Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Property/DIY

Join our Property forum for renovation, DIY, and house selling advice.

Original poster

Location location location!

34 replies

Rahdera · 18/03/2015 19:25

Hello
Be grateful for some help in figuring out where to move to. DH works in city. I work pt in farringdon. Don't want to commute more than 1.5 hours door to door so prob 45 max on transport really. Would prefer to be in London but also thinking that would have more space outside of. Have a DS. Will (hopefully) have one more. We have 900k. We are looking for a family friendly area with good schools - both primary and secondary as we would like to stay in one area really. We would ideally like 4 bed but would go for 3. Garden. Period house though don't mind 1930s. Want to be somewhere that has green space nearby and also a bustling high street with things going on. Want the place to feel a bit liberal with interesting independent type stuff going on if that makes sense? Think that's it! Thanks for any help.

OP posts:
AlphaBravoHenryFoxtons · 18/03/2015 22:03

St Albans?

AlphaBravoHenryFoxtons · 18/03/2015 22:22

Better still Harpenden. A brilliant place to live with a family, with excellent schools (both primary and secondary), lots of outdoor space and lots to do.

BlueMoonRoses · 18/03/2015 22:26

Harpenden. Hands down. www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-48077212.html

WhatKatyDidnt · 19/03/2015 08:52

If you'd rather stay in London then your budget would get you a fab house in south east London. Areas like Honor Oak, Forest Hill, Sydenham. Good schools, high streets, transport links, parks.

FunMitFlags · 19/03/2015 11:58

Harpenden or St A

windchimes23 · 19/03/2015 12:51

Wanstead, still on Central Line. Easy commute and decent High Street.

nottheOP · 19/03/2015 13:39

Radlett is nice too.

TreadSoftlyOnMyDreams · 19/03/2015 14:31

I know someone who has moved out to Bedford - a lot of bang for your buck but I don't know whether it has the bustling liberal high street feel

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-47837923.html

MillyMollyMama · 19/03/2015 17:37

Liberal - Harpenden???

MuddhaOfSuburbia · 19/03/2015 17:42

yy south east London

look at posh bits of SE14- Telegraph Hill

schools are great-super dooper Haberdasher's (secondary- also has primary attached)

and close to Nunhead station which is on Thameslink and will take you straight to Farringdon in about 20 minutes when it works to timetable that is

Wink
MuddhaOfSuburbia · 19/03/2015 17:47

maybe this one here

Envy
Original poster
Rahdera · 19/03/2015 18:26

Oooooh thanks so much. Will do some googling and property porn once little guy gone to bed.

I wasn't sure about harpenden as thought it seemed a bit black range rovery. But maybe I'm wrong?

SE London - I know nothing about. It all merged into 1. Are there many differences between hop, fh, brockley, telegraph hill? Any dire bits should avoid there? Will look at habadasher school.

St A - yes yes a possibility...

Crouch end is my benchmark. 900k would get us a doer upper or a flat but just seems so so expensive so want to see where else might work

OP posts:
AlphaBravoHenryFoxtons · 19/03/2015 20:10

Harpenden's population is very well educated and there's a high proportion of young families. That's a good starting point for finding open-mindedness.

Where I come from in Suffolk, the population is on average much less well educated and t's a recipe for some jaw-dropping ignorance and bigotry.

TeddyBee · 19/03/2015 22:39

Wanstead - lovely four bed Victorian terraces for £750,000 and a nice high street with independent shops/cafes etc. I can't link but there's a beautiful one for 725k right by the high street.

Mum2Pea · 19/03/2015 22:48

www.rightmove.co.uk/s6p/47024420

AironaGstring · 20/03/2015 05:29

We had the same dilemma some years ago and decided that Harpenden seemed ideal. We stayed there for the weekend and hated it, felt it had no soul - black range rovery is a good description!

St. Albans is much nicer and more what you seem to be looking for, although both Harpenden and St. A are expensive. St. A has excellent schools.

You might also want to consider Hertford, which has 2 stations - one going into Moorgate and one into Liverpool St, so an easy hop to Farringdon - takes about 45 mins so just within your parameters. Hertford is the county town and has character and lots going on and green spaces, also good schools.

Good luck!

FunMitFlags · 20/03/2015 06:42

I've lived in Harpenden and St A and much prefer the latter (apart from the traffic jams). Black range Roverey is very apt! People in St A are less ostentatious in their wealth IMHO and it's a much friendlier place. Harpenden does have excellent schools though, and I think there are plans to open a new secondary school?

Apatite1 · 20/03/2015 10:44

I must put in a good word for my new locality: Dulwich! The village is very expensive (and tbh not much exciting there and I know it well as my husband's family have lived there for decades) but east Dulwich is very popular and now gentrified (if you don't like being surrounded by mums and buggies, avoid) and my particular favourite is west Dulwich which is quieter and close to the woods. We don't have kids so we opted for west Dulwich. Although if you have boys you want to educate privately then Dulwich College is nearby (I live close enough to walk). There are a lot do green spaces here, plenty of train stations and I love the number 3 bus which goes past south bank into oxford street Grin

For more bang for your buck: forest hill or crystal palace is the way to go, we didn't look to buy there but looks like loads of young families moving in.

I think you should travel and take a serious look around SE London while most of it is still relatively affordable, as prices just keep going upwards here.

Apatite1 · 20/03/2015 10:46

Should add I really don't like black range rover-y country, so had to leave sw london as they have completely overrun the place!

vez123 · 20/03/2015 13:25

This is great budget for SE London! You should be able to find a nice house in Forest Hill in the catchment area of Fairlawn. But most schools in SE23 are very good. I cannot comment much on secondary schools though as my eldest has only just started school. I have heard about Haberdasher's in Telegraph Hill mentioned on this thread and this sounds like a great suggestion.

Zinxie · 20/03/2015 14:42

muddha that's a fab house.

MuddhaOfSuburbia · 20/03/2015 19:58

zinx I never do property porn, but have a HANKERING for that house

TreadSoftlyOnMyDreams · 20/03/2015 23:41

You can find something v nice in Greenwich/Blackheath for that sort of money or less but do the loft conversion yourselves. Small gardens but lots of open space nearby. Primary schools are mostly good to outstanding but state secondary is trickier. Commute is a gift.

MargeryDaw · 21/03/2015 08:31

Interesting idea that education makes people more liberal - particularly in Harpenden! It's a Tory stronghold. 15 Tory councillors and 1 independent, who was Tory.

For liberal and commutable Lewes immediately sprang to mind. Much more going on there too than in Harpenden which pretty much has 0 art scene etc. (I have experience of living/working in both these places).