The pro and cons of living in Walthamstow
Discussion
Having lived here a while, and having left for a more normal place 
, thought I would write this to help future Googlers.
Pro
- Superb transport links, Liverpool Street in 20 mins by train and the same time to get to Oxford Street by Tube.
- Lloyds park is nice although not huge
- cheap(ish)
- Must have a hundred cheap takeaways (quality of ingredients/hygiene to reflect!)
-Village Spar is ok with good pizzas
- If you stick to the Spar as above, along with Sainsbury’s then shopping is bearable (the Asda is small and cramped)
- if you are a male who is not wet around the ears than you will be fine (lone females- expect a fair bit of unwanted attention even if you wear a ring. Tip- try not to walk home after 9, get a taxi (an attractive blond female friend found this out the hard way…).
- odd decent cafe and restaurant amongst the generic fried chicken/burger/cheap pizza places.
- Gentrification potential i.e the ‘lifestyle’ crowd who have been priced out of trendier areas due to cost of their wardobes are moving here. So if you feel you are edgy and cool, hop on!
-Foods from around the world to choose from in the many ethnic shops.
Cons
- A lot of it is a bit ‘3rd world’ & scruffy.
- More fried chicken shops than you will ever require & half a dozen or more betting shops to choose between should give you an indication of the clientele.
- Good transport links means it is a destination of choice for mass immigration hell and so very overcrowded. Think 3 bedroom houses with 8+ people living in them, or a Victorian terrace split into 3 or 4 tiny bedsits.
- Due to above, people don’t have gardens and choose to hang out anywhere- see the small bit of grass outside of Asda…
- Mainly Victorian terraces which don't have the best noise insulation & small gardens (high ceilings though).
- General lack of pride by retailers & landlords. Have a wonder around and see how scruffy the shops and general upkeep is.
- crap planning policy, houses have been divided and subdivided and attracts the slum landlords
- the centre of town whilst has always been crap, has now been truly ruined. exit from one side of the station and you will find social housing to your right (complete with balconies to scream messages down to their mates), and to the left metro pads’ and a overly tall Travel Inn which looks into the houses in many streets around On the other side the council have signed off on cheap looking grey clad flats at the top of the high street near Church Hill, along with a Nando’s and Empire Cinema, so expect permanent groups of kids loitering,
- High level of chavs & crime, in April 2014 one of the largest ever seizures of guns was undertaken by Police in Leyton which is the neighbouring town and minutes away. Also if you put Walthamstow into the police.uk website run by the met, the number of crimes each month is tad high!
- Walthamstow Village is tiny and overpriced. Those who have spent too much on Lattes and fashion trends whilst paying high rent in a more fashionable place as ‘your worth it’ are using it to pretend they haven’t failed by buying here… Also the villiage fish & chip shop is crap (serves frozen chips!), for proper handcut try Captains on Churchill, or Nemos further down..
- coffee shops and cafe pavement tables dominated by the male immigrant workers, so can be off-putting for single women walking about.
- Locals don’t think twice about fly tipping, so many mattresses dumped weekly that they have a Facebook page dedicated to them…
- The house prices rise means that it is now attracting types who seek to be different by being the same (red pants and beards...yawn), along with the type of annoying mums who seem belong in Nappy Valley
- High street is terrible, same chain of fish seller has multiple shops, jostling alongside a ridiculous amount of butchers.
- crap, tiny library.
- Wouldn’t want to bring up kids here personally.
- Eastern Europeans men, whilst nice enough have a culture of locating any old brick wall and then hanging around it in groups drinking cheap lager.
Conclusion
Not the worst place to live, and if a low budget/travel time is your main objective then fair enough. But if you want an nice place to live rather than an investment, then nothing to see here.
, thought I would write this to help future Googlers. Pro
- Superb transport links, Liverpool Street in 20 mins by train and the same time to get to Oxford Street by Tube.
- Lloyds park is nice although not huge
- cheap(ish)
- Must have a hundred cheap takeaways (quality of ingredients/hygiene to reflect!)
-Village Spar is ok with good pizzas
- If you stick to the Spar as above, along with Sainsbury’s then shopping is bearable (the Asda is small and cramped)
- if you are a male who is not wet around the ears than you will be fine (lone females- expect a fair bit of unwanted attention even if you wear a ring. Tip- try not to walk home after 9, get a taxi (an attractive blond female friend found this out the hard way…).
- odd decent cafe and restaurant amongst the generic fried chicken/burger/cheap pizza places.
- Gentrification potential i.e the ‘lifestyle’ crowd who have been priced out of trendier areas due to cost of their wardobes are moving here. So if you feel you are edgy and cool, hop on!
-Foods from around the world to choose from in the many ethnic shops.
Cons
- A lot of it is a bit ‘3rd world’ & scruffy.
- More fried chicken shops than you will ever require & half a dozen or more betting shops to choose between should give you an indication of the clientele.
