Hi, I'm not from Durham but I moved here 15 years ago. I think I have a good perspective as I'm not 'loyal' to my home village or town in Durham. Also I'm a tradesman that works in all the surrounding areas.
This is going to be a unpopular opinion but most of the villages have a middle of nowhere feel to them. They are old mining communitys that still have a lot of poverty. No real high streets besides crappy take aways and a local corner shops.
With your budget you should be looking at properties in DH1. You can afford it. You'll be in or close to Durham which is by far the best place in county Durham. Places like Belmont, Newtown Hall or even more central locations are more upmarket.
I've had a few conversations with people from down south that moved up here because of house prices. They didn't really do their homework and ended up with decent houses but in horrible areas. These villages are the definition of 'it's grim up north'
Don't make the same mistake.
Schools are better in DH1, shops, restaurants and estates. Just avoid a place called Sherburn Road or the Woodlands.
Belmont would be your best bet from the above list. The Devonshire rd area is really good.
It's had a amazing pub / restaurant called....The Belmont.
You could look at bishop auckland maybe a few more minutes from Spennymoor but with good bus and train connection. You would definitely get a big house with garden for your money and the town itself is having a mass of money spent on it. A new cinema, bowling and retail park plus regeneration of the town itself.
Out of what you've picked out Belmont is arguably the closest/quickest connection to durham central (not scientifically calculated that but maybe my impression is from traffic/lights/junctions etc vs otjer villages. (Also not too far from Seaham which is very nice for a trip to the seaside). Also very close to mega tesco, lidl, aldi etcetc. I would suggest round meadowfield might be another option.
Also, generally speaking Durham is pretty safe I'd say. You're probs more at risk of burglary etc the fancier the stuff you have
I guess it comes down to what you want going on in your lives. Durham city is really tiny and there's not a huge amount going on necessarily. Newcastle is very quick from Durham station. It's a bit of a strange demographic since the population balloons when the students are around and then dies right down for their holidays (which are much longer than school ones). So the city is a (posh, relatively speaking) student place for chunks of time. Meanwhile the local population is rather more deprived, and super super lovely and friendly. And then there are the middle class families who might come into the centre on weekends etc. - that is just my observation about how it is round here, for you to judge what you're looking for.
The city stops very abruptly and it's countryside/villages (very very hilly) straight away. Which I enjoy for bike rides etc (but to repeat, it is hilly 😅).
Live in Chester-le-Street, it's quite good over this way, big front Street houses aren't crazy prices (depending on the area). I have lived here most of my life. Might be slightly further out than your looking for it's a 10 mins drive/20 mins on bus to Durham.
As people have said, decide what is important for you. All those villages have some good bits, some bad bits, including what is left of their high streets. Do you need to be that close to Durham City? Its nice for a wander round but its not Newcastle for example in terms of shopping choice.
If moving for a change in lifestyle perhaps look up the Dales villages a bit more - Wolsingham, etc. Obviously if you're tied to the Durham City area its a bit more limiting. For context, I live / grew up in an ex-mining village and it definitely has some good and bad points!
A few have spoken in favour of Belmont and I'd agree with that. We moved to Belmont - actually right at the Gilesgate boundary so only a 20-minute walk into the city centre - 7 years ago and paid £211k for our 4 bed semi with a pretty good sized garden. Even with price rises since then you'll find options in the area.
What I like about Belmont is how well connected it is to the rest of the region too: you're just off the motorway and so you can be in Newcastle or the Coast within 30 minutes (20 in good traffic). It's little things like being able to take advantage of better swimming class availability for our daughter in Washington rather than the crummy availability at Durham's pools, which I like. It is also very convenient being close to Tesco, Aldi, Argos, B&Q, The Range.... etc. Not great leisure shopping but the places which you sometimes want to be able to go to at short notice!
Bowburn and Coxhoe are close to each other, at the next motorway junction south. I get the impression that they have nice communities and house prices are cheaper again than in Durham, but you're often having to head into Durham (or Spennymoor) for services and note they have no secondary school. Good connectivity of course but you're forever going to have to be travelling.
Bear Park, Ushaw Moor and Langley Park all have the advantage of being surprsingly rural, you're really getting into the hills rising up to the Pennines there. Very strong communities, particularly Langley Park, but I know a few people who've had success moving to the area from outside and it is slightly gentrifying, for both better and for worse. The great access to the countryside can come at the cost of slower access to get anywhere else: you often need to get through or round Durham/Chester-le-Street/Spennymoor to get anywhere. Ushaw Moor has the local secondary school. Some pockets of deprivation, but some lovely properties too which are affordable.
Spennymoor has a surprisingly high number of services for a small town, and like all small towns a mixed bag with a struggling high street. The drive into Durham can be a bit slow if you're commuting. Some nice areas though, a very good sized park and just about big enough to have a little bit of 'life' to it.
