ᐅ Building Back from Urban Migration to the Countryside: Home, City, or Rural Property
Created on: 30 Mar 2018 12:18
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Nordmanntanne
Dear Forum,
I have registered here and hope this is the right place for my question. I searched for a suitable platform for a long time, and this forum seemed the most fitting. I would like to share my situation and would appreciate as much feedback as possible:
My wife and I have been living in Frankfurt am Main for four years. We were both born nearby, about 60 to 70 kilometers (37 to 43 miles) outside of Frankfurt in a rural area. We both grew up there, and until finishing high school, it was never in question that we would one day build a house with a garden in our hometown (we both come from the same place). After high school (we were not yet a couple at that time), we both went out into the wider world. My wife studied in Cologne and Bonn, with semesters abroad in Rome, and I studied in Freiburg and Munich. After completing my doctorate in Berlin, I lived in Australia for a year. Now, we both live and work in Frankfurt am Main. We are both civil servants. My wife is paid according to grade A16, and I am at B3. Our financial situation is therefore quite comfortable. Our workplaces are conveniently located. My wife can walk to work, and I can get there quickly by public transportation. Our living situation is good as well. We have been living for four years in a large apartment (120m2 / 1,292 sq ft), which, however, also comes with a correspondingly high rent (basic rent about 2,200 euros). The apartment is spacious, but its layout means that while we can live here for two or three more years with our one-year-old child, eventually our child will need a "proper" separate room. I won’t go into more detail, but the fact is that we will need to move in two or three years.
Two years ago, we became owners of a plot of land in our hometown. It belonged to my wife’s grandparents, who bequeathed it to us. The plot is a dream: 900m2 (about 9,688 sq ft), located on the edge of a forest, with an unobstructed view of the valley, situated in a quiet dead-end street. It really doesn’t get better than that. Our hometown has about 11,000 inhabitants.
We have been constantly wondering if we should build there. Money is not a problem. We are torn. Our commute would be longer. The town has its own train station with connections to Frankfurt am Main. The train runs hourly. The travel time from the station to my workplace would be 55 minutes, for my wife 62 minutes. We both have free public transit passes. The station can be reached by bike from our plot in five minutes. Commuting would be quite an adjustment for both of us, but I think this is something we could get used to.
One concern is that since finishing high school – which was quite some time ago – we have not lived in our hometown. We visit our parents regularly, and many acquaintances have moved back after studying elsewhere. Life there is completely different from that in a big city. We are both worried about “shrinking” into the small-town life. You also don’t have the anonymity of a big city. On the other hand, for 2,200 euros, you could build a nice house there.
So we are torn between the old dream of having our own “nest” at home and the worry that, without meaning any offense, we have outgrown the hometown and might no longer fit in there. Also, the commute would be an adjustment. We are therefore wondering what to do with the land? Should we move within Frankfurt or build there? Selling is not an option for now, as we do not need the money. Money in the bank doesn’t do much anyway.
I would be grateful for any input!
Thank you
I have registered here and hope this is the right place for my question. I searched for a suitable platform for a long time, and this forum seemed the most fitting. I would like to share my situation and would appreciate as much feedback as possible:
My wife and I have been living in Frankfurt am Main for four years. We were both born nearby, about 60 to 70 kilometers (37 to 43 miles) outside of Frankfurt in a rural area. We both grew up there, and until finishing high school, it was never in question that we would one day build a house with a garden in our hometown (we both come from the same place). After high school (we were not yet a couple at that time), we both went out into the wider world. My wife studied in Cologne and Bonn, with semesters abroad in Rome, and I studied in Freiburg and Munich. After completing my doctorate in Berlin, I lived in Australia for a year. Now, we both live and work in Frankfurt am Main. We are both civil servants. My wife is paid according to grade A16, and I am at B3. Our financial situation is therefore quite comfortable. Our workplaces are conveniently located. My wife can walk to work, and I can get there quickly by public transportation. Our living situation is good as well. We have been living for four years in a large apartment (120m2 / 1,292 sq ft), which, however, also comes with a correspondingly high rent (basic rent about 2,200 euros). The apartment is spacious, but its layout means that while we can live here for two or three more years with our one-year-old child, eventually our child will need a "proper" separate room. I won’t go into more detail, but the fact is that we will need to move in two or three years.
Two years ago, we became owners of a plot of land in our hometown. It belonged to my wife’s grandparents, who bequeathed it to us. The plot is a dream: 900m2 (about 9,688 sq ft), located on the edge of a forest, with an unobstructed view of the valley, situated in a quiet dead-end street. It really doesn’t get better than that. Our hometown has about 11,000 inhabitants.
