Where to live in London with a good budget? West, South West, North London?

[ElleElleElle]

I would really appreciate if you talk to me and help with your opinions as my head is exploding already.

We are trying to decide where will be the best place for us to buy house.

I am completely city girl and love London with all my passion. My husband is a country boy, grew up with aches of land, huge country house and horses so a compromise needed :)

We both do not need to commute every day to work as I am a freelancer and hubby either has meetings all over the world or in central London very occasionally. But we both love theaters, museums and just general going out in the center of London. I also have a hobby in central London which I would like no to give up and it involves that I am coming back home on a last train about 1 am.

Originally we were thinking maybe some nice area outside London in the countryside with good and quick connection links to the city. We were considering Cross Rail links and places around Maidenhead, Reading, etc. as husband could have a big country house with land over there and I could get easily into Central London.

Now we decided that would be nice to stay within London but we can not decide absolutely anything about areas.

In North London we like Hadley Wood, Monken Hadley and some places between High Barnet and Stanmore but it seems so far to get to the center from there.

We also went through the stage where husband agreed to buy something right in the center like Westminster, Victoria, Kensington but I do not think he will be happy there as he loves to be near some sort of greenery, live in a house rather then a flat, have a garage and garden.

Then we were considering Ealing as there are some roads with very big houses over there (though many converted into flats) but I read about schools and released (maybe I am wrong) that schools could be much better. And I also think we would have one of the best houses in the area which is not ideal (as a saying goes it is better to have a worst house o the best street rather then a best house in the worst street). Apart from that we love the area.

Now we look at South West London. Start looking for houses in Richmond but around the station (15 mins walk) I can not find pretty much any detached houses.

What would you say, who live maybe close by, about Sheen, St.Margarets, Mortlake,Barnes ect. I am a bit scared about commute from there. The same about Ham. But soooo nice around there everywhere.

And noise from planes also is not very appealing. But neighborhood is very pleasant, affluent, huge park near by where we can walk, cycle, etc. and schools are fantastic!!

Closer to Kingston there are lots of suitable houses but I think it's too far and too villigy for us.

Then I came to Wimbledon. Wimbledon Village seems very nice area with very good transport links but I read village itself is very very small and lots of parts are very noisy. And what about Tooting nearby and some other not very pleasant parts?

Seen some houses not far from Putney as well (not close to the station though)

And again looking at the prices of the houses and what you get for that..... maybe it's better to go back to Cross Rail links...... or maybe not......

Please talk to me. Where would you go and why? Thank you for reading.

It's true that Dulwich private secondaries are fantastic (JAGS, Dulwich College, Alleyns). Kids here just get the bus over there - perfectly normal for SW kids to go to school in Dulwich. Some even go from prep age to the prep feeders to those schools (via bus or being driven by parents. V.easy and v.normal).

There are exceptional private prep/pre-preps in Wandsworth: Thomas's, Broomwood Hall, Northcote Lodge, Hornsby House, Finton House. They have great success rates for top London day schools like the ones in Dulwich and top boarding schools (in the case of Thomas's and Broomwood particularly). They are incredibly popular though - most require name down well within 1st year of child's life to be in with a chance of securing a place.

Dulwich really does have a high concentration of good schools. With your budget, a large house in the heart of the village is very possible. If you come to the west side, I'd be your neighbour!

urgh. Hampstead used to be full of writers, artists, left wing thinkers etc
Primrose Hill too. Now they are becoming full of people who can not bear to be near the holloway road and are worried by tooting.
London is going to become utterly dull.

I too wonder about the character of London changing so much due to money. The other day I saw a standard little house in Hackney that was a million. I visited there over 30 years ago, when it was lived in by an artist, the council let, v. Cheaply, undesirable houses to struggling artists to live in!

Is London going to be full of people that can earn tons of money, and not many other types of people?

Is Hampstead still intellectual? Or is that now out of date?

Teens don't like going to the country for the weekend & leaving them in a smart house while you go away every weekend is asking for trouble. What about around Holland Park? There are some nice flats in Oakwood Court & you can walk to Holland Park for space & tennis courts. Then either walk to Kensington High Street or Holland Park Avenue for shops/restaurants. Easy access to Heathrow as close to the A4, good for M40, M4, M3 etc. Central line into the City from Holland Park or taxi into Mayfair if you're private equity/hedgies. Lots of schools and if you end up having a son who wants to go to country prep can do Caldicott from Brook Green.

