Can I get anything in London for £475k?

[Truetoself]

Wasn’t sure which board to post this. Need to travel to St Paul’s or Bank. It’s just for one person so don’t need more than 2 bedrooms (for when parents come to stay). Happy with a flat but worried about reselling when hopefully they will meet someone and have a family eventually.

Try Sutton. Small house or two bed flat is doable. 30 minutes train to Victoria.

Yes, lots of properties (literally hundreds) in south east London, particularly west/South Norwood and surrounding areas. Direct trains into London Bridge. The further towards Croydon you go, you got definitely get a house not a flat

You can search Rightmove by zones. Also need to consider max travel time and how much service charge is affordable. Converted houses tend to be less ££ than large blocks but it depends on condition. Also for St Paul’s easy to travel on thameslink so bear that in mind. If it’s for a grad or similar will need to consider suitability of the area

Depending what you want somewhere around Stratford gives you great transport links on the central line to bank or Elizabeth line to Farringdon then an easy walk to St Paul’s. If not Stratford then one stop further out to Leyton / Maryland or Forrest Gate for more residential feel. There are some nice pockets in and amongst some less nice areas.

East London is on the central line, so direct to either stop. Stratford has some nicer pockets; Leytonstone is becoming more gentrified. Wanstead much more expensive but more villagey. Then price drops slightly as you move to South Woodford (E18) and further out. Flats sell fine in that area.

You can get a two bedroom flat with a garden or balcony in most of SE London for that. Look along the East London line, and the lines out of Cannot Street/London Bridge. Or Thameslink down from Blackfriars.

Do you want a city feel, or more suburban? Loughborough Junction is handy for Brixton. Tulse Hill is quieter but still nice. Or look out towards Forest Hill/Nunhead, or Peckham/New Cross. Or if you want a house, look further out to Zone 3 and Beckenham/Penge.

Who wants to move to Penge Minge 🤣

it’s possible to get a flat much closer to St Paul’s or Bank and to a tube/shops amenities with better resale potential, if you drop the need for a second bedroom. Is it really worth adding loads of time onto a commute and opting for a less convenient area ALL of the time, just for a bedroom for ‘when parents come to stay.’ Investing in an excellent sofa bed might be a better option. Most people looking for a starter flat quickly drop the second bedroom requirement once they start their search in London for the above reasons.

In my area (SE22) flats have reduced massively in price. But it's not a very convenient area for your commute.

If you can take the heat of the Central Line in summer, I'd agree with PP, Stratford and Leytonstone are good areas to look, or maybe around Walthamstow? To the west, Ealing by be an option. The Lizzy line is very good (when it works) and has AC(woo-hoo!) so I would definitely look east of Liverpool Street, maybe the Docklands?

Ealing is one of the more expensive parts of west London now the Elizabeth line goes there, so ignore that suggestion

I’d be delighted to get 475 for my 2 bed in brixton (ten mins from the tube). Flat prices have stagnated in last 5-10 years. You shouldn’t have any problem at all, as long as you don’t want a garden.

Thanks everyone! Yeah that’s my concern about flats @Hello2025baby. It will be a starter home so it nwed to be a bit of an investment as well.

Not very ‘city’ but good transport links - a 2 bed in Plumstead/Woolwich would be very affordable at that budget, eg

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/167186564?utm_campaign=property-details&utm_content=buying&utm_medium=sharing&utm_source=copytoclipboard#/&channel=RES_BUY

She doesn’t need to drop the two bedroom requirement though!

Two bedroom flats with garden in Loughborough Junction, which is 11 mins to City Thameslink (next to St Paul’s). And 10-15 min walk to Brixton tube. Take out the garden requirement and there are even more. Move two stops down the line to Tulse Hill and knock £50-100k off the price.

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/find.html?searchLocation=Loughborough+Junction+Station&useLocationIdentifier=true&locationIdentifier=STATION%5E5867&radius=0.0&minPrice=425000&maxPrice=500000&minBedrooms=2&maxBedrooms=2&_includeSSTC=on&index=0&sortType=2&channel=BUY&transactionType=BUY&displayLocationIdentifier=undefined&mustHave=garden

You could certainly get a 2 bed maisonette/flat with small city garden in Colliers Wood for less than that. Straight up the Northern Line to Bank and you'd almost always get a seat in the morning. Tubes are every 2 mins or so so no time pressures of trains.