To old to uproot

Oh dear Ana..I do empathise with that..we did manage to sell our house in about 6 months but even that felt like a long time once we had decided to go! Fingers crossed a sale happens soon.

Six months? I wish...!

But thanks for the good wishes

It will happen Ana ?

Flower go for it, it's exciting to move and although Norfolk may be out of your comfort zone, it's rural and houses are cheap compared to a lot of areas.Find a large village or small town rather than be too isolated though ( thinking long term.)

Sorry ana I did not mean to rub salt into a wound. 6 months is not very long I know, but that was my point, it felt like ages so I really do feel for folk who have trouble selling. My DD1 took 2 years to move due to chains breaking down but is now in her new home. It will happen. Hope you have a pro active estate agent.

I love moving house...........got the itchy feet feeling after reading this.......

In reply to 30 years of stuff...We have just downsized.....from 5 bedroomed house into garage annex, it meant decluttering big style. If something didn't have a place we sent it to charity shop. This has left us with an enormous sense of freedom and the knowledge that our kids don't have the awful job of clearing our house out when we die. I used the method of holding an item, if I felt an emotional attachment I put it to one side, sometimes I just needed to say goodbye to something, surprising amount to charity. Don't let "stuff" hold you back.

I would say it'll work out fine if you want to actually live in that area anyway but not sure,if you're going only to be close to family. I've seen that turn into a lot of dissatisfaction if family aren't as easy to see as you'd like. Perhaps you should get to know the area by taking holiday etc there and form your own opinion. Good luck with your decision!

Tricia F
I married a man like that too - always "it might come in handy"!! I tried pointing out that we are no longer flat broke newly weds but fairly comfortably off although not rich. I then tried emotional blackmail "how on earth will I cope with all this if anything happens to you" - delivered with pathos and almost a tear in my eye. That did the trick - he is now halfway through the loft and I am tackling the cupboards. So far he has not "rescued" anything I have chucked out! Fingers crossed.

I am 75, dh is 89 and we have just moved out the house we have lived in for the past 40 years on the SE London/Kent borders and relocated to a village in Lincolnshire! The motive behind the move was dh failing health, both mental and physical and we needed to be nearer family. We are both so very pleased with our new home and everything about it, just wish we had done it sooner. I am a great believer that age should not restrict your dreams - go for it, with a positive attitude, you can make it work xxxx

Am sure you will manage the move just fine, but do it because YOU want to live in that place, as your daughter could move again and then what. Good luck.

I moved here when i was 65 and have never regretted it for a second. I live 3 miles from my younger daughter , son in law and 3 children, Its the best thing i did and at the right time for me. If you think you might be moving, start preparing now. Start getting rid of junk and clearing out what is not going to be required, and do it now, then when the time comes you will just have the necessities to pack. you are so fortunate to have some prior warning. It would be much harder if it all had to be done in a few weeks. Remember failing to plan is planning to fail.

I am seventy seven and have often holidayed around Cromer. I would love to live down there...but would I?
My friends and family are all up here in North Manchester. I would miss them all.I would miss our wind swept moors and their natural wild beauty,I would miss the big shows in Manchester and the city's vibrancy, I would miss the Lakes, the Yorkshire Dales, York, Chester, North Wales,the Derbyshire Dales. Merseyside and the Fylde coast, all under a two hour drive.In fact I love the northwest of England.I love its diversity.
Within a five minute walk of where I live we have a beautiful country park, we are surrounded by hills. The train station is five minutes away. I can be in Manchester in less than fifteen minutes from where I can catch a train to all parts of UK.
Our local hospital, still with its A&E, is five minutes away. I can get an appointment with my doctor the same day if its an emergency, other than that usually within two or three days.All our family, four children and eight grandchildren live within ten minutes from us.
After writing this I've convinced myself I don't want to leave. What on earth was I thinking of?!!!!
PS I'd love a holiday home down there though.No chance unless the Premium Bonds
provide us with a large win.

I retired to Lowestoft when I was 60 and on my own and loved it. After 5 years my two sons kept asking me to move back nearer to them as I was getting older and might need help. So I did. I like where I am living but so miss Suffolk and the sea air. I would move back tomorrow if I could. But I am 10 years older now with a dodgy hip, so it may not be a good idea, but I get back there at least once a year and that helps a bit.

I must admit nannypiano, I would love the sea in my doorstep but you can't have it all.

No!....I mean 'on' my doorstep.

Hi Flowerofthewest,
You are never too old to follow your heart. I am planning my move to America later this year after waiting 14 years for the necessary visa (I will be 73 in March). My brother and his wife live there and I shall go to them initially until I find somewhere by myself. I visit them at least once a year and have done since 1993 - always travel by myself.

