London Contracts and Travel

[pkm]

I look on Jobserve and all well paid jobs and contracts are in London. I'm sick of it. Measly rates and salaries in the north. I search for roles in the north and 2-3 pop up with rubbish rates. I then remove the location from search and guess what - fantastic rates and loads of roles (all in London). Therefore I'm seriously considering moving down south and settle somewhere near London. I have a house in the north which I'm prepared to rent it out or sell. Just have to convince the wife ..

Yeah life is great in the north I love it. But money is down south. Will have to get by in a small rented accommodation. I'll settle down in the north when I'm older.

[speling bee]

I look on Jobserve and all well paid jobs and contracts are in London. I'm sick of it. Measly rates and salaries in the north. I search for roles in the north and 2-3 pop up with rubbish rates. I then remove the location from search and guess what - fantastic rates and loads of roles (all in London). Therefore I'm seriously considering moving down south and settle somewhere near London. I have a house in the north which I'm prepared to rent it out or sell. Just have to convince the wife ..

Yeah life is great in the north I love it. But money is down south. Will have to get by in a small rented accommodation. I'll settle down in the north when I'm older.

How long a commute would you be prepared to do?

[TheFaQQer]

My worst rate was my first contract, which was in Reading, and nearly 40% less than I'm earning in the north.

[speling bee]

My worst rate was my first contract, which was in Reading, and nearly 40% less than I'm earning in the north.

90 quid a day in Reading is shocking.

[dty]

I look on Jobserve and all well paid jobs and contracts are in London. I'm sick of it. Measly rates and salaries in the north. I search for roles in the north and 2-3 pop up with rubbish rates. I then remove the location from search and guess what - fantastic rates and loads of roles (all in London). Therefore I'm seriously considering moving down south and settle somewhere near London. I have a house in the north which I'm prepared to rent it out or sell. Just have to convince the wife ..

Yeah life is great in the north I love it. But money is down south. Will have to get by in a small rented accommodation. I'll settle down in the north when I'm older.

Don't forget that things (especially housing) cost more down here. So you may find you're no better off, with a longer commute.

[pkm]

How long a commute would you be prepared to do?

Take an hour from Leeds, you can get to York, Sheffield and Manchester. None of these cities are any better than Leeds in terms of IT roles. Same problem of measly rates and lack of opportunities. So the next option is to travel south - 2-3 hours to London or further north to Scorland. It is a no brainer. I'm not keen on leaving on Monday and coming back on Friday to Leeds. Wife won't like it.

If I move down south (around London), find a small rented acco. to live and work in London. OK quality of life will suffer. I love north - nothing can beat the quality of life here. But I need money and hungry for exciting opportunities. They are all in London - blame the government for not developing north enough.

[kal]

Take an hour from Leeds, you can get to York, Sheffield and Manchester. None of these cities are any better than Leeds in terms of IT roles. Same problem of measly rates and lack of opportunities. So the next option is to travel south - 2-3 hours to London or further north to Scorland. It is a no brainer. I'm not keen on leaving on Monday and coming back on Friday to Leeds. Wife won't like it.

If I move down south (around London), find a small rented acco. to live and work in London. OK quality of life will suffer. I love north - nothing can beat the quality of life here. But I need money and hungry for exciting opportunities. They are all in London - blame the government for not developing north enough.

Better solution is what I do if your prospective clients allows it. (I'm Birm to London so 2 hrs each way door to door). I stay over on Mondays and Thursdays and WFH on Wednesdays. Means only 4 2 hr journeys (rather than 10) and I stay in a B&B close to work so i can walk to the office on those days

[pkm]

Don't forget that things (especially housing) cost more down here. So you may find you're no better off, with a longer commute.

But that's peanuts when companies are offering 80-100k for permie jobs in my field. I agree housing and travel costs are high but if I settle for a small rented acco. outside London I should be ok. I'm willing to compromise on quality of life.

[TheFaQQer]

I'm not keen on leaving on Monday and coming back on Friday to Leeds. Wife won't like it.

If I move down south (around London), find a small rented acco. to live and work in London. OK quality of life will suffer. I love north - nothing can beat the quality of life here.

If your wife doesn't like the thought of you working away, how does she like the idea of moving from an area where you can't beat the quality of life into a small rented accommodation that costs a fortune?

What skills have you got that are leading to poorly paid rates? It might be worth looking at those and seeing what you can do to command a better rate than the ones that you are getting at the moment. I've seen some tasty rates in Lancashire and Yorkshire (albeit in Doncaster), or you could always look at working from home if you have the right kind of skills.

[mobi]

companies are offering 80-100k for permie jobs

Even with than salary, there is not much hope for buying a decent house in London (if you don't own one already).