- Good transport links means it is a destination of choice for mass immigration hell and so very overcrowded. Think 3 bedroom houses with 8+ people living in them, or a Victorian terrace split into 3 or 4 tiny bedsits.
- Due to above, people don’t have gardens and choose to hang out anywhere- see the small bit of grass outside of Asda…
- Mainly Victorian terraces which don't have the best noise insulation & small gardens (high ceilings though).
- General lack of pride by retailers & landlords. Have a wonder around and see how scruffy the shops and general upkeep is.
- crap planning policy, houses have been divided and subdivided and attracts the slum landlords
- the centre of town whilst has always been crap, has now been truly ruined. exit from one side of the station and you will find social housing to your right (complete with balconies to scream messages down to their mates), and to the left metro pads’ and a overly tall Travel Inn which looks into the houses in many streets around On the other side the council have signed off on cheap looking grey clad flats at the top of the high street near Church Hill, along with a Nando’s and Empire Cinema, so expect permanent groups of kids loitering,
- High level of chavs & crime, in April 2014 one of the largest ever seizures of guns was undertaken by Police in Leyton which is the neighbouring town and minutes away. Also if you put Walthamstow into the police.uk website run by the met, the number of crimes each month is tad high!
- Walthamstow Village is tiny and overpriced. Those who have spent too much on Lattes and fashion trends whilst paying high rent in a more fashionable place as ‘your worth it’ are using it to pretend they haven’t failed by buying here… Also the villiage fish & chip shop is crap (serves frozen chips!), for proper handcut try Captains on Churchill, or Nemos further down..
- coffee shops and cafe pavement tables dominated by the male immigrant workers, so can be off-putting for single women walking about.
- Locals don’t think twice about fly tipping, so many mattresses dumped weekly that they have a Facebook page dedicated to them…
- The house prices rise means that it is now attracting types who seek to be different by being the same (red pants and beards...yawn), along with the type of annoying mums who seem belong in Nappy Valley
- High street is terrible, same chain of fish seller has multiple shops, jostling alongside a ridiculous amount of butchers.
- crap, tiny library.
- Wouldn’t want to bring up kids here personally.
- Eastern Europeans men, whilst nice enough have a culture of locating any old brick wall and then hanging around it in groups drinking cheap lager.
Conclusion
Not the worst place to live, and if a low budget/travel time is your main objective then fair enough. But if you want an nice place to live rather than an investment, then nothing to see here.
Doesn't this sum up just about every London borough? 
Is Leyton, Leytonstone, Stratford or heading into any of the areas of the East End any different?
Maybe relatively cheaper than out west but every time I check out E17 on Rightmove and think the prices must have peaked, nope, even more unbelievable. Bog standard houses (Not Village!). This is the second page, so not the most expensive!
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/find....
Is Leyton, Leytonstone, Stratford or heading into any of the areas of the East End any different?Maybe relatively cheaper than out west but every time I check out E17 on Rightmove and think the prices must have peaked, nope, even more unbelievable. Bog standard houses (Not Village!). This is the second page, so not the most expensive!
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/find....
Not really as many other boroughs are much nicer!! you have to go further east for it to get worse (Barking etc).
For a local example of nicer - the Wasntead, South Woodford Snaresbrook triangle and up. Generally get nicer as you go up the central line.
Leyton is crap but smaller, Leytonstone is a little bit nicer as they have spent a bit on the centre. Stratford has been badly messed up imo instead of actually creating a large green olympic park, they have instead ruined it by looking at making a profit instead of committing to funding a park, and the town centre around Morrisons has too many alcoholic types hanging around.
Walthamstow prices are hyped as the estate agents have got together with the media and put together a concerted attempt to portray it for what it is not. E.g. glossy magazines backed up by the articles by Guardianistas http://www.theguardian.com/money/2013/jan/18/lets-...
For a local example of nicer - the Wasntead, South Woodford Snaresbrook triangle and up. Generally get nicer as you go up the central line.
Leyton is crap but smaller, Leytonstone is a little bit nicer as they have spent a bit on the centre. Stratford has been badly messed up imo instead of actually creating a large green olympic park, they have instead ruined it by looking at making a profit instead of committing to funding a park, and the town centre around Morrisons has too many alcoholic types hanging around.
Walthamstow prices are hyped as the estate agents have got together with the media and put together a concerted attempt to portray it for what it is not. E.g. glossy magazines backed up by the articles by Guardianistas http://www.theguardian.com/money/2013/jan/18/lets-...
I grew up there late 60's and 70's. Our family owned the wood yard in Wood St before it was turned into an Antique Village. We used to live in Upper Walthamstow just where the forest started, i used to pull the stalls out down the High St.
Sadly, over the years, the scummier element have occupied it and made it what it is, same as any other outer London borough. Shame. House prices are madness.
Sadly, over the years, the scummier element have occupied it and made it what it is, same as any other outer London borough. Shame. House prices are madness.
Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff