£500k to buy in London. Three kids

[Batteriesallgone]

Where should we go?

Don’t know london at all (went to Natural History Museum once as a child!). Need a three bed. House or flat. Good transport links to central London. Good primary schools.

Is this possible? I know London is crazy prices, and it’s huge, I have no idea where to start looking on rightmove. Love the idea of living as close to central London as possible but don’t know if that’s too idealistic / unaffordable / ridiculous.

I must concur with dontfart

Now there’s a sentence I don’t say everyday....

I keep suggesting Southall on MN because it will be on the Elizabeth line. Have a look at the EL for locations that may be cheap now but will go up

TFL says Streatham to Mayfair 54mins
Streatham to Stratford 43mins
Streatham to Heathrow 1 hour 11

More than 1 3 bed for £500k or thereabouts on rightmove

So it’s possible, no?

Just checked Google and you can get to Heathrow in 1hr22 from my house on public transport. Mayfair is 48 mins and Stratford just under an hour. So top end but doable from the burbs and I reckon you could get a little bit closer with some of the areas others have mentioned

My brother lived in Eltham for a while. There was good transport links and it was fairly cheap. It's just 1-2 stops from blackheath which is lovely to go out and eat (lots of nice places) but, lots of friends have bought out of London, rented them out and then rented in London to be able to afford a better area and let the tenants pay off the mortgage

I think you’re right we should check out Purley / Croydon before discounting it.

We do currently have to get a bus for 10 mins to get to wanky cafes. Which is a trial, but somehow we manage

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-65636509.html

This area is quite nice I have friends here and it's a lovely family house, £20k above budget but they might be open to offers

I suppose the big issue with South London is the time it will add to visits to family up North. Not a deal breaker I don’t think but DH will be sad (it’s his family we are close to, I don’t see mine)

What about essex then? Even as far as cambridge all have decent commutes.

I do agree, if you’ve family up north just getting across london adds 1-2 hours.

@rosettesforjill - Heathrow is less than an hour if you take the tram to Wimbledon, then district and circle for a couple of stops then change to the Piccadilly line :)

I would consider Essex, it has decent trains and schools. It isn't trendy or particularly cultural but I don't think you are going to be able to get a direct replica of your current life with your budget, which you seem pretty aware of.

Every time someone mentions purley I just think of monty python!

What about Whitton, Twickenham. V close to Heathrow. Train from Twickenham.

I would look at Redbridge borough as the schools are considered very good and there is a Grammer school system. You could get a four bed semi for £500k . Its about an hour on the central line from Gants Hill to Holborn.

There is no way to buy a house for 500k in London, really sorry. I would suggest looking towards the end of the central line eastbound. Good luck!

Fancying a change doesn’t seem sufficient reason to change the current commuting arrangement and move to London on what’s a low budget for a family home. schools will likely be difficult, especially if you’re applying outside the main entry points.

Short term lets cost a bomb.

Bromley is closer to London than Croydon, the schools are much better too. Try Bickley, Petts Wood, Orpington which are all within the Bromley borough.

What about SW London/Surrey borders? It might not offer the City/cafe culture but a short commute to Waterloo which has excellent links to all the places you mentioned - it’s 20-27 minutes to Waterloo from Stoneleigh, Worcester Park and Motspur Park. Also really good road links to Gatwick (30 mins) and Heathrow (35 mins).

Schools are good too - which is definitely much harder to find in the more central areas as catchments are insanely small.

@Batteriesallgone - we came from up north too. It is a long journey but doable. We tend to drive at night to avoid traffic but train journey takes about the same time.

It’s pretty suburban but reckon you could pick this up for near £500k www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/find.html?locationIdentifier=REGION%5E1484&insId=1&minPrice=425000&maxPrice=550000&minBedrooms=3&googleAnalyticsChannel=buying

loved Bromley

would highly recommend Beckenham

it is just so nice
great shops
great restaurants
schools there are really good
and as far as I know less than 25 minutes to get to the centre of london by train (possibly even less than that )

gosh I envied the people living there - I worked in the area and visited quite a few of the schools there

Or this - super easy to extend over garage and add some value too www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-66133306.html

TfL times are lies! And say nothinh about the often grim commuting experience.

Tad patronising there Loopy

Thanks for your input

Hi OP

I live in West Norwood (just over the border from Streatham) and have done for nearly 20 years. It's a nice area, very up and coming and good links to Victoria/London Bridge and the Thameslink from Tulse Hill station serves Farringdon, Blackfriars etc. Lots of wanky cafes, good schools etc and a short distance from Crystal Palace too.

There seem to be quite a few on Rightmove but there is also a tool called Where can I live? which lets you search by budget and places you need to get to.

Hope this helps!