Anyone in edinburgh?

irishgirl14

Hi all,
Im moving to Edinburgh at the beginning of may and im just wondering what is the best way to meet people? I am a 24 year old female and id like to meet some irish along with other cultures! I have 1 friend over there so I am as such moving over on my own and I don't want to over burden myself on her! how would I go about making friends, beside at work?

ladiee24

hi op

i've been living in edinburgh for just coming up on a year & i love the city but have found it a tad difficult to make friends. i've tried the meetup.com site but i find not many of the same people go to more than one event so whilst you do things it's still difficult to get chatting to people of interest again.

i'm 29 but don't feel it if you fancy meeting up for coffee or anything drop me a pm when i've had friends from dublin over i've been told i'm a good guide.

best of luck with the move

irishgirl14

Thanks ladiee24, I just pm'd you!!

Mrs Garth Brooks

How are people finding life in Edinburgh.

Im hoping to move over by the end of the summer.

Its seems very expensive. I was checking hostel prices for August and its coming up to €40 a night. In a hostel. September seems to be cheaper but then i'd be in competion with students for jobs.

I'm still open to where i'll go so. Maybe Glasgow or the north or middle of England. I have loads of research to do.

ladiee24

HardLuckWoman August is the world famous fringe festival here in Edinburgh i.e. the busiest month of the year so yep accommodation is mega expensive then. If you wait til September or come in July you'll see a HUGE difference.

I've worked in Edinburgh for over 3 years but lived here for almost a year & don't earn a huge salary at all & I've never struggled. I have also lived in Glasgow & Fife but Edinburgh has been my favourite by far it's a great city with so much to do I'm still finding new parts of the city to explore!

Hope that helps you make your decision but research as much as you can. Gumtree for rentals I'd avoid agents they like to charge lots of extras a good private let it what you want. Commuting in the city is super cheap a monthly bus card is between £50-£60 for the month for any much use as you like as well as the night bus as far as i know I walk or bike to most places. S1jobs.com is a good job site as well.

Don't forget when you move to the UK you have the NHS which is a god send yes some people hit the media for getting silly things on it but I've had no direct medical costs in 4 years.

Best of luck with the move

Mrs Garth Brooks

ladiee24 wrote: »

HardLuckWoman August is the world famous fringe festival here in Edinburgh i.e. the busiest month of the year so yep accommodation is mega expensive then. If you wait til September or come in July you'll see a HUGE difference.

I've worked in Edinburgh for over 3 years but lived here for almost a year & don't earn a huge salary at all & I've never struggled. I have also lived in Glasgow & Fife but Edinburgh has been my favourite by far it's a great city with so much to do I'm still finding new parts of the city to explore!

Hope that helps you make your decision but research as much as you can. Gumtree for rentals I'd avoid agents they like to charge lots of extras a good private let it what you want. Commuting in the city is super cheap a monthly bus card is between £50-£60 for the month for any much use as you like as well as the night bus as far as i know I walk or bike to most places. S1jobs.com is a good job site as well.

Don't forget when you move to the UK you have the NHS which is a god send yes some people hit the media for getting silly things on it but I've had no direct medical costs in 4 years.

Best of luck with the move

Thats great. Thanks for the information. I think i'll wait until September to come over and have a bit more money in my pocket.

Does it get very cold there in the winter?

ladiee24

The first winter I was here was the worst the snow was crazy but it was crazy at home in Ireland too it's not been as bad since. I think the weather is a bit more extreme here but it's not so cold that you won't get used to it. I find it nice & mild when I go back to Dublin for visits now so that's a bonus

Mrs Garth Brooks

I've got it booked to come over for the 1st of September. One way flight. I've got the summer now to prepare and save as much as I can.

razorblunt

The wind is the biggest pain in the arse you'll get, somehow you could be walking into it for 10 minutes turn a corner and there it is in your face again, turn back the way you came and it's right at you, completely illogical!

It will die off for the summer months now though so I'll forget how bad it is until December and then I'll want to go kick something all over again.

