Moving to Orpington

[ShellaB]

Hi, I'm looking to move to a 2 bed house in Orpington. The property will be on Amhurst Drive which is classed as being in Poverest. It's in-between St Mary's Cray station and Petts wood station. The same waking and driving distance. I'm moving from the area Highgate, and previously lived in Streatham.

I've heard that st Mary's Cray is not a desirable area to live in ( would like to know more information as to why ), and the schools aren't the best. I have two young children.

If anybody knows the road, please let me know if this will be a good area to raise my two children. Driving around the area, it seemed nice, but living there could be a different story. Thanks.

I'll have a look around the area again, it's a 15 minute walk to Petts wood / 3 minute drive. I will also look around the area towards the Cray's and I'll make my decision. Cheers!

I know Amherst Drive. The deeds of the houses do say St Mary Cray, Poverest is a word used by Estate Agents to make it sound posher. It is nicer than the other side of Sevenoaks Way in most parts. It isn’t the worst, but isn’t the best. Some of the houses are owner occupied, some are rented. It can be pot luck who you are living nearby and anti social behaviour is an issue but not terrible. You can buy and ex-LA house in a road like Amherst Drive for about £425k to a 3 bed in Petts Wood will be £200k more. I did commute via St Mary Cray for 18 months many moons ago and never felt unsafe but the cab company had an office there at the time and think they moved away and it has changed the vibe a bit, but not too massively.

If I had the budget of £400k to £450k ( just guessing based on typical 3 bed properties around Amherst Drive) I would be looking at Crofton which sits between Orpington and Petts Wood. Compromise is that the properties are typically not ‘pretty’ and 1960s design.

As others have mentioned schools are an issue from St Mary Cray, much less so in Crofton.