Thinking about buying property in Streatham, London - AIBU to ask for general advice/tips on the area?

[HelloPossums]

Hi all,

I’m looking to buy in Streatham over the next few months (first-time buyer), and am looking for a house with at least 2 bedrooms.

I chose to focus on Streatham as it’s reasonably central and close to my work (in Victoria). There do seem to be really good transport links (train, bus and tube, with Balham tube only being one train stop away and Brixton tube a bus ride away) in the general Streatham area. It also seems well located for people wanting to work in the City or even more towards north London, as Streatham Common station has train links to Kings Cross.

I’ve got a budget of £550,000, so it doesn’t seem like the area around Streatham station or Streatham Hill station is an option, but I’ve found a few really nice places around Streatham Common station.

I’ve done quite a bit of research on the area, and have also visited Streatham a couple of times (more towards the Streatham station end than the Common end though), and it does seem nice.

Are there any areas I should be wary of, or is there anything I should watch out for when thinking about buying in the area?

Thanks!

I like streatham, lived close to it for ages. You could definitely do worse!

Keep away from the high st itself and you should be fine. There are some lovely properties in the area.

Thanks @MyOwnSummer! :) Do you mind if I ask which areas would you recommend in Streatham and what you particularly liked or didn’t like about the area?

Streatham Vale (west of Streatham Common station) is cheaper because it's just less handy for amenities, but there's now a Lidl, the park is getting AstroTurf pitches where the old adventure playground was destroyed some years back, there's the rec. Down past the big Sainsbury's towards Norbury is also cheaper but with better bus routes up the high road - if you want good schools you probably want to stop in Lambeth rather than Croydon. Roads just south of the Common are a conservation area which can make doing up a house expensive.
Watch out for parking restrictions if you have a car, but honestly if you're a few yards off the main road, it's a great place to live.

Thanks @Jackparlabane! It’s really reassuring to read your and @MyOwnSummer‘s comments, as I’d read a few things saying that there are dodgy bits of Streatham, but I think any area of a big city will have lots of places where there are sketchy bits alongside safer bits. So it sounds like the residential roads set back from the High Road are my best bet!

I live in Streatham, we are in a flat near the Rookery Gardens but looking to buy a house soon, probably a similar budget and part of Streatham to you (hope you don't fall for the same house as I've got my eye on 🤣). I absolutely love the common, the rookery gardens, the playground and the cafes, we also have some great pubs (The Bull is my favourite).

You don't need to use the tube from Streatham, there are three overground stations which serve quite a few stations in the centre between them. I lived on the Tooting/Streatham borders for a while, close to Tooting Common, which is quite nice and has an athletics track and lido if you are sporty (I wasn't at the time - what a waste it was for me, they were literally metres away from my flat!)

I live in Streatham, close to Streatham hill station and I work near Victoria. It's great and a quick commute. I like the area and Streatham common is lovely. I moved here knowing almost nothing about it so I was a bit concerned but very glad I did.

Thanks @SuperDuperJezebel and @puffinkoala! Ahh good luck on your house move, Super - that’s really exciting!

Is the distance walkable between roads around Streatham Vale and the Rookery? I’ve heard the Rookery and Common are lovely, but not quite sure how far it is between them.

Also interested in doing the Parkrun when it restarts again on Tooting Bec Common, although it won’t be for a while yet! It seems like it’s about a 30 to 35 min walk from areas around Streatham Common to Tooting Common - does that sound about right?

How is the area for amenities like supermarkets? I’ve had a look online, and it seems like the main supermarkets (big Tesco, Aldi, M&S food hall) are all around Streatham station and the high road rather than Streatham Common. Has anyone found this an issue? I guess online delivery is always an option, but are there any supermarkets near Streatham Common to grab stuff quickly or do a big shop?

*how far it is between Rookery/Common and the roads around Streatham Common station, I meant to say.

@HelloPossums

*how far it is between Rookery/Common and the roads around Streatham Common station, I meant to say.

Yes definitely walkable... Like I said I'm near the Rookery, and I go to a beautician right by Streatham common station. It takes me about 15 min to walk, cutting diagonally across the common, and I'm not one of life's speedy walkers.

The Common/Sainsbury’s/ Tesco are a 15-20 Minute walk from Streatham Common Station. Streatham Vale is lovely with outstanding schools, great pubs and a lovely community spirit.
The Railway pub opposite the station is a lovely multi use community space. With your budget you could get a 3-4 bed near the station.
I really like Streatham Vale.