If you have until September to plan something out you'd almost be better arranging a short term let on Gumtree, even a flat share.

dublinlad89

Hey guys, Im strongly thinking of moving to Edinburgh in the next few months, can anyone help me out a bit with some advice in terms of like getting work and accommodation. Is it easier to sort it all before going or what way would it work.
Ive been over there 3 times and love the place, im only 24 so i thing now would be a good time to go,
Cheers

razorblunt

dublinlad89 wrote: »

Hey guys, Im strongly thinking of moving to Edinburgh in the next few months, can anyone help me out a bit with some advice in terms of like getting work and accommodation. Is it easier to sort it all before going or what way would it work.
Ive been over there 3 times and love the place, im only 24 so i thing now would be a good time to go,
Cheers

Plenty of advice for similar questions on here already. Accommodation wise, staying in a hostel for a few days might be the best option. If you wanted to rent somewhere on your own you'd need someone to guarantee your payments or else pay 3 months up front (final 3 months of the contract is taken from this). Flatsharing would be what I'd recommend for a few months, gumtree is the best site for that.

What line of work are you looking for? Getting over now before the summer/Fringe would be highly recommended.

dublinlad89

razorblunt wrote: »

Plenty of advice for similar questions on here already. Accommodation wise, staying in a hostel for a few days might be the best option. If you wanted to rent somewhere on your own you'd need someone to guarantee your payments or else pay 3 months up front (final 3 months of the contract is taken from this). Flatsharing would be what I'd recommend for a few months, gumtree is the best site for that.

What line of work are you looking for? Getting over now before the summer/Fringe would be highly recommended.

Cheers razorblunt, renting somewhere is what id prefere really. working in retail and sales now so id be looking for something in the same line of work or close to it, id be hoping to get something sorted before i went over

razorblunt

Keep an eye on gumtree so for flat shares, friends of mine have gotten places for 500 a month, rent and bills including council tax, this is separate from your rent so always keep it in mind.

Work wise you'd pick up something alright handily enough, princes street, George street, st James mall and ocean terminal is where you should be looking but I'd say you'd have to throw CVs in once you're here. You'll need a national insurance number too.

ladiee24

I'd agree with most of what razorblunt has said but not on the renting side I've rented both privately & through an agency & I've never had to pay that kind of money it does exist but I'm in no position to pay that so I've shopped around to get a better deal. I'd said in a previous thread on Edinburgh I'd advise coming over with as close to £1500 as possible for all your set up costs.

I'm actually moving back into a flatshare myself this weekend as I'm trying to save & have got a fab room in a lovely flat for £450 a month all inclusive of bills & council tax which I think is a bargain. Gumtree is the way to go for a share I've posted up an ad about me & let people come to me for shares & every time it's worked & I've ended up in a cracking place.

ladiee24

HardLuckWoman wrote: »

I've got it booked to come over for the 1st of September. One way flight. I've got the summer now to prepare and save as much as I can.

great news drop me a pm when you get here!

razorblunt

ladiee24 wrote: »

I'd agree with most of what razorblunt has said but not on the renting side I've rented both privately & through an agency & I've never had to pay that kind of money it does exist but I'm in no position to pay that so I've shopped around to get a better deal. I'd said in a previous thread on Edinburgh I'd advise coming over with as close to £1500 as possible for all your set up costs.

I'm actually moving back into a flatshare myself this weekend as I'm trying to save & have got a fab room in a lovely flat for £450 a month all inclusive of bills & council tax which I think is a bargain. Gumtree is the way to go for a share I've posted up an ad about me & let people come to me for shares & every time it's worked & I've ended up in a cracking place.

Really? I had presumed it was standard, luckily I only need for my first 6 month rent and after that my background check was enough with the deposit.
Could have saved myself alot of hassle had I know - though at the time I was just looking to grab somewhere quickly

Dublinlad in that case disregard my point about the 3 months advance and if it helps it was The Flat Company that managed the lease.

ladiee24

razorblunt wrote: »

Really? I had presumed it was standard, luckily I only need for my first 6 month rent and after that my background check was enough with the deposit.
Could have saved myself alot of hassle had I know - though at the time I was just looking to grab somewhere quickly

Dublinlad in that case disregard my point about the 3 months advance and if it helps it was The Flat Company that managed the lease.

I'm a bargain hunter razorblunt agencies will usually try rip people off. I dealt with a super agency in Fife & they opened my eyes to all the legalities with a short term assured tenancy. By law as a deposit they can only take one month nor can they ask for multiple payments in advance all deposits need to be held with safe deposit scotland or similar too. Some very shady companies out there. You just need to do your research & be prepared to back yourself I find a lot of them like to bully people especially in the current rental market as it's very competitive.

Michael D Not Higgins

Yeah I didn't need the 3 months paid in advance either. However I already had a job lined up when I moved, so that could be one reason.

razorblunt

Great advice, alas too late me for as I'll be buying next year!

