Why not?
I think most people thought we were mad. We had a detached house in the peak district with a large garden and beautiful views of the surrounding countryside, but the benefits of living there became part of the reason we left.
We lived in the Peak District for 30 years. A semi-rural small town called New Mills, famous for the home of Swizzle's sweet factory and not much else. People were friendly and it was a safe environment to let the children grow, and struggle through their teens, but after 30 years I was tired of the 'small town mentality'. I was tired of the same pubs, the same conversations, the driving, the lack of diversity. The peak district is stunning in the sunshine but grim in the rain. On a sunny day you can cycle, hike, walk, drive and visit lots of small villages, but in the rain, there's no cinema, theatre, choices for restaurants or bars. I felt I'd 'done' the peaks.
I moved there in 1986 with my first husband. Definitely a village feel, everybody said hello, shopkeepers remembered you and there was a slightly different accent. We bought a 3 bed detached halfway up a steep hill, with a large garden and incredible views across the countryside. It cost £42,000.
Over the next 30 years, I divorced, remarried, had 2 children and settled. We re-decorated countless times, changed a few walls, rebuilt the garden, repositioned the shed. Neighbours were friendly and we often got together with the kids for BBQs or drinks, but the people around us didn't have any drive or ambition for new things, new ideas. They were very content and NewMills was the centre of their universe, but it wasn't the centre of mine, and I wanted more for my kids.
It was a beautiful house with a stunning garden, but home, I came to realise is anywhere we want it to be, and
Our eldest daughter travelled a little when she turned 18 and when she came back she took a job in Manchester and found a flat to rent in Castlefield; an area off Deansgate in the city, close to the canal, nice pubs; a quiet area.
As I was working in the city centre, I would meet up with Hannah, and stay over at the flat. I loved it and I was struck by how friendly the bars were, how mixed the clientele was. I certainly didn't feel old or out of place at 47. That's when the seed planted.
My husband ran his own business and had talked about moving to a Eurpoean city. As the world became more digital, he realised he could base his business anywhere. I loved the idea but our younger daughter, Millie was still in high school, so it seemed a pipedream ....until I stayed with Hannah in her Manchester city centre flat.
We discussed the idea of moving into the city, here in the UK, as soon as Millie finished her A levels, and the more we thought of it, the more we liked the idea. Millie was also ready to leave the small town she called home, so we made a plan to spend the next 2 years renovating the house, to the best it could be to get the highest price. There was a chance we could get rid of the mortgage at the same time.
I had always chosen Manchester for shopping, nights out, treat, theatre, so the girls were familiar with the different areas, though it was changing rapidly. We started looking at flats.
We wanted 2 bedrooms, a balcony and car parking space for one car. Not so easy in the city. Parking spaces are a luxury item. The house sold quickly, so we looked at 5 or 6 properties before we settled on our current flat. Most were letter boxes; a single open plan living space with a kitchen along the backwall. Some had a second bedroom but no storage. We originally settled on a mill conversion; a stunning property over 2 levels, but it was located on a busy road junction and there was no balcony, which I knew we'd regret.
We also took advice from an estate agent who pointed us towards the more residential areas; Castlefield, Piccadilly basin and Salford quays. I imajined myself living there. What kind of things we wanted to do and realised Salford Quays would give us everything we wanted; restaurants, easy access to the city, a theatre and bars.
We saw 3 in Salford quays and really liked them. Our first choice was too expensive but the third was perfect. Rather than the usual letter box, this flat had an 'L' shape so we could have a dining area and a kitchen. The bedrooms were generous and the building (which was originally planned as a hotel) had a high spec. with carpeted hallways, underground parking and a concierge.
We went for it and after the usual problems; buyer backs out, seller panics, new buyer comes in, finds faults last minute, forces price drop blah..blah..blah.. we moved in October 2016. The selling agent was also local and immediately put me in touch with a local lady who organised social events. So in the first week I met a dozen new people who lived in the same block or locally.
We settled in this flat and made a new 'home' really quickly.
If you'd like to read more, check out this post about our life here at Salford Quays.