Where to live in London on our budget near a park etc?

[mamamummata]

I've been looking further out of London (St Albans, Beaconsfield, Maidenhead etc) but have the impression it's not necessarily going to be a lot cheaper than living more centrally once travel is taken into account than living a bit further in? Not unless we want to go really far out. Also, with childcare to consider a shorter commute is appealing.

Does anyone know what areas within London we should look at to rent a largish 3 bed or 4 bed house/flat with a relatively short commute (25/30 mins) into Tottenham Court Road or thereabouts? I suppose we would go for a flat if that was all we could afford, if it had a private garden for the DCs but I am a bit hesitant having never lived in a flat with children before and am worried what the neighbours might be like especially with regards to our noise and theirs.

I'm not so bothered about a pretty neighbourhood, just a relatively safe neighbourhood and one with access to a lovely park or green space (which don't have too many dodgy types in them on a regular basis).Somewhere good for pushing a pushchair, baby groups etc. I've never lived in London or any major city so I probably have some ideas based on media impressions that might be a bit unfair! It would be nice if it felt like London, but was also a bit villagey and felt like it had a community. I would like to go see lots of area but with children in toe I need to narrow it down a bit!

I really liked Teddington and East Molesey when we visited Hampton Court Palace a few years ago but the planes and the commute are a bit off putting.

Is the pollution a noticeable problem living in london? Are some places better than others for that? 1 of the DCs and I have asthma.

We are renting initially and then looking to buy. £2300 is our maximum rent, probably about £850,000 to buy.

Schools are an issue although we could possibly do private secondary in a few years time. We have one due to start secondary and two who will start primary in a few years.

Have a look at East Finchley, on the Northern line, one up from Highgate. Not much in your buying budget but a few.
Lovely park Cherry Tree woods and not far from Highgate Wood and Kenwood. A couple of good primary schools, and Secondaries seem OK, but I don’t really know about them.

Leytonstone? It’s on the central line so quick commute to TCR. You have Wanstead flats and Epping forest close by, plus the area has undergone some gentrification over the past few years. Not sure about schools though, but you could get a nice house in the area
Hartley Road, Leytonstone, E11
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-72275078.html

Otherwise going south East would be your best bet. The commute may be a little longer, but you would have the leafy, lots of parks and baby/toddler groups around forest hill, Sydenham, Crystal Palace, Brockley area and should get something nice for your budget
Ringmore View Honor Oak Park
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-53097348.html

Homecroft Road, Sydenham
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-71118986.html

Garthorne Road, SE23
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-53917950.html

Forgot to mention, schools in the south east are fabulous. In forest hill all the primaries are rated good or outstanding and there are lots of great secondary options too (plus private if you did go down that route with JAGS, Alleyns, St Dunstans all near by)

East Dulwich is great. I lived there a few years ago and had four beautiful parks within walking distance of my flat, a wonderful high street with great restaurants, shops, etc. and it is a lovely community with a lot of young families. It is zone 2 and you can get to London bridge within about 10 minutes.

Might not be what your looking for, but have a look around Canada Water / Rotherhithe / Bermondsey. Southwark Park is beautiful and on your doorstep, and the number 1 bus drops you straight to Tottenham Court Road.

Plane noise around Hampton Court isn't as bad as you think. If you like that area, look at Surbiton or Kingston - both good train services into Waterloo.

You won't get as much for your money as if you went to South East London though - Bromley and Beckenham are both nice and again, good from a commute perspective.

Chingford/highams park

Stratford? You have Olympic park there (and westfield) and it's 10 mins from st Pancras on the high speed train. Also 10 mins in the other direction from Kent which is very leafy.

Thames Ditton. Millions of parks, outstanding schools, pretty village, family friendly, near Bushey Park, etc.

Wanstead and Snaresbrook on the central line are both lovely areas with lots of green. Think it would be about 25 mins on the tube to central London.

On that budget you could afford something amazing in Charlton or something pretty good around Blackheath standard. Near to Greenwich park, also very nice parks in Charlton. From Charlton there's a Train into Charing Cross/Cannon Street, Waterloo easy takes about 20 mins (rammed as fuck in rush hour, not too bad before 0630!)

If you liked Teddington then do consider Twickenham. Fast trains to Waterloo/Vauxhall great parks (Crane/Bushy/Richmond) plentiful houses within your budget and good schools.

Good schools (primary and a very good secondary - Graveney) and safe neighbourhood in Furzedown. You'd have to move very close to Graveney to get in on distance though, it's one of the smallest zones on distance in London. It's close to Tooting Broadway station, which would get you in to Tottenham Court Road in about 30 mins on the Northern line.

You could get somewhere like this

It's one of the top 10 places to live in London 2018, according to the Times.

I’d second Furzedown (which is actually fourth on that best places in London to live!). Two great primaries and a highly sought after secondary, lovely community feel, a couple of good cafes, lots of baby groups, and you’ve got Tooting Common and Tooting Lido on the doorstep.

Transport links don’t look great at first - it’s about a mile from both Tooting Bec and Tooting Broadway tube stations - but that’s what makes it (relatively) more affordable and there are plenty of buses or lots of people cycle to Tooting Bec to make the journey a bit shorter. You get much more for your money being that little bit further out from the tube - many of the houses closer in are smaller and quite a bit more expensive and not so near the common

Blackheath and Greenwich. Crossrail is coming to the Greenwich Borough which should make transport to Tottenham Court Rd easy.

Dulwich - good choice of schools & quick journey.

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-64795288.html

The park -

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The village
www.kfh.co.uk/south-east-london-and-north-kent/dulwich-village/

Dulwich, Beckenham or forest hill would be worth a look good schools transport all fairly good, plentiful open spaces & facilities family friendly, although forest hill has quite a bit of traffic(south circular can get pretty gridlocked)& the high street is a bit hit n miss only a sainsburys, couple of good cafes though.
Dulwich & Beckenham has more of a high street & bit more choice & Bromley has quite a large shopping mall/ theatre/ cinema.

Seven Sisters N15 - on the Victoria Line (super quick into central London) and this place is getting better and better by the day. Plenty of parks around, transport links are excellent. Only one stop north of Finsbury Park but much better priced housing wise - you could buy a 4 bed house comfortably within your budget.

Dulwich is lovely and ticks every box if you're flexible about commute (it's about 37 mins to TCR). Full of open space, feels very safe and there's a lovely buzz about it, loads of families and lots of good schools to choose from. It's definitely got the 'villagey' feel you're looking for, and property is good. This type of thing comes under budget whilst renting:
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-to-rent/property-52782867.html

And then there's something like this for when you buy:
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-53485803.html

I might be biased because we live here and it's fab

Wandsworth is also really nice, very safe and family friendly. Not too sure what property is like there though but it's a lovely area

Don't forget Crossrail will be coming in later this year, which will widen your options for accessing Tottenham Court Road

Have a look at Catford, Hither Green and Ladywell. Lots of good sized houses within your price range near lovely parks. Commute to TCR is 30-40 minutes depending upon which station you live closest to.

I second Wanstead and Snaresbrook - right next to Epping Forrest which is an amazing green space.

Raynes Park (SW20) for your budget you could afford a 3-4 bed house with garden within a short walk of several parks and Wimbledon Coomon. 20 mins into Waterloo.

This may sound odd but look at barnes, the So called Little Chelsea area. Lots of stock at the moment, I am told, for those 3 bed houses. If you look around and make offers at say 20% off asking price, you may find someone willing to take it at your budget, worth a try. You have outstanding schools nearby. Commute not straight forward, bus to Hammersmith then Piccadilly but very doable and you will love coming back home. Good luck!