FAO Londoners - advice on where to live?

[okgo]

How someone looks at Richmond then decides on Stratford I do not know!

I find the whole area a bit 'dead' over there, as in, huge wide open spaces by the Oly park but nobody there, just seems empty, almost like there is something wrong with it...

[mikehiow]

It's simply a case of we didn't find many places in Richmond that we liked and were in budget.

We are going in blind - the difference in areas may be obvious to a seasoned Londoner, but we are new to it. Plus there are elements where we wanted the quiet, leafy lifestyle we have now, and other elements that made us want the more city, busy, modern lifestyle.

We have the next 6 months to get a grip on the end game of where we want to live.

[okgo]

Yes, of course the big thing is budget. To do Richmond properly you need a lot of money, same for Chiswick.

1500 may get you into a decent 1 bed in the area I'd want to be in Richmond, but would be close.

[lamboman100]

Anywhere outside zones 1 or 2 in London is a waste.

All the costs and crowding, but none of the buzz.

West is best.

Try to up the budget and get to Belgravia, Kensington or even Fulham areas.

If it is not zone 1 or 2, preferably westside, then it is better to live in the countryside('ish) and short-commute, like St Albans.

[Hoofy]

Kingston? New Malden?

[AOK]

Could you sacrifice a bedroom?

If you can cut the tube out of your commute you'll also save about £60-80 per month... which can go towards a better area!

http://www.zoopla.co.uk/to-rent/details/33587782

[Jez m]

I live in and would recommend Wimbledon. Excellent commuter links into town with train and tube and the A3 is just a short drive away.
Lovely town ,great restaurants, bar's, pubs etc.. and people are pretty decent. Always pretty lively, not got the real central London 'Buzz' but it comes pretty close. Not rough at all, always feel safe whatever the time of day.. or night! I live a short walk from the station and have on road (free) parking at my house. You should be able to find something pretty decent for the budget you have round here.

[mikehiow]

AOK said:

Could you sacrifice a bedroom?

If you can cut the tube out of your commute you'll also save about £60-80 per month... which can go towards a better area!

http://www.zoopla.co.uk/to-rent/details/33587782

That looks lovely and I kind of regret not looking closer to work.

The thought of living that central seems like a pain, though? From what I've heard, the central areas can be a bit dodgy late at night and driving out of the city on a Friday afternoon would be a nightmare.

[Big E 118]

OP if you are still keeping your eyes open then consider Barnes (SW13) and East Sheen (SW14) which are between Richmond and Putney.

Lovely areas of SW London and under a lot of peoples radar. You're on the river, 10 mins walk from Richmond Park, nice places to eat and on a very good train line (especially Barnes) directly to Waterloo and out to Richmond.

East Sheen and Barnes will be slightly cheaper than the nice parts of Chiswick/Richmond.

[AOK]

mikehiow said:

That looks lovely and I kind of regret not looking closer to work.

The thought of living that central seems like a pain, though? From what I've heard, the central areas can be a bit dodgy late at night and driving out of the city on a Friday afternoon would be a nightmare.

Mike, sorry to say but nothing mentioned so far will be rougher than the Stratford / West Ham / Mile End areas. You really aught to get down here for a weekend and drive through to get a feel for the different postcodes

I think Wimbledon was a good shout (lovely area) but by the sounds of it your preferred 'exit' route out of London is going out towards Essex / A13. Its important not to forget about this. As such, I maintain my earlier recommendations of Rotherhithe, Bermondsey, Shad Thames, even Wapping... especially if you need to exit out via the A13... it takes minutes to get to the Limehouse link from those areas and once you're there you are <20 minutes from the M25 if traffic is OK. There's some good restaurants but more importantly there's good access to the rest of London so you can explore.

Canada Water, Bermondsey and Tower Bridge are still on Jubilee line so you can get to work when you need to... there are also Boris bikes (I think?) so its not too far to cycle to work if you fancied it.

http://www.zoopla.co.uk/to-rent/details/33156197
http://www.zoopla.co.uk/to-rent/details/1487427

[okgo]

Jez m said:

I live in and would recommend Wimbledon. Excellent commuter links into town with train and tube and the A3 is just a short drive away.
Lovely town ,great restaurants, bar's, pubs etc.. and people are pretty decent. Always pretty lively, not got the real central London 'Buzz' but it comes pretty close. Not rough at all, always feel safe whatever the time of day.. or night! I live a short walk from the station and have on road (free) parking at my house. You should be able to find something pretty decent for the budget you have round here.

