Should I move to East Ham ?

[Mougly]

Hi everyone,

I'm looking to buy my first property and would ideally like to get a 3 bed house. I can't afford Hackney where I work and have lived for 12 years. £350-375 000 is my budget, I could borrow more but as 2 artists it could be a stretch in the future. We don't have children.
I've looked around East Ham and Forest Gate and very much prefer FG but can't get a house for that money. Wondering if anyone here has bought in East Ham? If the area is improving and being done up? The houses looked in bad condition compared to FG but I don't mind doing up if I feel the area is picking up. Can I still get a house for 350 there? and what areas to look? Is this a good investment?
Alternatively would consider a victorian flat with garden in Forest gate. Can I get a 2 bed for 350-375? and where to look in FG on my budget.
My partner is Swedish and only lived in London 4 years so some parts of Hackney are dodgy enough for him and he didn't like the look of East Ham.

I would love to hear from people who relocated /live in both.

[ozlemgmail]

Hi

We had the same issue. We lived in Hackney for 10 years but couldn't afford to buy a house in Hackney. Forest gate is as expensive as Leyton and Leytonstone. You can buy a 3 bed house in East Ham for £350k - £375k. It's up and coming area so it is a good investment. West Ham stadium will be turned into luxury flats. shops and restaurant. I heard that the green market will be redeveloped too so there are lots of potential in these area. The transport to central london is great.

Hope you find a nice house in East London soon.

[helentheheron]

I don't know East Ham, but bits Manor Park (kind of between Forest Gate and East Ham) seem very nice, especially if you can get a place near the flats (I.e. the park).

[helentheheron]

Also, Manor Park will be on the cross rail line.

[soundsystem]

Second Manor Park, I know quite a few people who have moved there from Hackney and it's definitely up and coming.

[KirstyNewham]

I'm chipping in a bit late here- hopefully you've found a home you like by now!
We had the same journey pretty much: moved from a flat in Harringey to a three bed with a lovely garden in East Ham. I absolutely love it here. We're close to tube & park and although it's a bit run down in parts I feel very safe and love the friendly community vibe. The local shops & restaurants are great (taste of India is amazing and I can basically find most of the stuff I used to spend a fortune on in whole foods in our local shop for a fraction of the price) and we love walking up to Wanstead flats for a drink in the fleece.
Sure, closer to the flats is nicer and has more variety (good coffee, beer, etc) but for a difference of £100,000 it seemed worth having to walk 15 minutes to reach that stuff! Ditto two artists who didn't want to live on breadcrumbs. It's worked out pretty well for us!

[Squiby1976]

East Ham is a dump, as is Forest Gate/Maryland and Manor Park. I would go for a flat in a better location than a house in any of those. I sold my house in East Ham in 2003. It hasn't changed in the intervening years and I doubt it ever will. Avoid!

[newlabelwriter]

Friends of mine have moved into a house from West Hampstead to East Ham (so quite a difference in area!) and they love it, they said it reminds them of hackney 10 years ago, but demographic is changing and actually they said it's a largely Hindu community and their neighbours are quiet and friendly and a great sense of community. I moved into what was a very undesirable corner of SE London years ago as it was all I could afford at the time, and it's changed massively and house prices have shot up and I am so glad I bought when I did as i could never afford it now.

[TheCyclist]

Squilby - I'm not that familiar with East Ham, but Forest Gate, Maryland and Manor Park are getting Crossrail. Gentrification is well under way in Forest Gate - calling those areas 'dumps' is a bit unfair. Those places will be transformed within a decade.

[Squiby1976]

I grew up in East London and every time I go back it's just dirtier and dirtier. It is crime ridden and I would not walk the streets alone in the evening not let my child out alone in the day and she is 12. I know the area well enough to be very confident in describing it as a complete shit hole!
I couldnt give a toss about crossrail, it's the cheapest part of London for a reason!

[TheCyclist]

All of which applied to Hackney, Bethnal Green, Bow, Leyton, Leytonstone and Stoke Newington - and even Notting Hill at one time or another. Places change - and Forest Gate and neighbouring locales are changing too.

A lot of people do give a toss about Crossrail - that's why house prices are rocketing and new cafes and restaurants are opening.

[sizeofalentil]

I just moved to Plumstead and love it here. You can get a three or four bed house for that here.

[sizeofalentil]

I realise I didn't even answer your question there- basically, what I meant was we looked there too but then settled for Plumstead in the South East. A lot of people are snobby about it but the neighbours / locals are lovely, gorgeous green spaces, cross rail and you can get a lively Victorian terrace house for your money.

[Fink]

I really don't like the feel of East Ham. At least as someone who travels for work you're more likely to travel a few miles for shopping, leisure etc. I really feel sorry for the people who stay within that small area for 90% of the time. I wouldn't say it's unsafe, and I'm quite happy walking alone at night, but a lot of that is age & ethnicity related - I definitely wouldn't feel safe if I were a young black or Asian man as there's a fair bit of barely controlled tension.

If you're still looking, I would look for sure at Forest Gate as the name covers quite a large area and some parts are cheaper than others. Same with Leyton, Walthamstow etc. - they all have cheaper areas. Depends on what you're looking for in terms of school catchment, transport links ...

Manor Park is nice. In FG, the further you get from the Flats and the stations (FG and Wanstead Park), the cheaper it is (more or less). So towards Upton Park & Plaistow are cheaper, especially when you get away from the shops and amenities. There's a lot of new coffee shops etc. opened even since your original post but it's got a long way to go before it's the new Hackney, there's still quite a lot of run down looking bits. And some shockingly poor privately rented housing stock so you're well out of that!

[EssexMummy1234]

I personally would take Plaistow, Upton Park and East Ham over Manor Park, and definitely take them over anywhere south of the A13 e.g. Beckton, Silvertown, Thameside -

[sltorris]

Eastham is really not that bad! I've lived here for 3 years and there's an absolutely fab community. Check out Eastblam.co.uk. The NCT mums groups are brilliant and a few of the schools are outstanding.. plus you're more likely to grab yourself a garden. Ok no gastro pubs or cafes yet.. but The Boleyn ground is about to be redeveloped so things will change. It's Zone 3 for goodness sake.. !! It's an investment..

[whois]

Anywhere on cross rail is a super solid buy and has surely got to gentrify as people are priced out of Hackney then even Leyton and forest gate ;-)

I was looking near Maryland but the housing stock that was coming online was mostly those small Victorian 2 beds which were a bit tight for me.