Where should I live in Glasgow

Hello, there is a chance I may be moving to Glasgow next year for work, however I don't know the city very well. Having only been there twice, I have had a great impression of the place and really like Scotland as a country.

So, not knowing the city very well I am hoping to get some advice on places to check out where to potentially buy/rent in the coming months as we're sorting ourselves out.

We've got some outline requirements based on two scenarios I suppose.

Scenario 1. Somewhere close-ish to Glasgow University (near Hillhead Underground I think) as thats where my wife will be working. We like living in fairly quiet areas but with a few nice coffee shops/bars/restaurants etc and close to a few parks. Don't really want to be on busy commuter roads but happy to be centrally located and are happy to look at houses or apartments (but not right in the city centre I guess).

Scenario 2: Somewhere slightly out of the city with good links to the Centre so we could get a house with a garden. So ideally on a train/metro line. We like the idea of a nice relaxed village/small town or at least somewhere rural but easy access to the city (Understand this might be a big ask!).

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

West end. Near Hillhead is ok. Near Kelvinbridge is good. Just don't go as far as Partick.

Thanks @croft - would those places be your choice of where to live in the city then? Or are there other places you'd recommend. Thanks again.

For sure. I lived in a few places in the west end and always found Kelvinbridge to be nicest and easy to get into central.
Also lived on the southside for a week. Do not, I repeat, do not live south of the river. It's ghastly.

Thanks mate

@croft made a good suggestion for Senario 1.

However the Southside is not all bad. For Senario 2 check out Strathbungo, Pollokshields and Dumbreck lots of rail and subway links to Glasgow uni and it will be cheaper and quieter than the Westend if that is your thing.

thanks @ricstr. We just need a list of places to check out when we pop up in a few weeks. So thats super helpful.

So, is the West End quite "studenty" as its close to the Uni? I've had my fair share of living amongst students whilst working over the past 10 years, and whilst they are definitely not all the same, I have not always been surrounded by the tidiest students which can become a little annoying.

Yeah the Westend is where a lot of students live. If you want to stay Westend but a little quieter check out Hyndland, Anniesland and Jordanhill areas too. They about 20-30 min walk to the Uni.

Agree with @ricstr Southside view, grew up there and it seems to be becoming the place to be, places a little further out such as giffnock, clarkston or Newton Mearns. For the prices you pay in London you would get a 2-3 bed house there.

I have a two bed flat in Newton Mearns and the rent is £480pm

Nice one thanks all. Interesting to hear the North/South river business on here as well. I have been told good things and bad things about Southside, we'll go an check it out for ourselves soon enough. If anyone has any further recommendations keep them coming.

Thanks!

#southside4life

Does seem you get more for your money on this side of the city.

Nice and handy for heading out the Ayr road etc too.

I had a really nice flat in Pollockshields which was a 7 minute train to Central and walking distance to the subway for getting around to the west end. You probably will have to like tenement housing though.

I lived in Glasgow for about 8 years until I moved south in 2009. The city has changed a lot since then and some of the so called rough areas are pretty expensive now!

I lived in Dennistoun for a few years (Meadowpark Street, Armadale Street) and then moved into Merchant City (Albion Street).

Dennistoun was very sketchy when I moved there but apart from the odd altercation in the street at night I didn't have any real trouble.

Southside is great, you get more for your money and there are so many local stations that it's quick and easy to get into the city in 10-20 minutes. The West End is also really nice but gets more expensive for places near to the uni.

Depending on how far you would be willing to live away from Glasgow there are a lot of options there as well. Now that I'm a bit older I would consider living near Balloch or Helensburgh, maybe even Gourock as they are only an hour away on the train, you get lots more for your money and the great outdoors is literally on your doorstep.

Depends on your budget, if its on the higher side look at Park area (g3), Dowanhill (g12 west end) and a little further out and quieter look at Bearsden/Milngavie (which are nice suburban areas close to the city).

Milngavie

Not pronounced how it's spelt. I learned this the hard way.

Thanks all. My wife has visited Bearsden and Milngavie which she liked so they are definitely on the "places to check out" list.

In terms of budget to buy its not huge, maybe £260-300k if we're lucky, but most likely around the lower end, which looking around could get us a nice 2-3 bed flat in a few places. And I guess a little more the further we go out.

The above is super, super helpful, so thank you.

Rent first I guess. Property in Glasgow is expensive at the moment, I tried to buy recently and got smoked at a closing date. Going to wait a year or two and see what happens.

Yeah we're thinking we might have to rent first, in an ideal world we would buy somewhere but we're fine to rent too. Budget wise it'd be around the £800-900pm I think.

If you crave suburbia, an alternative to Bearsden and Milngavie, Bishopbriggs is one stop on the train into the city (then 10 mins on the tube to the West End), 20 minutes easy bike ride to the city and you could probably get a 3 bed detached house on your budget. You can get to the Crow Road and up the Campsie Fells in 20 minutes from there.

You didnt say whether you have a car or not, but the West End is a parking permit nightmare if you do.

I've lived in the west end of Glasgow my whole life and no doubt I've been 'institutionalised' by the west end.
Its hard to leave. 24hr supermarkets near by, I can pop out for a kebab at midnight and be back home in 10 minutes. Its nice having everything near by and not having to use the car too much. Really good transport links with nice parks and museums and all that pish.

But I'm married with children and now looking at the choice of staying in the west end but paying 200k-300k for a flat in one of the upmarket areas ie Hyndland and Dowanhill.
The other option is moving further out to suburban Bearsden etc. The upside being a detached house with a garden and garage. But then everything will feel very far away (even though its only 15 minutes in the car).
If you have children or might do in the future, having a good primary school near by needs thought.

Studenty but nice west end? or posh suburban Milngavie? Or up and coming Southside with plenty of its own ultra posh boroughs?

You should rent a place for 6 months or a year and get to know the city. £800-£900 will get a very nice large flat in the west end.

When you move here remember to post a picture of your bike!

@FlyinScot thanks mate. Yeah we have a car, but are in a no way reliant on it, we both cycle everywhere but find its useful for the weekends away and seeing family who I find often need the help of a car - so we won't be getting rid of it. We currently live in our own parking permit nightmare so I don't think it'll be a deal breaker for us at all.

@carbonsinglespeed we're looking in the Hyndland / Dowanhill / Kelvinside areas and there are some lovely places. We, like you, are quite used to having a lot on our doorstep in terms of convenience and access to a city centre, so I think we're going to look at the West End as our first choice and consider other options if things don't work out.

We don't have a family yet, but are looking at apartments that will allow us to start a family without having to think about moving as soon as it happens. And yeah renting is definitely on the radar, it will depend on whether we find somewhere we really like soon enough, otherwise we'll suck it up and rent (and pay the ridiculous fines for ending our mortgage early!)

I'll definitely post a picture of my bike when we move up. Thanks again

Further to all the above. Does anyone have any recommendations for Solicitors in Glasgow? I think we might need one fairly soon.

Cheers
Andrew

is it for a mortgage?

If so, I'd recommend alison boyle at Clarke Boyle. Offices 1 min walk from Central Station and nae bullshit.

Mellicks on hope street did all my legal work... They are good too

Cheers. It's for purchasing a flat, so yeah a mortgage will be in place. I'll give those two a ring.
Thanks again