UKC

After nearly 20 years in the Lakes I start a new job west of Glasgow, well Balloch to be precise. Looking at houses to buy from the West End westwards or northwards, both urban and rural.

Any beta on good parts of the city to look at or places to avoid would be much appreciated. Or nice villages to the north as would be good cycle routes for commuting, best climbing wall etc. etc.

Ta,

Davie

Hmm, so much to say on this.

West End of Glasgow is expensive, but interspersed with pockets of deprivation.

Travel to Balloch from there could be a pain unless near train line at both end.

Villages round Balloch area are commuter / second home villages, and expensive - and very midge infested.

Balloch close to Dumbarton for climbing / bouldering though, and the scenery around Balloch is good - and easy to escape north from there.

Cycling from Glasgow to Balloch may not be the best though (relatively flat but not cycle friendly)

Good luck - just hope for a dry summer to bed you in  

As said above, a lot to say on this, it will mainly depend on your budget. Lots of nice places to stay NW of town but tend to be quite expensive, to name a few, within West End (Hyndland, Jordanhill, Hillhead areas all very nice, Kelvinside, Partick too, Anniesland is getting better though and is cheaper), further out Bearsden obviously although not majorly handy for commuting by train to Balloch I don't think plus expensive, Helensburgh and Rhu handy for Balloch and on train line, nice places again expensive. Lots of other towns in and around which aren't as nice and cheaper. Main recommendation would be to make sure you're on the train line tbh. I can't speak from experience but can't imagine that the roads around Balloch and outlying towns would be good fun commuting by bike on.

That side of town you are well placed for heading North up the A82, roughly an hour or so to Glencoe. Best wall is TCA for bouldering imo, it's on the Southside however at Kinningpark, but they are building a new one this year on the North side of the river around Maryhill. You also have GCC which is a roped gym at Ibrox. However you are only 45 mins or so to Ratho from city centre ish. 

Looking for any advice drop me a mail.

Different lines though - Helensburgh->Balloch commute should be 20 mins door to door by car, on relatively quiet roads, or a 35 min train journey with a change at Dalreoch.

If you want to give an idea of ballpark budget for houses, that would narrow things down a lot.

I live in that neighbour hood.

Glasgow is a great city.  Like all cities - good bits and not so good bits.  With Glasgow it can be a bit tricky to tell which one you're looking at from the map.  You only need to go a few blocks in one direction and its a definite no-no and few blocks in the other and it might be perfect.  

The others are right though -  need a little more to go on to help you out.  Budget/Age/Social life expectations maybe help a little ... 

TCA is THE place though.  

FYI ...  you can cycle West End -> Balloch without too much hassle.  Canal will take you 2/3 of the way from the West End ... very flat but very safe obviously for bikes.

If you have the ££ to spend ... there are fantastic places to stay in the area you're looking.

You might be better of posting where you're looking at and asking for opinions.  You can certainly PM me if you want a quick Yes/No w.r.t Neighbourhood.

Welcome to GlasVegas Davie!

Thanks all for the info. Super excited for the move. I know Glasgow a wee bit anyway and love the city but not enough to know the details. All very dependent on selling my house in Kendal but budget is £200K. Got a job with Loch Lomond National Park Authority, age 51, no kids, looking to join local mountaineering/ running club as I settle in. Definitely want to be near train line and M8 corridor but at the moment that could be either rural or urban.

Cheers

Davie

Running Club:  Try https://www.achillesheel.co.uk/running-groups/  ... Can ask for Steven Alexander.  His family owns the place and he climbs.  It's an informal affair.

200K will get you a flat in the West End - but won't get you a house.  If you're wanting a house (got lots of stuff!  Need a garage etc .. ) ... you'll need to look further out.

M8 Corridor.  Glasgow is a small city.  You have to pick fairly poorly to be far from the main roads. West End -> M8 = 10 mins.  If you lived outside the city could be 20 mins. 

Balloch is the end of the line for the train.  Balloch -> Partick (in the West End) is ~40 mins each way.

Cheers.

Thanks Stew - after early looks at houses I was wondering about Alexandria or Partick - both near the train line west but very different locations. Definitely want to strike a balance of ease of getting into the city and out to the country but will inevitably have to compromise. Would prefer a house rather than flat and a garage would be great for the mountain bikes and other kit.

Cheers

Davie

Howdy.

So you "might" get a house for 200k in Partick.  

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/map.html?propertyTypes=detache...

But that looks like an EPIC do'er-upper.  Personally i think you'll struggle get a house for 200k in Partick.

Alexandria on the other hand ... you should certainly get something there.  

Partick vs Alexandria though ... peaches and pairs.  Partick (some of it anyway) is in the thick of it.  Proper city living - close to the action.  Nightlife, hipsters, single speed bikes etc.  Alexandria ... you're not in Glasgow - you're 40 mins train away in a small town at the bottom of Loch Lomand.  

You would have two quite different lives with these places.