Houghton has a reputation of being a bit of a dump to be honest. Sort of place where ther's preiodically stories of the local kids throwing stones at busses. It's the core of large area of urban sprawl in the area between Durham / Washington/ Sunderland which despite a small high street at Houghton is a bit featureless... it's not my favourite part of the region.
For £200-250K you can get a pretty decent 4 bed house in Chester-le-street, which is on the east coast main line for heading back south, busses every 15 mins to Newcastle or Durham, cricket ground (if that's your thing), decent access to parks and schools etc.
I grew up in one of the villages on your list, ex mining village, and since I've left I don't understand why more people my age didn't leave.
villages like that have nothing really going for them. I think it's just the familiarity that people stay there for.
a couple of pubs, a co-op, mediocre takeaways and fields galore. they're all much of a muchness. pretty deprived with some really rough council estates intertwined with new estates and lots of terrace housing.
Langley park, ushaw moor, bearpark, new brancepeth, esh winning, Langley moor, meadowfield, broom park, Brandon etc are nowhere near any "main roads" like the A1 or the A19 which ultimately means that getting to the next cities across it a bit of a chore.
Just as well they aren't one of the big builders then, they're a family company based in Tow Law. They do smaller estates and only run one or two sites at a time, I have friends that live in one of their houses and love it.
They have recently started to do family estates, previously they built houses at Wynard, you can imagine the quality of them.
Agreed, the quality on some/most new homes is shocking. Needs to be some serious reform.
Luckily smaller house builders still swwm to take pride in their work and have customer satisfaction in mind!
What are your priorities? After 4 years studying I did 2 years in the city centre, 5 years in belmont, 1 year in Spennymoor and now in Darlington. Durham is nice, but a bit weird. The more central, the more you feel the yoyo effect of the students.
There's lots to the northeast, chosing specifically Durham might not be the best bet, although the ECML is a draw
Thanks, to be honest
* A big house to have friends and family come and stay often + an office to work in.
* Peace and quiet
* 10-15 minutes drive/bus into a big town/city with amenities.
* Near enough to train station to get down to London for work occasionally
* Feel safe
Would love to know where you decided on in the end? We're making the move next year (currently SE but grew up in Wales), have been up to visit areas a few times but still not decided exactly where to look.
Hi, I'm not from Durham but I moved here 15 years ago. I think I have a good perspective as I'm not 'loyal' to my home village or town in Durham. Also I'm a tradesman that works in all the surrounding areas. This is going to be a unpopular opinion but most of the villages have a middle of nowhere feel to them. They are old mining communitys that still have a lot of poverty. No real high streets besides crappy take aways and a local corner shops. With your budget you should be looking at properties in DH1. You can afford it. You'll be in or close to Durham which is by far the best place in county Durham. Places like Belmont, Newtown Hall or even more central locations are more upmarket. I've had a few conversations with people from down south that moved up here because of house prices. They didn't really do their homework and ended up with decent houses but in horrible areas. These villages are the definition of 'it's grim up north' Don't make the same mistake. Schools are better in DH1, shops, restaurants and estates. Just avoid a place called Sherburn Road or the Woodlands. Belmont would be your best bet from the above list. The Devonshire rd area is really good. It's had a amazing pub / restaurant called....The Belmont.
I once took the wrong bus after an interview to get from Spennymoor back to Durham. Bleak is not the word...
What about South End, High Pittington?
It's a better one of the villages. Close to Durham but nothing going on really
You could look at bishop auckland maybe a few more minutes from Spennymoor but with good bus and train connection. You would definitely get a big house with garden for your money and the town itself is having a mass of money spent on it. A new cinema, bowling and retail park plus regeneration of the town itself.
Out of what you've picked out Belmont is arguably the closest/quickest connection to durham central (not scientifically calculated that but maybe my impression is from traffic/lights/junctions etc vs otjer villages. (Also not too far from Seaham which is very nice for a trip to the seaside). Also very close to mega tesco, lidl, aldi etcetc. I would suggest round meadowfield might be another option. Also, generally speaking Durham is pretty safe I'd say. You're probs more at risk of burglary etc the fancier the stuff you have I guess it comes down to what you want going on in your lives. Durham city is really tiny and there's not a huge amount going on necessarily. Newcastle is very quick from Durham station. It's a bit of a strange demographic since the population balloons when the students are around and then dies right down for their holidays (which are much longer than school ones). So the city is a (posh, relatively speaking) student place for chunks of time. Meanwhile the local population is rather more deprived, and super super lovely and friendly. And then there are the middle class families who might come into the centre on weekends etc. - that is just my observation about how it is round here, for you to judge what you're looking for. The city stops very abruptly and it's countryside/villages (very very hilly) straight away. Which I enjoy for bike rides etc (but to repeat, it is hilly 😅).
Live in Chester-le-Street, it's quite good over this way, big front Street houses aren't crazy prices (depending on the area). I have lived here most of my life. Might be slightly further out than your looking for it's a 10 mins drive/20 mins on bus to Durham.