I am gradually getting rid of 'stuff' having taken loads to charity shops and as my DD is moving very soon she will take most of my furniture with her.

Even making arrangements to take my beloved dog with me.

Good luck with your move - I hope all goes well for you both.

I moved twice after I was 60 and one of those was from another country.
Ana has there been any feed back as to why they've changed their minds.

One couple said their chain had broken somewhere down the line, and the other eventually pulled out when the local search revealed that the common land beyond my back garden floods regularly.

Well of course it does, a tributary from the river runs through it!

Am going to refuse to have a 'Sale Agreed' sign put on the board in future until contracts are well and truly signed...

my mum and Dad moved from a big Scottish city to a small English town, Dad did not want to, but now he said its the best think he ever did and wishes he had done it a long time ago.Mum had wanted to move for years,They were both 70, on the plus side Mum got rid of all the Cr.p he had been keeping

We moved aged 61 and 63 so that we could be hands on grandparents - I hasten to add DD and SIL were delighted. Best thing we ever did, as it gave us a new lease on life.

Getting rid of 40 years of stuff/ cr*p was truly liberating. We gave a lot of stuff away using Freecycle.

I wish you luck x

I have moved twice in just over 3 years, DH & I downsized from large 4 bedroom house with large garden when I was 56 & DH 69. We moved from Middlesex (Surrey) to Somerset, quick move in just under 8 weeks, luckily we found a Park Home which we loved. Major downsize, give away or as last resort tip. DH had lived in same area for over 40 years, I had been there nearly 22 years. Move took us further away from DH's DD but nearer to my DD, DH's S didn't come into the equation as he had moved with his family to Northants, we rarely saw them when they lived 2 miles from us.

Sadly 15 months after we moved I lost DH to Terminal Cancer, we'd made many lovely friends & loved the area.

I waited for a year after his admission to Hospital (he went to a Nursing Home from Hospital) before putting my home on the market, after another year I got a Cash Buyer who wanted to move in 3 weeks - I arranged a Removal firm (who packed all my ornaments, china & glass) & a Storage Unit near DD. I hadn't bought anywhere so spent 2 weeks with DD & her Family, then rented a Holiday Flat (out of season). I did find my new home 2 days after I left Somerset but had to wait 6 weeks to move in, so now I've been in Devon for 2 years, 10 miles from my DD, her OH & DGS, new DGC expected in May.

I love where I am now - new area, new friends, bus service, shops one within walking distance, Doctor's Surgery & convenient for major Towns

I suppose there's "a bit of the gypsy" in me as I've moved several times in my life & found a home I love in each move.

I would say go for it, don't worry about the "clutter", I moved lots in my last move but got rid of it all over time, if in doubt take it. Just ensure that you have access to a bus service, shops & most importantly Doctor. If you're near family it will be good for their "peace of mind" as you get older.

MinniesMum - I might try that but I'm not a very good actress. and he never wants to leave this place, says they'll have to carry him out in a wooden box.

I've moved four times in the last couple of years.....!!!! I'm 68. Because I get 'itchy feet' now and again I'm used to moving, so it's less stressful for me than it might be for anyone who's 'not used to it'!! But, as others have said - it's quite exciting to go for 'pastures new' and as I read the other day 'In the end, we only regret the chances we didn't take.' Good luck!

Go for it ! but make sure you research in depth first ...I,e, is the local doctor taking any more new patients ? (hopefully you will not need medical attention, but forewarned is fore armed !)....I moved around 12 times in the UK...to areas where I never knew anyone but so what ? I soon found a job and made friends,and my daughter settled into a new school with no problems .....stayed in Nottd for 10 years until she went to Uni and moved out anyway ....so then I moved to Menorca ...only knew one person (my husband to be)....after a while he wanted to move so off we went to France (he was then over 70 and I was nearly 60)....then after four years of renovating the new house he decided to move again ...so off we went further south ...he is now 84 and looking to moving again ...trouble is like some of you here, he is refusing to get rid of anything, which makes a move to a smaller place impossible ! and anyway, the market where we live in fairly rural France is dead and our house would not sell for a price whereby we could afford to move (having just had it valued ...only to find it would be worth 60,000 less than the price we paid for the land and the building ...let alone what we spent on it ...so we stay here till it falls down !

Norfolk ...ah yes ! beautiful ...lived in Ipswich, but used to spend every weekend in Norwich with a friend and her aunty ...we would go to Samson and Hercules (the lady from Norfolk may know it !) ...then Yarmouth to get a tan before going back to Ipswich on the late bus on Sunday night !)...remember the lovely market in Norwich and that wonderful accent ! Still have many friends I was at school with since the age of 5 and we are all still in touch ..the wonders of e mail !

Go spend some time in the place you have in mind to move to, and see what it is like !

Good luck !