I've seen people getting their heads kicked in outside that sthole club in Wimbledon, its not pleasant after dark down in actual Wimbledon, the Village is ok, however.

Generally the central areas I'd say are safer than a lot of the surrounding areas. I would not want to walk down the Mile End road at night, or any time of day really. Its fking grim.

Edited by okgo on Wednesday 6th August 12:17

[Pothole]

okgo said:

Jez m said:

I live in and would recommend Wimbledon. Excellent commuter links into town with train and tube and the A3 is just a short drive away.
Lovely town ,great restaurants, bar's, pubs etc.. and people are pretty decent. Always pretty lively, not got the real central London 'Buzz' but it comes pretty close. Not rough at all, always feel safe whatever the time of day.. or night! I live a short walk from the station and have on road (free) parking at my house. You should be able to find something pretty decent for the budget you have round here.

I've seen people getting their heads kicked in outside that sthole club in Wimbledon, its not pleasant after dark down in actual Wimbledon, the Village is ok, however.

Generally the central areas I'd say are safer than a lot of the surrounding areas. I would not want to walk down the Mile End road at night, or any time of day really. Its fking grim.

Edited by okgo on Wednesday 6th August 12:17

I've walked down there at all times of the day and night. No biggie. One man's grim is another man's characterful.

[assadahmed]

I would never have considered moving to Stratford a few years back but the area around the Olympic Park is great. I recently moved to Buckhurst Hill from Hampton but seem to spend all my weekends around the Olympic Park. Now that they have opened up the area to the public there is so much to do there (cycling, swimming, picnics, adventure parks). My 4 year old loves it too and Westfield is actually a decent shopping centre, with decent places to eat.

I have also noted the change in demographics of the people living in the area now. The increase in prices have led to people with hinger incomes moving in, and those with low incomes leaving New schools are also being set up to cater for the influx.

I would love to buy a place in the Olympic Park but at the moment my budget does not allow it!

[Pothole]

assadahmed said:

I would never have considered moving to Stratford a few years back but the area around the Olympic Park is great. I recently moved to Buckhurst Hill from Hampton but seem to spend all my weekends around the Olympic Park. Now that they have opened up the area to the public there is so much to do there (cycling, swimming, picnics, adventure parks). My 4 year old loves it too and Westfield is actually a decent shopping centre, with decent places to eat.

I have also noted the change in demographics of the people living in the area now. The increase in prices have led to people with hinger incomes moving in, and those with low incomes leaving New schools are also being set up to cater for the influx.

I would love to buy a place in the Olympic Park but at the moment my budget does not allow it!

How lovely it must be for all the people who grew up in the area and have now been priced out. Fabulous Olympic legacy, that!

[assadahmed]

Pothole said:

ow lovely it must be for all the people who grew up in the area and have now been priced out. Fabulous Olympic legacy, that!

Yes, I agree with you but its not just limited to Stratford. Where in London are long terms residents not being priced out?? Its happening all over the capital for one reason or another. A new supermarket opening leads to homes in an area going up. Its gone crazy!

[okgo]

assadahmed said:

Yes, I agree with you but its not just limited to Stratford. Where in London are long terms residents not being priced out?? Its happening all over the capital for one reason or another. A new supermarket opening leads to homes in an area going up. Its gone crazy!

And is it actually a bad thing most of the time?

Areas that were considered unsafe dumps are now not due to the change of people living there...

[kingston12]

okgo said:

And is it actually a bad thing most of the time?

Areas that were considered unsafe dumps are now not due to the change of people living there...

True, of course, but those people have to go somewhere and if they can't live in Stratford where are they going to go?

[okgo]

kingston12 said:

True, of course, but those people have to go somewhere and if they can't live in Stratford where are they going to go?

Ilford.

[kingston12]

okgo said:

Ilford.

Yep, I suppose it will be quite a while before than 'gentrifies'.

[assadahmed]

okgo said:

assadahmed said:

Yes, I agree with you but its not just limited to Stratford. Where in London are long terms residents not being priced out?? Its happening all over the capital for one reason or another. A new supermarket opening leads to homes in an area going up. Its gone crazy!

And is it actually a bad thing most of the time?

Areas that were considered unsafe dumps are now not due to the change of people living there...

I would suggest that its not because the change of people, but rather than the amount of investment that has gone into the area. At the end of the day all people want to have a sense of pride with the area that they live in but a lack of investment over many years leads to those residents not giving a damn.