Holland Park is a great idea. That and Primrose Hill are the two best suggestions, OP, for you.

You could go for India Knight's lovely house on beautiful Chalcot Square in Primrose Hill - no garden to speak of but the square is right there...

Chalcot Square

That's a pretty decent house for someone who's been bankrupt twice...

God it's so full of stuff. Also the layout would be difficult with young children.

Lovely house India Knights got - I love the colour.

Wonder why she'd move from there, she always talks about how she loves it.

There are still old intellectuals and writers who have been there forever. But on the whole writing etc doesn't pay as well as banking or football or being a celebrity and that is the kind of money you need to live in these places these days.

Amazing, isn't it. And seems what's happening is a dispersal into a much wider net, so London becomes culturally dilute compared to its previous intensity/density. It's the same as what's happened to the TV.

What about this one? It's on a road near wimbledon Common that is just like you're on a country lane. www.robertholmes.co.uk/residential-sales/property/6-bedroom-property-for-sale-in-somerset-road-wimbledon-sw19-5jz/rhlrps-WIM120195

The main disadvantage of Wimbledon Village is that transport is tricky. You would need to get bus/taxi to Wimbledon Station. But then you aren't going to find a country feeling property right next to a station in London IMHO

Tooting is fine, I'm not sure what there is to worry about.

I too would suggest between the commons, Clapham Jct (Northcote road is fab) or generally south west London. There's some excellent private schools too.

What about Surrey? New Addington might be a good option for you?

Northcote Road is depressingly ordinary. My brother and sister live there with their respective families and it's full of Home Counties provincial professionals and their SAHM wives desperate to move out to "the country" (by which they usually mean Guildford) as soon as they make partner. No doubt that's idyllic to many people but hanging out at Buona Sera and going to Rock for holidays isn't really going to do it for those whose lifestyle is more Locanda Locatelli and St Barth.

As an aside, I'm dangerously close to Tooting, and I bloody love it .

I was going to say the same about Surrey thesaurus. OP if your husband is properly posh and from the proper countryside then he will hate Surrey. Lots of 'smart' people ie think they're smart by making you take your shoes off before you come in the house and having a 'front room' that no one ever goes in.

Sorry to those who live there. I know I'm being a bitch but I really just hate Surrey so much.

OP, what about Ascot? Or Weybridge (which is Surrey, granted, but surprisingly cosmopolitan)? Both have fast rail links into London so you can get your city fix easily, and they have trees and land for your husband.

How much land does your husband actually want in order to feel at home? Enough for a ride on mower (1 acre)? For a pony or two (3 acres)? Enough to "secure the view" (10 acres)? Enough to attract EU subsidies and inheritance tax exemptions (25+)? Enough to employ a tenant farmer (100+)? All of those are possible on that budget but you'll need to be further and further out and be prepared to compromise significantly on your London base.

You also asked about "West London types" and "Hampstead" types. This is a very crude generalistation, but West London is very international - it's not unusual to meet a married couple of mixed nationalities or ethnicities. It's very social, rather than intellectual or political. It's either very old money or very new money, and there's always a lot of it; the middling classes cashed up and fled to more affordable areas long ago. There are a lot of tourists. Public schools are a big deal and the three most prestigious schools in London - Westminster, SPS and SPGS - are all here; a lot of kids also board at "smart" schools and return at weekends.

Hampstead is haute bourgeoisie - the affluent professional children and grandchildren of affluent professionals, rather than the plain old rich. There are a lot of Jews, Americans and Russians, but it feels less diverse than West London because it is definitely much whiter. There are excellent schools that are as likely to be state (Henrietta Barnet) as they are to be private (CLSG), but none of them are considered "smart" and this is not a quality the local parents aspire to.

By West London obviously I mean W2, W8, W11 and W14 - we're not talking Shepherd's Bush and Acton .

That's a very good summing up of the two areas. Although as you say obviously v general I'd say pretty accurate.

OP if your husband is posh I'd imagine he'd prefer west London. I am 'posh' and my whole family struggle enormously with my living South of the river!

What about St. Albans, 20 mins to London?

Thanks Ber2291 . I work in executive search and finding people places to live has almost become a second string to my career - it's amazing how many deals fall through just because the candidate's partner can't see themselves living in London.

thesaurus is right about northcote road. I'd like to know why you bloody love tooting? I sometimes go to the Broadway and I must admit I find it tatty, chaotic, mildly depressing, dirty, polluted... What am I missing? I'm too old to enjoy swimming at the lido anymore.