We have been constantly wondering if we should build there. Money is not a problem. We are torn. Our commute would be longer. The town has its own train station with connections to Frankfurt am Main. The train runs hourly. The travel time from the station to my workplace would be 55 minutes, for my wife 62 minutes. We both have free public transit passes. The station can be reached by bike from our plot in five minutes. Commuting would be quite an adjustment for both of us, but I think this is something we could get used to.
One concern is that since finishing high school – which was quite some time ago – we have not lived in our hometown. We visit our parents regularly, and many acquaintances have moved back after studying elsewhere. Life there is completely different from that in a big city. We are both worried about “shrinking” into the small-town life. You also don’t have the anonymity of a big city. On the other hand, for 2,200 euros, you could build a nice house there.
So we are torn between the old dream of having our own “nest” at home and the worry that, without meaning any offense, we have outgrown the hometown and might no longer fit in there. Also, the commute would be an adjustment. We are therefore wondering what to do with the land? Should we move within Frankfurt or build there? Selling is not an option for now, as we do not need the money. Money in the bank doesn’t do much anyway.
I would be grateful for any input!
Thank you
Well, what should we say – it’s really up to you whether you can imagine living there again. I don’t see any compromise – for children, living in the countryside is definitely nicer at first. Family is also nearby. And friends who have lived outside the village aren’t as narrow-minded as those who have never left it.
A town of 11,000 residents isn’t just a small country village; it also has kindergartens, primary schools, and shopping facilities. Everything else is just about an hour away by public transport.
The only obstacle is a two-hour daily commute – which you could potentially use for yourself, like reading, etc.
I’m not a big city person; I would do it immediately. But I’m not you.
A town of 11,000 residents isn’t just a small country village; it also has kindergartens, primary schools, and shopping facilities. Everything else is just about an hour away by public transport.
The only obstacle is a two-hour daily commute – which you could potentially use for yourself, like reading, etc.
I’m not a big city person; I would do it immediately. But I’m not you.
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Nordmanntanne30 Mar 2018 12:48I see the "main issue" less as the commute and more as the fact that we might no longer be used to living in a rural area. But there’s no real way to try it out either, since you can’t find decent rental apartments around our hometown—why bother, when building is so affordable that it feels like almost everyone we know is constructing something somewhere. Working from home days are possible (we already have those). Childcare in the countryside would actually be better than in Frankfurt, since although the distances are greater, both my wife’s parents and my parents would be happy to help when needed. Transferring jobs is not an option. I don’t think even the mayor of our hometown gets B3.
The plot of land was recently valued at around 180,000 euros.
The plot of land was recently valued at around 180,000 euros.
So a town with 11,000 inhabitants is not a small backwater. What would be missing there that you don’t have in the city? You are in the city every day anyway.
Of course, going to a different club or using a new delivery service every day is unrealistic.
There are also narrow-minded people in the city who never leave their neighborhood. How much contact or anonymity you have is up to you.
Somehow, I don’t understand your concerns.
Of course, going to a different club or using a new delivery service every day is unrealistic.
There are also narrow-minded people in the city who never leave their neighborhood. How much contact or anonymity you have is up to you.
Somehow, I don’t understand your concerns.
I live in a small village with 400 residents, and honestly, that already feels like too much for me. But now to your "problem."
Basically, if I were in your position, I would go for it immediately. However, a one-hour commute every day? No way! And with your jobs, it seems you’re not really flexible without significant compromises.
Do you like living in Frankfurt? I would base the decision on that. Wouldn't it be an option to buy something in a suburban area? The other plot should be easy to sell.
Basically, if I were in your position, I would go for it immediately. However, a one-hour commute every day? No way! And with your jobs, it seems you’re not really flexible without significant compromises.
Do you like living in Frankfurt? I would base the decision on that. Wouldn't it be an option to buy something in a suburban area? The other plot should be easy to sell.
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Nordmanntanne30 Mar 2018 13:27We have also considered the option of selling the property and buying another one closer to Frankfurt. However, we don’t want to build just for the sake of building. We wonder if we really want to put ourselves through the stress. Renting also has many advantages. Besides the flexibility, we don’t have to take care of anything. If something comes up, we simply call the landlord – with whom we get along very well – and they take care of what’s needed. Both of us still have a deep-rooted desire to return to our home region. Maybe we are idealizing it too much? That’s a bit of a concern. At the moment, we might be pushing the idea too much again when we hear birds chirping or think of the local forests, and so on. You know what I mean.
Nordmanntanne schrieb:
We have also considered the option of selling the property and buying another one near Frankfurt.That will probably be very, very difficult, as there are hardly any plots available.
Best regards,
Sabine