The agencies are a mish-mash alright, looks like there's been a big merger between Charles White, Alba, Braemore and Lomond all under one banner too.

Michael D Not Higgins

razorblunt wrote: »

Great advice, alas too late me for as I'll be buying next year!

The agencies are a mish-mash alright, looks like there's been a big merger between Charles White, Alba, Braemore and Lomond all under one banner too.

Where abouts are you buying, if you don't mind me asking?

razorblunt

Michael D Not Higgins wrote: »

Where abouts are you buying, if you don't mind me asking?

No worries - it's a bit of wide enough area, but we'll be looking at Stockbridge, Bruntsfield, Morningside area. Ideally somewhere along Polwarth which doesn't have the price tag morningside would but is probably closer to the Meadows.
This is where rightmove and their offering of drawing a map outline comes in very handy!!

Michael D Not Higgins

razorblunt wrote: »

No worries - it's a bit of wide enough area, but we'll be looking at Stockbridge, Bruntsfield, Morningside area. Ideally somewhere along Polwarth which doesn't have the price tag morningside would but is probably closer to the Meadows.
This is where rightmove and their offering of drawing a map outline comes in very handy!!

I'm in Canonmills at the moment, but I have friends in Stockbridge and Morningside (renting). Both are lovely areas.

razorblunt

Michael D Not Higgins wrote: »

I'm in Canonmills at the moment, but I have friends in Stockbridge and Morningside (renting). Both are lovely areas.

I'm out on Ferry Road so familiar with Stockbridge alright, it's a toss up between Inverleith and The Meadows, not much difference price wise. Stockbridge gives the impression it's a little bit quieter (less traffic).

Michael D Not Higgins

razorblunt wrote: »

I'm out on Ferry Road so familiar with Stockbridge alright, it's a toss up between Inverleith and The Meadows, not much difference price wise. Stockbridge gives the impression it's a little bit quieter (less traffic).

If it were me, I'd stay away from those pesky students over by the Meadows. I used to live in Newington. I felt like Danny Glover in Lethal Weapon.

razorblunt

Michael D Not Higgins wrote: »

If it were me, I'd stay away from those pesky students over by the Meadows. I used to live in Newington. I felt like Danny Glover in Lethal Weapon.

Ha I know what you mean, it can be a lucky dip with who lives above or below out there. Stockbridge is the forerunner at the moment anyway. Was in the new Raeburn last night, worth a stroll up from canonmills for you.

Gordon

Looking at places in Edinburgh myself, using Zoopla.co.uk and ESPC.com - any other good sites, or has ESPC cornered the market as I hear?

razorblunt

Gordon wrote: »

Looking at places in Edinburgh myself, using Zoopla.co.uk and ESPC.com - any other good sites, or has ESPC cornered the market as I hear?

Looking to buy or rent?
rightmove.co.uk is a decent site too, has a handy, draw-a-map function where you outline your desired areas.

I find the ESPC search function incredibly frustrating.

Gordon

Will check it out, cheers. Looking to buy.

I've found that ok, but I use it in list format, what don't you like about it?

dublinlad89

Ye ive checked gumtree but the prices ive seen are sky high, well for me anyway, i was gonna wait till the fringe festival was over cause all the jobs ive seen have been temps for the festival. i mite hold off till sept/oct and go with as much cash as i can

Michael D Not Higgins

The best advice I got for renting in Edinburgh was to look around June/July. This means the students have gone home and the Fringe hasn't started yet.

razorblunt

Gordon wrote: »

Will check it out, cheers. Looking to buy.

I've found that ok, but I use it in list format, what don't you like about it?

I think it's an issue with Chrome on my Ipad, repeatedly get either none or 1 result.

Gordon

razorblunt wrote: »

I think it's an issue with Chrome on my Ipad, repeatedly get either none or 1 result.

Hmm, strange, works fine for me on safari on iPad. Will check chrome out later.

NoCrackHaving

dublinlad89 wrote: »

Cheers razorblunt, renting somewhere is what id prefere really. working in retail and sales now so id be looking for something in the same line of work or close to it, id be hoping to get something sorted before i went over

To be honest, I'd recommend trying to move out of retail if you can, Edinburgh is flooded with students and young people working in shops and bars.

Working in finance/engineering etc. pays a lot better and much better working hours. Also a lot easier to get into than in Ireland with apprenticeships and traineeships etc. at all the big firms.