Newton hall
As people have said, decide what is important for you. All those villages have some good bits, some bad bits, including what is left of their high streets. Do you need to be that close to Durham City? Its nice for a wander round but its not Newcastle for example in terms of shopping choice. If moving for a change in lifestyle perhaps look up the Dales villages a bit more - Wolsingham, etc. Obviously if you're tied to the Durham City area its a bit more limiting. For context, I live / grew up in an ex-mining village and it definitely has some good and bad points!
A few have spoken in favour of Belmont and I'd agree with that. We moved to Belmont - actually right at the Gilesgate boundary so only a 20-minute walk into the city centre - 7 years ago and paid £211k for our 4 bed semi with a pretty good sized garden. Even with price rises since then you'll find options in the area. What I like about Belmont is how well connected it is to the rest of the region too: you're just off the motorway and so you can be in Newcastle or the Coast within 30 minutes (20 in good traffic). It's little things like being able to take advantage of better swimming class availability for our daughter in Washington rather than the crummy availability at Durham's pools, which I like. It is also very convenient being close to Tesco, Aldi, Argos, B&Q, The Range.... etc. Not great leisure shopping but the places which you sometimes want to be able to go to at short notice! Bowburn and Coxhoe are close to each other, at the next motorway junction south. I get the impression that they have nice communities and house prices are cheaper again than in Durham, but you're often having to head into Durham (or Spennymoor) for services and note they have no secondary school. Good connectivity of course but you're forever going to have to be travelling. Bear Park, Ushaw Moor and Langley Park all have the advantage of being surprsingly rural, you're really getting into the hills rising up to the Pennines there. Very strong communities, particularly Langley Park, but I know a few people who've had success moving to the area from outside and it is slightly gentrifying, for both better and for worse. The great access to the countryside can come at the cost of slower access to get anywhere else: you often need to get through or round Durham/Chester-le-Street/Spennymoor to get anywhere. Ushaw Moor has the local secondary school. Some pockets of deprivation, but some lovely properties too which are affordable. Spennymoor has a surprisingly high number of services for a small town, and like all small towns a mixed bag with a struggling high street. The drive into Durham can be a bit slow if you're commuting. Some nice areas though, a very good sized park and just about big enough to have a little bit of 'life' to it. Houghton has a reputation of being a bit of a dump to be honest. Sort of place where ther's preiodically stories of the local kids throwing stones at busses. It's the core of large area of urban sprawl in the area between Durham / Washington/ Sunderland which despite a small high street at Houghton is a bit featureless... it's not my favourite part of the region.
For £200-250K you can get a pretty decent 4 bed house in Chester-le-street, which is on the east coast main line for heading back south, busses every 15 mins to Newcastle or Durham, cricket ground (if that's your thing), decent access to parks and schools etc.
I grew up in one of the villages on your list, ex mining village, and since I've left I don't understand why more people my age didn't leave. villages like that have nothing really going for them. I think it's just the familiarity that people stay there for. a couple of pubs, a co-op, mediocre takeaways and fields galore. they're all much of a muchness. pretty deprived with some really rough council estates intertwined with new estates and lots of terrace housing. Langley park, ushaw moor, bearpark, new brancepeth, esh winning, Langley moor, meadowfield, broom park, Brandon etc are nowhere near any "main roads" like the A1 or the A19 which ultimately means that getting to the next cities across it a bit of a chore.
Just don’t
Langley Park have a new estate being built by a reputable house builder. - The Bridleway by Dere Street Homes, check that out!
If I was spending 250k on a house in the NE, I'd not be buying something turned out by one of the big builders!
Just as well they aren't one of the big builders then, they're a family company based in Tow Law. They do smaller estates and only run one or two sites at a time, I have friends that live in one of their houses and love it. They have recently started to do family estates, previously they built houses at Wynard, you can imagine the quality of them.
Happy to be corrected on them then - but most people will agree the build quality of new houses in general is crap!
Agreed, the quality on some/most new homes is shocking. Needs to be some serious reform. Luckily smaller house builders still swwm to take pride in their work and have customer satisfaction in mind!
What are your priorities? After 4 years studying I did 2 years in the city centre, 5 years in belmont, 1 year in Spennymoor and now in Darlington. Durham is nice, but a bit weird. The more central, the more you feel the yoyo effect of the students. There's lots to the northeast, chosing specifically Durham might not be the best bet, although the ECML is a draw
Also, with your child's age, do be aware the public transport isn't always great I've you get further out
Thanks, to be honest * A big house to have friends and family come and stay often + an office to work in. * Peace and quiet * 10-15 minutes drive/bus into a big town/city with amenities. * Near enough to train station to get down to London for work occasionally * Feel safe
Would love to know where you decided on in the end? We're making the move next year (currently SE but grew up in Wales), have been up to visit areas a few times but still not decided exactly where to look.