How do you think the riots will affect house prices in London?

[NotAnotherNewNappy]

Until very recently, we were looking to buy our first home in one of the areas affected by the London riots. I was meant to arrange viewings for this week but, due to the troubles, nothing new has come on the market and we decided not to travel to the area. DH and I are now wondering if potential sellers will be too distracted to deal with EAs and whether we should really be looking to move further out to raise our family.

Do you think the troubles will slow the market down and possibly affect house prices? Or will London bounce back again in a couple of weeks and continue to prove itself untouchable?

i damn well hope not.... since my local shops got looted.

in all seriousness, i don't really think it will UNLESS it's an area which has a long history of trouble. so, if you're looking in ealing, i would not be worried. if you are looking in some other areas, then yes, possibly. can you be more specific?

my local area got looted, and frankly, it was fine the next day and there's a lot of great community spirit. it really depends where you are looking.

I expect it'll be largely unaffected (sorry, that's probably not what you wanted to hear). It will be another downward pressure, but temporary, and not as great as the wider financial pressures (to which London has been surprisingly immune so far). The possibility of US going double dip, or real problems with their credit rating leading to another credit crunch (over US Govt bonds) could drive prices down if mortgages become harder to come by.

Certain properties might however be blighted short term (like flats over JD Sports shops), but you might also be less keen on those yourself.

Happy hunting, whatever you decide to do.

Interesting question.

There might be a very small number of buyers who are deciding between London and the country, who this might tip over into moving to the country - thus reducing demand in London.

But I doubt that's many people. Most people who want to buy in London have good reason for wanting to be there.

And I don't think it'll affect any of the particularly affected areas of London more than any other area of London. It's pretty clear the riots could have happened anywhere in any big city. It's just chance that they happened in, say, Clapham and Dulwich, rather than in, say, Chiswick and Greenwich.

There are areas that got looted which I loved as a single person, but wouldn't raise a family in. I lived in a couple of the places that were the hub of the riots. My sister and brother both tried bringing up families in that area and gave up. Too much day to day hassle and lousy schools. If you are moving somewhere to raise a family, don't be seduced by size and price of houses at the expense of quality and security of family life.

It will bounce back within a couple of weeks. If affected at all.

I very much doubt places like clapham junction would be affected. if so I'm moving there now!! It's too nice with great travel connections etc..as another poster said if it has a long history of trouble then the prices will probably be affected for a while.

we are one of those. currently living in greenwich and hoping to move to Dulwich. It has made us question our move given the riots and the fact that dulwich is an oasis in between brixton on one side and peckham on the other.

There has been so much positive community determination over the last week.

Having lived in Brixton and Streatham for 20 years (and sent my child to an outstanding state primary) and enjoyed community friendliness and support way beyond what my parents experience in thier rural village, I would say that millions of people live happy, stable, constructive lives even away from the likes of Dulwich.

Plenty of decent, moral, and lovely people have no choice but to live in these supposed 'hellholes' that border apparant oases because we can't afford house prices, or commuting costs or working patterns don't allow for childcare plus commute.

I don't know about house prices - maybe you will be able to snap up a bargain. I bought my first flat in Brixton after the riots of the early 80s because it was the only place I could afford to buy. Lots of other 'poor but professional' people, especially in the cultural and creative industries, did the same thing, and alongside some of the chaos, make a v positive contribution. You get Zone 2 tube, good overground connections, a brilliant cinema, excellent shopping, a fantastic regenerated deeply trendy market. Street crime in Brixton has been falling over the last couple of years, too. I hope lots of positive minded people who can't afford the ridiculous prices of less edgy areas will buy and help the improvement continue.

There were riots in Glouscestireshire, for heavens sake! And - Dulwich. Lordship Lane.

I agree with above poster - i've lived in streatham and now tooting and both have amazing community spirits. There is a real mix of people and cultures. I don't think the riots were a reflection of the places. Every area is sandwiched between good and bad areas.