Cute Commuter Villages Near London? Please Help?

[user1481480706]

Hi! I've just moved to London with my husband (I'm 27 and he is 32). We are renting at the moment, but are looking to buy a house in the coming months. We've visited a few places, and have been disheartened by how expensive everything is! Our budget is 600,000-700,000 as we are looking to buy a house and gut the interior (and make it nice and modern inside)! We recently visited Blackheath Village and Walthamstow Village and loved both, but they're so tiny, quite expensive and bordered by some gritty urban bits.

We are SO overwhelmed by all the areas around London, but ultimately, we would love to find a quaint commuter village near London (60 minutes or less commute to London Holborn where I work). I really, really need suggestions on where to live! We would love a village that:
*Has a quaint high street with lots of independent/trendy shops
*Has plenty of young families and young professionals
*Has good transport links/fast trains into the city
*Will suit a budget of 600,000-700,000
*Ideally has some green space and potentially farmer markets on weekends

Thanks so much for your help! :)

This answers the cute requirement: www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-42832254.html

Its also less than 60 minutes to London using Haddenham train station going into Marylebone.

The market town 2 miles down the road has farmers markets and a 'quaint' high street. Midsummer Murders is often filmed in these parts.

Another 'cute' property but this time in Haddenham so just as convenient for the train station.

Haddenham isnt as pretty a village, but does have nice parts such as the duck pond by the church.

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-54528397.html

Or if you want something a little different, here is a 2 bed apartment in a converted college in Thame, so walking distance to farmers market and 'quaint' high street.

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-59607542.html

Closer to London (30 minute train to Euston)

is this 3 bed in Chipperfield which would be a short drive to the train station in Kings Langley.

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-57499690.html

Its less 'quaint' and you dont tend to get farmers markets in the local towns here though.

Amersham is quaint as you like - used in 4 weddings and countless other time. Lovely surrounding countryside and on the end of the tube as well as train. Expensive however - so look at the adjacent areas - Little Chalfont, Chesham etc. Lots of Americans because GE has offices there so there's Junior League, big Halloween celebrations etc etc

I can't find the American meaning of cute as referring to places. All I can find is that it means 'sexually attractive'.

Also op, mn has a good memory and likes to be thanked, so as you raised the same question and then didn't respond you get some snark.

Round London you need to prioritise transport links, given the overcrowding. Green bits nearby are generally a given. Farmers markets get dull after you have been once, what you want is indeed those independent shops. And don't forget to budget thousands for train tickets.

Pretty much anything can be described as cute as far as I'm aware. A nice outfit = cute outfit. It doesn't mean you've come dressed as a kitten. I don't think describing an area as cute is in the least bit offensive (it just means nice, villagey etc) so let's cut some slack!

Anyway there's some great ideas here OP - though the point about commutability, cuteability & affordability is spot on. Let us know how you get on! And please do consider an apartment instead of a house - most Londoners your age live in flats due to cost of living and you could buy somewhere beautiful and spacious with your budget!

Haddenham is 1 hour and 9 minutes to Holborn plus the travelling to the station and the walk from Holborn to the office so probably more like 1hr30mins.

As I said door to door from where I live, also a couple of Midsummer Murders filmed here is 1 hour but at your budget it would only buy a 2 bed flat. They are very nice 2 bed flats overlooking open countryside and/or a golf course.

My worry is you are looking to gut a house. These type of houses don't go for a song they are snapped up by builders who can do them up much more cost effectively than you can . If you can afford to pay £650k for a place then spend around £100k gutting the place with all that brings with it wouldn't you just up your budget to £750k

I think maybe you have watched too many property programmes

I thought op said renovation costs didn't need to be included in the budget? I might have got the wrong end.

The metropolitan line runs to Amersham or near there doesn't it so fares would be cheaper than getting a train ticket from say Twyford (I don't think Twyford is that cute tbh)

18 mins to Marylebone from Gerrards Cross on the very comfortable Chiltern line followed by a 13 min tube or cycle ride to Holborn?

This would leave you loads of extra time to expand your search radius if you added a drive to the station from any of the surrounding villages.

Also Old Amersham (tube and and Chiltern) and Old Beaconsfield (Chiltern) are v picturesque with quality independent boutiques and restaurants.

pin

I thought op said renovation costs didn't need to be included in the budget

But they have to come from somewhere.

Doing the type of renovating that the op wants to do means that they will have to budget anything from £40- a potential £100k.

It has to cone from somewhere

Maybe they have a total budget of £800,000

Yeah, I assumed they had already factored it in. Surely that's only common sense.

So why not budget for £650-£800 which would open up a few more opportunities

As an observation having watched property programmes in the States what comes across is how low the cost of doing up a property is. They seem to budget around the cost of a Uk kitchen and do the whole house including remodelling and putting in at least 2 brand new bathrooms as well as living rooms and 3 and 4 bedrooms.

I just wonder op do you have an idea of how expensive remodelling a house is in the UK