until I find a job to look for accommodation or should I do both regardless of the eventual job location?

Jamey

cloudatlas wrote: »

Moving over quite soon to look for work. Is it best to stay in a temporary place and wait until I find a job to look for accommodation or should I do both regardless of the eventual job location?

You're going to have to commute anyways so generally I wouldn't be too concerned with finding accommodation that is "close" or near to where you end up working. You will be much more relaxed if you have a place to live asap after you move over so I would suggest get a place first and then look for work if you can afford to (or both at the same time!).

djpbarry

Jamey wrote: »

You're going to have to commute anyways so generally I wouldn't be too concerned with finding accommodation that is "close" or near to where you end up working.

I couldn't disagree more. In London, the difference between a short commute and long one can be colossal.

Wait until you know where you're working before looking for accommodation.

Jamey

Those who I work with who have painful commutes all live outside London and have chosen to.

If you're planning to move to London without a job then the length of your commute is a risk you have to take just to get a place and get set up to be honest. You can always move after you've settled or look for a short term let.

As the time spent looking for a job is never guaranteed, days staying in a hostel/temporary accommodation becomes weeks and can get really frustrating. I was 6 weeks in London before I got a job but luckily I had family to stay with. I would have never survived if I had to book into temporary accommodation for that long.

djpbarry

Jamey wrote: »

Those who I work with who have painful commutes all live outside London and have chosen to.

A friend of mine was living in Stoke Newington and working near Euston when she lost her job. She ended up taking a job in Mitcham, leaving her with a 3-hour round trip each day through no choice of her own.

Jamey wrote: »

If you're planning to move to London without a job then the length of your commute is a risk you have to take just to get a place and get set up to be honest.

I don’t agree to be honest. I think it’s worth being cautious about signing a lease before finding a job because, personally, I don’t want to be spending 2 or 3 hours commuting every day.

cloudatlas

I have somewhere I can go for Christmas up north, so perhaps it's best I stay in temporary accommodation and try to find work from there before I take the plunge with a place.

Grandpa Hassan

cloudatlas wrote: »

Moving over quite soon to look for work. Is it best to stay in a temporary place and wait until I find a job to look for accommodation or should I do both regardless of the eventual job location?

Spareroom.co.uk have loads of short term houseshares available. For 1 to 3 months. I rent out my spare room for a month here and there to people looking for more permanent accommodation, whenever I fancy the extra cash.

You should do that while you are looking for work. Have a place where you can relax, but also the option to move to somewhere that works with respect to your commute

Fysh

Mod note: I've deleted a few posts that were off-topic. Please keep posts in this thread either on the topic of questions about moving to/living in London, or answering questions posted by others.

KE_LN90

Officially moving to London in January, will be living in Wandsworth. I play hurling here and was wondering what hurling club I should move to when I arrive over?

jessiblah

I'm planning to move to London for the summer. I've almost got an internship secured over there. However I thought that by now I would have a part time job in Ireland but I haven't. Anybody know what London is like regarding part time work during the summer? I'm just looking for something to help ease the cost, but if it's highly unlikely that I'll get work I may have to turn down the internship.

83ste

jessiblah wrote: »

I'm planning to move to London for the summer. I've almost got an internship secured over there. However I thought that by now I would have a part time job in Ireland but I haven't. Anybody know what London is like regarding part time work during the summer? I'm just looking for something to help ease the cost, but if it's highly unlikely that I'll get work I may have to turn down the internship.

If you have a bit of restaurant or bar work experience I'd say you will be able to find something.

enda1

Part-time work is quite easy to find in London. You'll at the very least be able to pick up a shift pattern in Pret a manger.

djpbarry

jessiblah wrote: »

I'm planning to move to London for the summer. I've almost got an internship secured over there. However I thought that by now I would have a part time job in Ireland but I haven't. Anybody know what London is like regarding part time work during the summer? I'm just looking for something to help ease the cost, but if it's highly unlikely that I'll get work I may have to turn down the internship.

Will you have the time to commit to a part-time job? I presume the internship is a full-time position?

HogieBear92

Hey there,

Just said I'd throw up a post and see if I can get together a good bit of information on living in London in terms of areas, jobs, rent costs etc.

Myself and a friend thinking of heading over next August/September 2014. We both currently have relatively secure part time jobs so trying to save up as much as possible that would see us through nicely in the transition to living over there and getting ourselves set up with a place to stay. We've accepted that it is going to be fairly expensive but still don't want to be robbed blind either and be forking over ridiculous amounts on rent. We're obviously hoping to live in the cheaper suburbs of London, looking mainly at South London.

In terms of jobs I'd be quite happy to pick up a decent bartender job as that's what I'm good at and I like doing it too. Eventually want to open up my own place in London (The dream) I've heard though its ****e pay but I've also heard if you get into a good place its actually fine and tips on top of that also. Holding down two jobs wouldn't be a problem either as I've lived in America and had to do that, albeit for a short while but I feel I'd manage. I've also a degree in English & History if anyone knows of anything that would suit me in Lawndawn!! As of now its being put to absolutely no use! haha

aaanywho, to sum up.. cheap (decent nightlife areas).. Irish areas.. jobs.. pay.. rent etc etc..

any bit of information at all would be lovely and greatly appreciated.

much love,
ex oh ex

who the fug

Have a read of this thread,covers everything

Fysh

Hi HogieBear, the best place to start is by reading the FAQ - this has the distilled knowledge & advice from a whole bunch of people here who've made the move over the last few years, including a load of useful links and things to watch out for.

If you've got specific questions after reading through all that, post them in this thread and we'll try and answer them for you.

lufties

Hi guys,

I'm moving to London next year and will be working at heathrow. I really don't want to live in Slough and such satellite areas, but would like to try Shepards bush or Hammersmith. These areas seem really expensive and as a 32 year old single man , I really want to avoid sharing. Can anyone suggest a decent area with airport connections that won't break the bank?

Thanks.

djpbarry

lufties wrote: »

Hi guys,

I'm moving to London next year and will be working at heathrow. I really don't want to live in Slough and such satellite areas, but would like to try Shepards bush or Hammersmith. These areas seem really expensive and as a 32 year old single man , I really want to avoid sharing. Can anyone suggest a decent area with airport connections that won't break the bank?

Thanks.

Really depends on what you mean by "expensive". Shepherd's Bush isn't that expensive by London standards and Hammersmith definitely isn't. How much are you prepared to pay?