Where in Kingston - walking distance of the Bentall and the train station?

[futuristic1]

This is a kind of planning ahead question as it may not happen until end of next year or year after so all price issues are likely to change but....

if the move was happening now, the ideal property would be a 2 bed house within walking distance of the shops and the station and up to a max of £550k.

A parking space would be nice but if the locations is genuinely within walking distance of the shops then the car won't be needed.

Safety walking at night is important for late returns.

Somewhere where a late middle-age couple could live quietly but still have access to transport, shops, theatre, cinema etc

No children. Garden not important.
Period house would be nice - no renovation projects as getting past doing DIY.
Prefer freehold over leasehold so not keen on flats.

Don't know Kingston well.
Do you know any streets or areas that might fit the bill or be worth monitoring?

I've lived in SW London all my life and in Kingston for 7 years. The nicest part is definitely North Kingston - so if you're looking on a map it's roughly the roads north of the railway line with the Thames to the left and Richmond Park on the right. There's an abundance of property in the area - mostly Victorian and quite a few 2 bedroom places. Parking is fine with residents' permits for around £80 a year (finding a space can sometimes be a squeeze on occasion). The slight hiccup is your budget. I'd say that a decent 'done' 2 bed will be around £600-625k now, although you could get lucky. Roads that come to mind are ones like Clifton Road, Willoughby Road, Elton Road, Gibbon Road, King's Road and Richmond Park Road (which is really lovely). The area is very safe. The centre of town has a bit of anti-social behaviour after dark but I'm guessing you won't be visting the nightclubs?

Slightly cheaper might be the area around Norbiton Station which is on the same line and still walkable. Or the area around the Fairfield Green (the local Albion Pub is amazing!) Although you are close to the one-way system.

Personally I'd avoid South Kingston. Definitely cheaper but it's nowhere near as nice as the other areas.

You'd have to avoid the Cambridge Estate if walking from round Norbiton Station...

Actually, if you want to be out late, don't forget that a lot of the buses run all night including the 57 that goes by the hospital & Norbiton. I'd also look on the other side of Kingston Bridge around Hampton Wick, you could get a 2 bed terrace around there for about £550k

Thanks Crumbelina and Svalberg.

Those roads look lovely on Streetview.

It's really important for us to be within walking distance, half a mile or so of the Bentall Centre, more so than the closeness to the station even.

Rightmove has a few houses around the £500k in the area around Hawks Road but it looks very busy traffic-wise. Is that the one way system? Ah! I see on the map, that's the Fairfield Green region.

Will look around Norbiton direction. Hampton Wick looks further away for walking - maybe because of the river?

I drive past Norbiton Station, through Kingston & on by Bushy Park & Hampton Wick regularly - Bushy Park is close by John Lewis really, the river makes it seem further. Norbiton is closer to the Wilko end of town but that bit of the journey takes longer, possibly due to the traffic lights & 1 way system but it does seem further! The riverside has a lot of restaurants and again, that's at the JLP end.

I use Hawks Road as a cut through sometimes - as do others. It's à main road but quieter on the Fairfield side of Portman Road. You need to look at the area itself as there are plenty 1 way streets which may make it quieter. I'd also suggest looking at a road between 7 and 8:30 am to see how much traffic it gets then.

Hawks Road isn't on the one way system but it's a busy road, close to the Cambridge Estate and to be honest, isn't particularly nice. It's also close to the tip so you can sometime get traffic queues leading out of it. When we started our property search we looked around Hawks Road and South Kingston and quickly realised that we wanted to be in North Kingston (but had to buy a wreck to fit our budget!).

Bentalls is definitely walkable from N Kingston - I live there and there's a cut through which means I can be in Bentalls and J Lewis in around 5-10 mins and it's a lovely walk via the river if you have a bit more time. If you live towards Norbiton then it's still walkable in about 15 mins along the walk along the main road isn't nice. If you live in New Kingston towards the Norbiton end then most people walk down Canbury Park Road.

One thing I forgot to say about N Kingston is that Canbury Gardens by the river is really lovely. There's music on the bandstand in the summer, a great pub on the river (The Boaters) and a place that sells amazing gelato and coffee. There's also a great sense of community - lots of street parties on special occasions and my local neighbourhood committee organises things like a local Oktoberfest. The Canbury Arms is also a really nice pub. (Sorry, I sound like I'm doing the hard sell, but the area really is lovely).

Hampton Wick definitely worth a look too. As Svalberg says, it seems further but that's only because of the river.

If you could stretch to a 15 walk to town then Borough Rd is very nice and has lots of two beds: www.rightmove.co.uk/s6p/48103101

Thanks so much for all the information! Lots to look into

From what I remember any roads off Fairfield South or Villiers Road were decent and an easy walk to town. Also, easy to get bus direct to Surbition for fast trains to London.

Hampton wick.
It's a very short walk across the river to John Lewis / Bentalls + Bushy park is amazing.
Not much on the market at the mo, but a couple at your budget:

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-47773524.html

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-59407474.html

Both about a 9 min walk to bentalls - see attached google map!

Don't write off south Kingston. It's got some lovely roads (look at the grove ward), is very safe and is 5 mins from town. It's also walking distance to Surbiton for fast links to London. Plus, it practically the only part of SW London that won't be impacted by the Heathrow extension.

Forgot to add, south Kingston is much much cheaper than north!

The buses are good locally and with an Oyster card it's easy to jump on and off so I would make sure you live in a good bus route and then you can walk or bus