I feel like Streatham common and Streatham station are super close anyway, they're only around 10 min walk apart. I kinda think of them as roughly the same area.

Traffic is terrible. Lots of bus routes but can take ages to get anywhere due to traffic. Bit shabby in places. Massive Tescos. Errrrr... that's it really.

For that budget why don’t you look at Beckenham?
Trains to Victoria in twenty minutes, every fifteen minutes from Beckenham junction. Think it’s fifteen minutes to Brixton.
There’s park run in Beckenham Place Park and a nice high street.

Beckenham?
No, Streatham every time. Far better independent coffee shops, bakers etc. A small theatre. Lots of restaurants.
The area near Streatham Common is lovely. East of the common is cheaper but still some lovely houses. We brought our children up here. Excellent Church school, scouts, rainbows etc.

Thanks everyone! What are the schools like? I’ve heard Dunraven school is good is particular, although it seems to have a very narrow catchment area as it’s so good, so I feel Streatham Vale might not be in the catchment area.

I lived in Streatham for a number of years, in three different parts. Siblings of friends now live here. Found the trains reliable. Nice folk around Streatham common station returned my dropped wallet twice. I liked the high street.

We lived in streatham for 6 years and loved it. We were closer to the Streatham Hill end which is ideal if you want to get to Brixton, Clapham and Balham quickly. The traffic down the high street is really bad at rush hour so if you wanted to go to Brixton from the common end then it would add a significant amount of time. But plenty of overground options!

Supermarkets there’s almost everything, the big 24 Tesco by the common is great, then you have Aldi and M&S. Further down the high street is Iceland and Lidl plus smaller sainsburys local etc. Then at Streatham hill end it’s mainly the Tesco metro, another express and another M&S food. Plenty of choice and everyone delivers anyway if you need a bigger shop.

There’s so much to do in the area. Streatham common and tooting common both really close and lovely spaces. Loads of great independent shops, coffee shops and pubs on the door step. We loved it there!

I wouldn’t choose to spend 550k on a 2bed house at the cheap end of Streatham. Whilst I do appreciate some of Streatham’s stunning period architecture and would feel fairly safe there, it does have a dual carriageway through the middle, too many unkempt bedsits/rentals etc and the green spaces aren’t all that.

I’ve just had a look and for 550k you can afford smarter areas like Raynes Park or maybe just about South Wimbledon.

If you’re thinking about good schools, then Beckenham is v good + the town centre pleasant.

Other areas that would be brilliant for schools and a family are places like Carshalton Village/Beeches, South Sutton or Cheam Village. More suburban but v family orientated with excellent schools and trains to Victoria (as well as London Bridge and St Pancras).

I agree with JoJo. Streatham is a but meh really.

A 'bit' meh I meant.

www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk

That’s where you can find out about schools.

Have you looked at West Norwood? It's just east of Streatham. It also has great transport links (to Victoria, Brixton, City Thameslink etc ) and nice old houses but it's less hectic than Streatham and has a nice community feel. Similar amenities in a smaller area. Good schools. I know both areas pretty well, I'd prefer to buy in West Norwood personally.

Streatham is full of really good schools, around the vale, Granton and Woodmansterne have excellent reputations. There's a fb group called Streatham Mum's Network with a thread discussing schools in the vale atm.

Horses for courses I guess, I worked in Wimbledon/Raynes Park for years and they might be 'smarter' but I'd rather live in Streatham. Good thing London is so big with lots of choice because everyone likes different things about different places.

Thanks so much for your posts @LemonDrizzles, @dreamingbohemian, @JoJoSM2, @bookmum08 and @7daysoverdue.

JoJo and bookmum, the reason why I thought Streatham might be a good option is because it still seems reasonably good value for what it has, and I like the idea of being somewhere relatively central and urban (with some green spaces/quiet areas) rather than feeling like I’m completely outside of London (and also paying more for transport in some of the further-out areas).

I also feel like it might be easier to find tenants in a more central area like Streatham (although realise I could be wrong!) And, although Streatham has sketchy areas, I get the feeling it’s still very up-and-coming (judging by what I’ve read about it and what posters on here have said), so I’m hopeful it may come up further in the years to come.