MancBoy,
1) Nice countryside.
2) Near the coast (I grew up in Devon).
3) Cheaper than nearer work.
4) Feels like I am away from work on my days off (I have variously lived near Slough, in Maidenhead and Reading, and never actually felt that I was away from work; as every few minutes there was a aeroplane overhead that I'd be talking to at work).
5) Near my brother who works at LACC.