So I am not sure how much is doable here, in UK from what I understood you do not really buy a piece of land but sort of “rent” from the Queen (King now), I am again not 200% sure but my uncle was telling me that basically he sort of rent the land from the Monarchy and pay a rent to keep it and then they build his house on top of it, if when he die no one pay for that land it goes back to the King.
Also he build his house probably more than 30 years ago, the only way to build an house here is to go outside London (where the most jobs are concentrated) otherwise there is literally no space, London is pretty much build with those victorian houses that are falling apart and they keep to renew them (big failing on it) or the new fashion thing is to build skyscrapers with thousand apartments inside, mostly one bedroom (this is what is happening in my area, lately they sort of build 10 buildings full of apartments, is impossible to even see the sun now).
This is why a life outside London is supposed to be easier (wish for a seaside town), as said in those town to find job is a bit more harder, my girlfriend as a very good job in here and she loves it so it will make me feel sad also to ask her to leave, she can’t travel hours every day to get to work and then home, this is why I am sort of stuck here.
We tought to go maybe in zone 6 (so far away from the center) but the situation is not much better honestly and the train monthly ticket is insane.
It is a bit weird how London work as you said it is literally to be trapped in the system and is hard to get free of it
