Where to live in London?

[SoonToBeDad30]

Hello, my dw and I currently live in Forest Hill and are looking to buy a two bed flat in London. We need easy access to Whitechapel and our budget is 500k. We will soon also have a new baby so we will want a courtyard garden and decent schools.

I live in Greenwich the houses are lovely and we always visit the park and walk along the Thames.
To get more for your money I’d recommend the outskirts of south London though, houses are generally bigger with better schools and still easy access into London by train. Bromley, sidcup, penge, Crystal Palace or lewisham would be my options if we moved.

You could try a bit further out on the district line, such as Upminster or Hornchurch.

Are you city people who want to live v centrally? As a family it might be nicer to get a house in leafy and family-friendly outer London? For Whitechapel probably E or maybe SE.

Bump

@Ishihtzuknot we were considering Greenwich and thought about this: www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-80176564.html

I forgot to say we would like to be in the city, but in a safe environment for 500k

www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/143597/halstow-primary-school/primary

The primary school near the flat looks excellent. Secondaries around Blackheath are poor but that’s a long way away for you so might not be a consideration.

The flat itself isn’t great from a family point of view. With a little one, it’s much easier to have the living area opening onto the garden so they can play in there and you can keep an eye on them whilst doing things like cooking. They’re also messy eaters for a while + need a high chair so you might like more kitchen space.
You might also think about things like laundry which you need to do almost every day + space to store a buggy/scooter/bike etc.
It looks like on your budget you can get a 2-bed house near Westcombe Park station so IMO that would make a lot more sense.
For crime, go to police.uk and put in the postcode to see what goes on in the area.

@lightsabre knows that area well so could advise.

Sydenham?

What’s Sydenham like in regards to safety @Robs20 ?

Bump

Have you considered Beckenham? It has a pleasant town centre, parks, the schools are excellent and property prices not too bad.

Why don't you stay in Forest Hill? You could probably get a house for £500k, or a very nice flat. For example www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-82976140.html

Crystal Palace, Norwood Junction (overground and excellent fast trains to London Bridge), Streatham are all more affordable parts of South London.