Anyone live in or near Hastings, West Sussex?

DemonAV

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Me and my wife are looking to move out of London. We would like to be near the sea and after looking at property prices in Hastings it could be a contender. Anyone here live in or near Hastings? If so what is it like. Does it have work (I'm currently a manager for a waste management firm but am looking to cut out the stress and move away from management. I have a Bus licence so I could drive for a local bus operator, my wife works in Insurance at present but could work in other areas) Is the area still thriving or is it on a downturn? What areas in & around Hastings are decent areas and what areas are not so good etc. We are both in our mid 50's by the way.
Thanks.
 
Apologies that I am not answering your question.

I just wanted to say I think what you are doing is brilliant, very envious and it sounds wonderful life changing (clearly for the better) move

nice one
 
I can't really answer your question but for what little it is worth, based on a few visits over the years, my impression of Hastings has always been it's a bit rundown. A seaside town that is a little past its best.
 
A seaside town that is a little past its best.
I think you could say that about most seaside towns. They are in their 50's, a vibrant night life might not be what they are looking for :)
 
Lol, yes. Not looking for nightclubs just a few half decent places to eat out occasionally and a few decent pubs. More concerned about the area being depressed and full of chavs causing trouble to be honest. Looking on youtube Hastings looks decent. Not at all like Margate or Bognor etc :)
 
Hastings is in East Sussex, but close enough. Not too near, but I live in West Sussex and know the Sussex Coast reasonably well.

With the exception of Brighton most seem pretty sad and run down now. You can see how they were once charming but that is not so much in demand now.

Hastings is one of the better ones as it still attracts tourism because of the history.

Cheers,

Nigel
 
I can't really answer your question but for what little it is worth, based on a few visits over the years, my impression of Hastings has always been it's a bit rundown. A seaside town that is a little past its best.
On my recent visits I would disagree and have seen a town on the up since my last visits many years ago.
Great street café life and plenty interesting restaurants popping up catering for all tastes.
 
Bexhill on Sea is just a short drive along the coast from Hastings. Quieter than Hastings, the shopping centre isn't much to write home about. Have some family living there, so often make the trip along the coast from Hampshire to visit.
 
Bexhill and Rye, both either side of Hastings are nice, I would happily live in all 3. Another place I like with good property prices and loads of ex Londoners is Broadstairs, but a lot further along the coast.

Cant help with work advice, but I have friends in all of the above places who love it, although pretty much like anywhere now, they do have their rough parts and especially so in parts of Hastings.
 
Thanks guys. That's another 3 places added to the list.
 
Offer of assistance withdrawn as OP cannot be bothered to reply to PM or indeed contact me on the number provided
 
Offer of assistance withdrawn as OP cannot be bothered to reply to PM or indeed contact me on the number provided
Sorry but I didn't really want to call you as I don't know you. You're right I should have replied to your PM and for that I apologise.
 
I moved down there for work in 2003, after 30 years of living in Broadstairs (between Ramsgate and Margate). In the 15 years I lived there I saw a massive (positive) change in the area, so much so it was really hard to making decision to move back to Kent (Sandwich) around 18 months ago.

Having lived on the coast all my life, you know seaside towns have their downsides, Hastings was / is no exception. But it's buzzing all year round (in a good way, as in it's not a ghost town over winter), has had a lot of money pumped into it over the past 15 or so years, and love them or hate them, the DFLs have helped in the regeneration. The Old Town & St Leonards both have lots of decent eating and drinking places, it's a quick train or drive to Bexhill or Rye (more eating and drinking places) and half hour up the road is Tunbridge Wells (even more eating and drinking places with decent shopping to boot). Train to London is around 90 mins so not too bad either.

It seem to have a microclimate in the summer - after a hot day, the beach is still busy after sunset. There are also the annual events like the food festival, Jack in the Green, Old Town Week, bonfire night and loads more. As said, it was a really tough decision to move back to Kent, but the two main reasons were better schools (not great in Hastings) and to be closer to ageing parents.

If you want any info on east Kent - Margate, Broadstairs, Ramsgate - happy to pm you. All I would say is, in terms of regeneration, Margate is now like Hastings was about 10 years ago. It also seems to be full of hip edgy young Londoners who wanted to escape London only to move somewhere else and try and make it like the place they escaped from, and hang out with all the other people who've moved down from the place they wanted to escape from. All a bit odd imo.
 
I moved down there for work in 2003, after 30 years of living in Broadstairs (between Ramsgate and Margate). In the 15 years I lived there I saw a massive (positive) change in the area, so much so it was really hard to making decision to move back to Kent (Sandwich) around 18 months ago.

Having lived on the coast all my life, you know seaside towns have their downsides, Hastings was / is no exception. But it's buzzing all year round (in a good way, as in it's not a ghost town over winter), has had a lot of money pumped into it over the past 15 or so years, and love them or hate them, the DFLs have helped in the regeneration. The Old Town & St Leonards both have lots of decent eating and drinking places, it's a quick train or drive to Bexhill or Rye (more eating and drinking places) and half hour up the road is Tunbridge Wells (even more eating and drinking places with decent shopping to boot). Train to London is around 90 mins so not too bad either.

It seem to have a microclimate in the summer - after a hot day, the beach is still busy after sunset. There are also the annual events like the food festival, Jack in the Green, Old Town Week, bonfire night and loads more. As said, it was a really tough decision to move back to Kent, but the two main reasons were better schools (not great in Hastings) and to be closer to ageing parents.

If you want any info on east Kent - Margate, Broadstairs, Ramsgate - happy to pm you. All I would say is, in terms of regeneration, Margate is now like Hastings was about 10 years ago. It also seems to be full of hip edgy young Londoners who wanted to escape London only to move somewhere else and try and make it like the place they escaped from, and hang out with all the other people who've moved down from the place they wanted to escape from. All a bit odd imo.

Many thanks for your post.
 
Many places we stopped going to when things closed down, or ferry's pulled out years ago and turned into ghost towns are now having money spent and turning into go to places.
We are now spoilt for options for the weekend from Whitstable around to Eastbourne and it is getting better all the time.
 
The shopping in the town centre is like you would expect for a seaside town - more of your cheaper, budget shops. There's a bit of everything down there though so you're well covered.

Unemployment rate is quite high so it gives off a poor image - you will see a lot of tracksuit wearing, terrible tattoo possessing individuals while walking around. Between June and September the tourists flock down so parking can be a bit of a pain in the centre, but otherwise it's not too much of a problem.

Property is cheap and depending on what you're after, with good land (if you're a short walk/drive away from the actual coastline). Some areas are more desirable and have the price tag to match, but there is something for all budgets and all within a short distance of the centre.

Work wise I know Saga have one of their main offices there (so good for your wife). Not aware of any other companies with a known presence in Hastings.

Travel wise there has been talk about a high speed rail service for a little while as only one train can fit the current tunnels, so the timetables reflect the wait time before entry (there are two tunnels, one before St Leonards Warrior Square and then one before Hastings). I don't know anything about the bus routes unfortunately. Mini cabs are cheap enough for the short trips around.
 

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