Hi guys
Just signed up and hoping to get some advice and chat to some friendly people here regarding my plans to move my family from Hong Kong to Edinburgh.
First of all, I am Scottish. I am from Aberdeen and only left Scotland after Uni, and have since been in Hong Kong. I am now in my 30's and am married with 2 kids. Well, since my daughter was born, I have been contemplating where to raise my kids, and personally I ( and my wife agrees too) prefer to raise them in Scotland.
I have family in Aberdeen, which is a nice place to live, but I prefer Edinburgh as it has more to do, better job opportunities and I think overall its a better city for kids to grow up in. I have been there many times, but this was around 10 years ago and I was staying in hostels but nevertheless I always liked Edinburgh.
At first, I will most likely rent a place near the City Center, so we can get adjusted without worrying too much about transport and buy a car.
Thereafter, with my savings I can afford to spend around £250k on find a new home in Edinburgh. I would prefer a house rather than a flat. Simply because I have lived in really small flats in HK for years and I just miss having a proper house with garden, garage and all the amenities. Also think a house is better for kids as there is more room to play and run around.
The most important things to me is safe neighborhoods, good schools (from Primary to Secondary), location (transport links, vicinity to shops, restaurants, activities, etc) in that order.
So can anyone provide some recommendations of what catchment areas I should look at given my requirements and budget?