London neighborhoods

[GigiGreen]

Hi ladies,

After living for a very long few years abroad I'm returning to London and was hoping to get the latest on neighborhoods you'd recommend for a dual heritage family.

We'll be renting initially to test things out but it would great to pick a nice neighborhood to avoid the cost and hassle of moving to find that "perfect" spot.

I realize a lot has changed in London over the years and places I probably wouldn't have considered in the past out of distance, time of my life etc are now popping up as good options for families.

As for requirements here they are;

• Location is flexible but ideally no further than zone 3 as still want to feel like I like in London.

• Excellent nurseries (with kids of all complexions)

• Decent Transport but not essential that it's on a tube, overground and frequent buses are also fine.

• CLEAN: I know it's a capital city, but I've noticed after living in many places - I can't handle places that are dirty, whether that's dog poo lying around, trash on the streets or horrible tagging and unartistic graffiti.

• Has a community feel and with lots of families

• Not too far from some green space

Would be great to hear your suggestions and thank you!

Can you give us some idea of the size of property you want, and your budget?

Also, which parts of town do you need to reach easily (eg daily commute) and, if you have family you like to visit London, which direction they are in?

Forest Hill and the surrounding areas might fit the bill, depending on budget.

@SquirmOfEels

Can you give us some idea of the size of property you want, and your budget?

Also, which parts of town do you need to reach easily (eg daily commute) and, if you have family you like to visit London, which direction they are in?

Thanks for your response. As for commute times, this doesn't matter as we'll be working remotely, but it would be good to have access to good transport links that makes it easier to get to central parts of London easily. Family are outside London so this also isn't a factor.

As for budget, up to 2k but no fewer than 2 beds. Outdoor space would also be nice, so balcony or small garden. I like
modern developments but was wondering whether they lack the community vibe?

Lee/Higher Green

Brockley, Honor Oak, spreading out to Depthford and Lewisham (lots of regen there ATM) sound like good places to start. Diverse, good linkages, Brockley is clean and family oriented. Could spread out to Forest Hill, Lee, Hither Green in searching.

Crouch End
Muswell Hill
Tooting
Balham

2000/month for 2 beds...
East Dulwich
Peckham Rye
Nunhead
Herne Hill

Thanks for all your suggestions. All sounds great. Out of interest, what's your opinion of Richmond and Chiswick areas?

Richmond and Chiswick is lovely ( I live in Chiswick so if you have any questions - ask)

but will be VERY difficult to find a decent 2bed within £2k

Richmond and Chiswick

Both very green.

With West London e.g. Richmond upon Thames, Hounslow you have to be careful on where on the Heathrow flight path you end up on. East Sheen (Richmond upon Thames) has the worst of it as you can see the aircraft insignia very clearly when they come into land and before Covid there was a plane every few seconds.

You should have a look on rightmove.co.uk at property to see what kind of properties are available to rent/buy in the areas people have mentioned. You can then zoom in on Google street maps to see properties generally in the area.

I guess something to think about if you want to buy after a year or renting is what your budget is for that too - not ideal to move to somewhere and love it and then have to leave again to buy! This may not apply to you of course - but what I could afford to rent in Zone 2 SW was very different to what I could afford to buy there and I ended up moving out to Zone 3 SE.

Your budget won’t get you far in Zone 1-2 im afraid. Maybe Zone 3 for a 2-bed but you’ll be making a compromise eg a bus away from a train/tube station. I’d look in south east London for your budget- Eltham, Lee, Deptford.
Richmond and Chiswick and other places in SW London- fits all of your criteria but not budget. If you want green spaces, great community feel, lots of activities for children, close to London- SW has it all

South East: Brockley, Forest Hill, Peckham,