to wonder if there are ANY houses for sale within commuting distance of London for a reasonable price?!

[MrsMcgee]

Someone come and help us find somewhere to live!
We are currently in Oxford which is 2 hours each way, my poor DH certainly cant do it long term and we want to move closer in.

The trouble is, everywhere within what is a reasonable commuting time and a nice area is about half a million for your average family home!

We are currently looking at Chelmsford, Ashford (kent) and are starting to think about Reading. We would love other suggestions of places we have missed!

We have a budget of about 325,000 and want a 4 bed ideally. Somewhere with fairly good schools and a few ducks to feed :o the closer the better. Am I a bit pie in the sky?!

given for best suggestion! :o

Have a look at the line that runs from London Bridge down to Uckfield. it is not as often a covered like as many others and result is it is easier to get houses at somewhat decent prices. I would look from Oxted and down.

Hazlemere/Holmer Green just outside of High Wycombe. 30 mins on the train.

Stokenchurch/West Wycombe-also high wycombe station. Princes Risborough- same line, has its own station.

Surrey.

NE London with views over London

Uckfield is very nice indeed - though don' buy in the flood zone!

bland but spacious, no ducks

Have we had the london mainline station yet? Is the most important factor, unless jobs likely to change.

How is Oxford two hours each way? I live in North Oxfordshire and it's only 1hr from here! If the Kidlington rail link goes ahead it'll be 40 minutes from there as well.

Thanks everyone - Im looking these up on national rail & zoopla now!

Milton Keynes.

Borough Green (part of Sevenoaks, but 5 miles out) Fab links to London,M25, M20. Lots of countryside and nice people and safe. 3 bed house £250K

Oh sorry, ideally into waterloo.
whomovedmychocolate: Its just under 2 hours, its 1hour on the train, 20 odd mins on tube, and 20 to station assuming clear runs. Sorry I should have been clearer that it was door to door.

Have a look at Leighton Buzzard - lovely place with lots going on for young families. Only 30 mins from Euston on a fast train.
Several outstanding primary schools - Greenleas, Southcott, Pulford & Dovery Down.
Leighton and Linslade Middle Schools also v. good.
Cedars Upper School also gets good GCSE results.
For 325,00 you'g get a nice 4 bed house in catchment for the better schools, such as:[[
this
or
this
both within a 10 minute walk of the station

I was going to suggest Bromley or Orpington. Petts Wood even?

If you don't mind a terrace, this one is very close to the countryside and opposite a nice station.

Letchworth, Hitchin, Baldock are worth a look as already suggested. Letchworth is cheapest out of the three.

Ah I see. Waterloo is a bugger to get to - used to do it myself. I would look at Bromley. I used to commute to Westminster from Bromley and it wasn't too bad at all.

whomovedmychocolate: DH is in westminster! How long did it used to take you?
Some of these houses are great, love the ones in Redhill and Maidstone!

Then you want one of the fast lines into Waterloo MrsM- basically following the M3 corridor. Woking probably too pricey and schools a bit mixed but there are number of places further out which would make sense. I've mentioned Fleet and nearby Church Crookham, but Frimley is also a nice village with good schools (short drive to Brookwood train station). Camberley and Bagshot are ok too with lots of new houses being built, about 15 mins drive to Brookwood. Farnborough is on the mainline, has some nice bits but again the schools are very mixed.

Guildford is more of a centre but I think you need to be more careful with catchment areas so that would bump the price up. Same with Farnham, lovely but £££.

Wokingham has great schools and is just about within budget but is on a horrid, clunky slow line into Waterloo.

I know this area pretty well so DM me if you want me info.

MORE info!

You can buy my house for £360K if ya like.

Four double beds, victorian, heaps of original features

In catchment area of an outstanding primary and secondary.

20 minutes to Victoria.

It's in SE25 (.... cough... Croydon..... )

IMO Maidstone has some nice places but it is a little too close to Medway Look at Tonbridge,Sevenoaks and all surrounding villages. Try TN15 post code but avoide West Kingsdown....

About an hour plus five minutes to get to the station - Lived in Downham which was a bit shitty but is probably gentrified by now (there's a train station there). Got the train from there to Waterloo and got the Jubilee line. Evenings took ten minutes more for some reason but ce la vie.

Sorry station is Grove Park not Downham if you are looking for it.

You can live much further out if on the right line into Waterloo. Best way to do it actually is get a tube map and see what goes into Waterloo and track out through the zones.

If westminster, then charing cross could be another potential mainline station as well as waterloo.

Somewhere there's a commuter map online, it's a rail map and you can see all the train lines out of london and click on a station and it gives you commuting time, train frequency and house price info.

Villages near Royston, Hertfordshire? Wouldnt recommend Royston itself, but some nice villages nearby. Great Shelford, Foxton and Whittlesford all have train stations that you can get to London from - they're in Cambridgeshire