:: Birmingham

Birmingham is a great place to live and study; although you probably already know that if you’re looking for a house here. It’s the UK’s second biggest city which means it’s big enough to have all the amenities of a large city but small enough so you can get around it easily.

It’s got some great places to study as well and we’ve got accommodation which covers the University of Birmingham, Birmingham City University; Aston University; Birmingham Metropolitan College and The College of Law.

The best bits of Birmingham are the shopping (the Bullring is one of the biggest shopping centre’s in Europe); and the nightlife, you’ll never get bored in the evening as Birmingham has loads of places to go out from Broad Street to the Arcadian, to the Jewellery Quarter to the Custard Factory, comedy clubs and even the Mailbox for  something a bit special? What’s more; you’ve got all the culture of a major city with the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, NEC, Symphony Hall and many others. For adventure lovers the many parks and nearby Lickey Hills provide great open spaces for running, walking, cycling or other outdoor pursuits. We’ve put together below a few of the good bits and bad bits of the areas we cover in the surrounding areas:

Selly Oak

good times

not so good times

Right in the heart of the student community for the University of Birmingham.

The Bristol Road which runs through the area is known to be really bad for traffic; fortunately the council are working on a bypass which should be complete sometime in the near future (by 2011).

Good selection of Bars, Pubs, restaurants and cafe’s. Make sure you check out the Selly Sausage cafe for their legendary pancakes.

Because it is a student area it can be a little noisy!

Getting to the University of Birmingham only takes a matter of minutes walking and the train to the city centre from Selly Oak Station only takes about 7 minutes. Plus the University is the only one in the country to have its own railway station.

Parking can be a pain sometimes; if you don’t need your car it’s probably easier to leave it at home.

 
Harborne

good times

not so good times

Still really close to the University of Birmingham and University Train Station; 5-15 mins walk.

Although close to the University of Birmingham, it’s not in the heart of the action.

Close to Harborne High St where you’ve find some great Bars like the Junction and Plough.

 

Nice and quiet so good for getting some serious work done! Also means parking is a lot easier.

 

Because the area is not as popular as Selly Oak you will often find you get more for you money when renting.

 

 
Selly Park

good times

not so good times

Great access to transport as on a main bus route to the city centre.

Bit further away from UoB; can take about 15-20 mins to walk.

Good access to shops on the Pershore Road.

Parking can be tricky for those properties on Pershore Road but many have off road parking.

It’s a bit quieter than other areas.

 

Again, you’ll get more for your money in this area.

 

 
Edgbaston

good times

not so good times

Great access to the City Centre; just 5 mins to 5 Ways and Broad Street

The Hagley Road can get really busy at times!

Parking is pretty easy.

 

You normally get great value for money.

 

Good access to local shops and food places on the Hagley Road.

 


We hope that the above was useful, if there's anything you would like to know why not give us a call.