To wonder what makes an area “posh”?

[NotCure172]

Just came back from a friend’s house in a very leafy suburb of West Midlands city. She loves talking about how posh it is where lives but I asked her what does it mean to live in a posh area? How do you know it’s posh? She couldn’t really answer my question and the area was very average.

How do you define a “posh” area?

Oh I forgot:

Your child attends pony club, or has several friends who attend pony club.

As an adult, you know how to groom, care for, and ride a horse. If you don't own a horse, a good friend of yours does.

Buying a caravan for £10,000 is a reasonable investment for you, because it's only 1-2 holidays worth of savings, and then you can tour the country.

I’d say if you genuinely don’t see what makes an area posh, you live in a posh area.

Waitrose of course! Plus a selection of independent coffee shops and a tap room. Our area definitely meets this criteria. And yachts are another indicator but you have to live by a marina for that one

Where you can't buy a ton of beans anywhere on the High Street but there's enough organic focaccia and truffle oil to sink a battleship...

tin of beans, not ton of beans, dammit!

No Bet Fred/similar in the high street.

You know how to ski. Your children are learning how to ski. You travel abroad in the UK winter for a vacation to ski.

If you're more Gen Y than Gen X, snowboard.

Low crime and high employment.
Higher than average household income which then generates good social amenities, particular shops and brands to locate in the area.

I didn’t know cash machines did five pins notes. I’ve never seen that.

All of the Waitrose commentators should know it’s when Booths is your only supermarket. It’s FAR superior I

Delis

Good state school

Leafy suburban streets

Waitrose / Booths

Nicely painted homes, neat cared for gardens, off road parking, no chavs, no tracksuits. Doesn't stink of weed everyhwere

I work in a sainsburys in a very very not posh area. The customers are mainly the poshest of the area though. I'd never heard of preserved whole lemons until I started work there 🤣

Those little book things (sorry not sure what you call them) but it's a public stand and you can take a book out or put one in! For free.

If posh was defined by number of detached houses, then what about places like Kensington? Isn't the housing stock mostly flats and terraced?

Places like Muswell hill are considered 'naice'. Muswell Hill has a lot of flats including conversions! In fact, in some areas of london with high house prices, the tendency is to convert the big houses into flats because the cumulative value of 2-3 flats is higher than the cost of a single house. I am not sure if this makes an area less posh.

@BigSandyBalls2015

No Greggs

Greggs and Wetherspoons in Altrincham!!

a very leafy suburb

The clue is in the question. 'Leafy'.

Bigger gardens, bigger trees, fewer arsehole neighbours demanding the trees be cut down.

@Dairymilk50

Those little book things (sorry not sure what you call them) but it's a public stand and you can take a book out or put one in! For free.

A bookcase?

@MySecretHistory

Not sure that posh areas have any shops in them?

Muswell Hill Highgate Hampstead

All posh with lots of shops!

@Dairymilk50

Those little book things (sorry not sure what you call them) but it's a public stand and you can take a book out or put one in! For free.

The little free library. And there are still books inside. And the selection of books is actually pretty decent.

There may even be public water fountains and water bottle refill stations, used for exactly that purpose, rather than for a bunch of drunken lads to wee in on the way home.

You pay for and regularly attend your gym/tennis club/yoga class/Pilates/booty barre. If you attend the gym, you employ a personal trainer advising you on strength training.

You have abundant options for childcare.

You have four kids, and it wasn't by accident. You're relaxed and happy with that many mouths to feed and people to pay attention to. You can afford the nanny and cleaner, so your children have a better chance of getting the best of your energy.

I’m from London so a lot of these aren’t applicable but generally… the kind of shops on the high street reflect the wealth of the local residents.
Expensive food shops/delis/coffee shops/restaurants and boutique clothes/nice florists/art galleries … the more there are, the posher it is

Yeah unless your mate lives on Four Oaks estate Sutton just has pretentions to being posh tbh.

@iCouldSleepForAYear

You know how to ski. Your children are learning how to ski. You travel abroad in the UK winter for a vacation to ski.

If you're more Gen Y than Gen X, snowboard.

HA!

There I was worrying that my local high street gave me fivers last week (though Experian calls it 'Diamond Days', I'd call it more 'mixed') and I am literally now in France driving back from a ski holiday with my poppets who can all ski!

@BobblyBlueJumper

Yeah unless your mate lives on Four Oaks estate Sutton just has pretentions to being posh tbh.

And, tbh, given the number of footballers who live down there...

It's the Royal Town bit that makes people feel a cut above

And nearly everyone votes Tory (whether the policies benefit them or not) because that's just what you do if you live in Sutton...

Your high street isn't full of barbers, hairdressers, beauty and nail shops, fast food and bookies.
The local kids don't try to smash everywhere up or have knife fights outside the one stop.
Your local fb page isn't full of people telling people complaining about the above to stop being 'karens'.