Ali Harper said that leaving the capital was one the most difficult and frightening experiences in her life. “Now, I wish I had done this sooner. “Ali, 38 and her husband Rob, were living in Penge in a three-bedroom 1930s semi with their young family, Marley, five-year-old, and Willow, two-year-old. They loved London and struggled to go out and do anything. Ali said, “We felt trapped. The only thing we did was to go to the park opposite.” “And even though I loved our house, it had its downfalls. It was located right on an A-road, so you couldn’t open your windows at night. “Her family is based in Buckinghamshire but they refused to join them due to the high property prices. Rob’s family is spread around Bristol, which is a more affordable option.
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They put their house up for sale in the summer of 2019, and began looking for a new home. They quickly found and fell in love with a five-bedroom, early-Victorian house in Alveston, 11 miles from Bristol. Ali said, “It’s 1837 on the outside but 1987 inside.” It needs all the work and hasn’t been loved for years, but it is incredible. Ali marvels at the disparity between their Penge house and their new home, which Ali sold for?650,000 and?610,000. They moved in December 2019, and are planning to extend their stay. Ali said, “When we first moved down it wasn’t easy.” It was lockdown, we didn’t know anyone, and it made life difficult. Marley went to school and met lots of people. Now, we do many things together. “We are only 20 minutes away from the beach and 15 minutes from Forest of Dean. We walk everywhere, and I can’t believe how fresh it is. Ali still travels to London once a month for work. Ali said that it takes her just over an hour to get from Parkway station and that sometimes coming in the morning from Penge would take the same time. However, she is happy that she took the leap. She said, “If we hadn’t had kids, we probably wouldn’t have left London.” “But it was impossible to stay when you have kids.”
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