Is Surbiton too posh for us?

[PrincessBananaH]

I posted the exact same thread about Teddington a few weeks ago. We are expanding our search to other nearby areas and Surbiton came up in our radar so asking here about it too :)
Love the area and we are considering relocating there. We have 1 DD who will start primary next year.
Our budget will only stretch to a nice 2 bed flat or maisonette there, are we going to feel a bit out of place? It seems to be a really expensive area but we love it so much and has good schools and transports.
Anyone familiar with it who can help?

[SuperSange]

I lived there for a while, and worked locally. It was a lovely place to live. What was concerning you? All types of people live there!

[PrincessBananaH]

@SuperSange thank you! I posted the same thread re Teddington and some posters were saying how it's very white MC dominated with most people in very well paid jobs and big 4-5 bed houses and hard to make friends if you don't "belong". So I was just wondering if it's the same in Surbiton

[GingerIsBest]

I wouldn't consider Surbiton particularly posh. It's expensive, yes, but that seems to be something that' happened over the last 10-15 years or so. I have a friend who moved there just as it was starting to get more expensive - it's been a brilliant move for them as they bought a nice sized, but not big, terraced house which has more than doubled in value, maybe more as they've done a large kitchen extension and a loft.

My sense is that yes, there are lots of expensive houses etc, but that it's not an area that "posh" people move to. it's nice and as you say, convenient for transport etc and being close to Kingston is handy.

[sparebooks]

It's not posh! Take a wander down the high street 🤷🏻‍♀️

[PainterInPeril]

Don't worry, I don't suppose Margo and Jerry live there anymore...

[WhenWereYouUnderMe]

This makes no sense. If there are flats there, then people live in them, so it obviously isn't just a town filled with massive houses.

[PrincessBananaH]

@sparebooks the high street is ok but not posh I agree, however there are plenty of beautiful streets full of 1ml+ houses all over Surbiton.

@PainterInPeril I have no idea of who they are...

@WhenWereYouUnderMe yes of course. I suppose what I was wondering is whether flats are mainly owned (or rented) by singles or young professionals without DC and then families with children tend to swap them for houses or move further out

[mrssquidink]

I live two stops up the train line and as another poster says, yes it’s expensive (at least parts are) but I wouldn’t say posh. A mixture of families and young professionals in flats. Very convenient for commuting into London and very handily placed for Kingston, but the “high street” (ie Victoria Road) also has a good range of shops.

[SilverSimca]

I have no idea of who they are..

They are from The Good Life.

I always thought Surbiton was a made up place , it just sounded like the name you would give to a made-up suburban town. Was surprised when I met someone who lived there.

[WhenWereYouUnderMe]

Well I guess that's what happens everywhere @PrincessBananaH - young couples have babies and move out of their small flats.

[PrincessBananaH]

@WhenWereYouUnderMe but houses in central Surbiton are very expensive so if they all move from their flats they either leave Surbiton or can suddenly afford properties worth almost twice the price. I am just asking whether there will be families living in apartments over there that's all.
Not everyone with a DC will need to move away and buy a bigger house, some people might just be as happy to stay in a lovely convenient area and keep their flat, especially if spacious.

[Paradiddlediddle]

Yes lots of families in flats there. There’s a flow of families out towards Berrylands too, you make enough money on your central Surbiton flat or cottage to buy a big house in Berrylands, so that is now full of families and is a lovely area also.

[boopboopbidoop]

@WhenWereYouUnderMe

This makes no sense. If there are flats there, then people live in them, so it obviously isn't just a town filled with massive houses.

But it may be that the flats are filled with students and young couples whereas the OP is a young family. She may be wondering if as a young family she will be in a different socioeconomic position to most other young families there

[PrincessBananaH]

@boopboopbidoop exactly this

[WakeMeUpBeforeYouGo]

Lived in Surbiton for a few years.
Mainly young couples or young adults sharing are in flats. 1 child families mostly in flats too. Most other families tend to move to a bigger space and move towards Berrylands.
Avoid houses near Berrylands train station as sewage smell from the plant is strong in the summers.
I personally feel in the last 5 years, the roads have become very congested and narrower thanks to the cycle lanes. More traffic flow and roads are 20 mph so traffic feels even more.
Primary schools are okay and not many options for secondaries unfortunately.
Certainly an expensive commuter town but definitely not posh.

[PrincessBananaH]

I have a friend who lives in Berrylands and she tells me the smell is pretty gone, it used to be much worse 10 years ago or so. Have you been recently?

[WakeMeUpBeforeYouGo]

@PrincessBananaH

I have a friend who lives in Berrylands and she tells me the smell is pretty gone, it used to be much worse 10 years ago or so. Have you been recently?

They were working on the smell at the sewage plant but don't know if it's sorted it.
The smell was there 3 yrs back definitely... needs a mix of wind direction and warm temperature and it reached till King Charles Road.

[Paradiddlediddle]

It’s gone. It’s sometimes apparent right by the station or over towards Norbiton direction. Once in a blue moon. It’s not in Berrylands any more.

[Crikeyalmighty]

Really nice area with good facilities and connections- great for Kingston shopping-a mix of people, families and couples and expensive ish but not mega posh-

[PrincessBananaH]

@Crikeyalmighty thank you. But what about house types for families, would it be unusual
for a small family to live in an apartment in central surbiton?

[Paradiddlediddle]

@PrincessBananaH without outing myself, my actual job involves visiting families in their homes in Surbiton and I’ve been doing it for almost 20 years. Lots and lots and lots of families in flats.

[Quornflakegirl]

I lived in Surbiton for 7 years 15 years ago. It’s a nice place but not particularly posh. The train links are great.

[peachgreen]

I love Surbiton and would happily have had a family there. There are loads of posh middle class people but they often live in flats too because it is very expensive! I think you’d fit in fine – it’s probably better than Teddington (which I also love) because the transport links are so great.

[Crikeyalmighty]

@PrincessBananaH not at all. It's common- when we lived in Crouch End years ago we sold our 1 bed 1st floor flat to a couple with a5 year old-!

[PrincessBananaH]

@Paradiddlediddle thank you! We are quite convinced, I just hope it isn’t the case of most then upgrading to houses or leaving the area when the kids are older.

i also think it’s a bit less posh than Teddington overall, which for me is a plus.
We are fairly MC ourselves in the sense that we both have a degree and have professional jobs but I am not from the UK and we have found ourseves getting on the ladder rather late in life, hence the compromise we need to make. I truly can’t fit in with all this class system in the UK, I just want to be friends with nice people