London - nice area to rent for 45 year olds!

[LaFlottes]

We are thinking of renting out our house and having a couple of years perhaps in London.
This won't be for a little while, but we are doing some research.
We would be looking to spend between £1800 and £2500 per month I guess and would be hoping for an area suitable for a couple of 45 year olds with some nice bars/coffee shops/restaurants in walking distance and near a tube line into central London.
Any recommendations?
Thank you so much!

Another vote for London Bridge here. I used to work in the City and took the kids down last summer to see my old stomping grounds. Really surprised how nice it is round there these days. Loads of local shops and bars and good community feel with tennis courts etc. Would be a lovely walk to work over Tower Bridge and a nice vibe close to the river for working from home too. We used to live in Westminster and honestly everywhere West of the City is starting to look very tired and grubby - like everyone has spent all their money to get there and none left to actually enjoy it.

I would also ignore stuff about trains and tubes. Smelly hot and expensive. Central Londoners don't really use them except for commuting or the odd direct journey. Walk, Boris Bike, bus (you get to know your bus routes), and the odd taxi. Stick to Zone 1, you can afford to, and will save on fares and gym memberships.

I asuspect howabout is out of date on Westminster. There is a huge residential building programme along Victoria Street, and up Horseferry road, bringing new shops and restaurants in their wake. Pimlico is also undergoing a renaissance.

Barnes? By the river?

I was talking back of Oxford Street up towards Regents Park and then out North and West. Not really a fan of Pimlico as I've always thought it a bit rough and Christopher Myer getting mugged the other week just added to my prejudices - also full of politicians and their advisers. Prepared to be corrected though.

Hmm. I thought the Marylebone part of north Oxford street is nice.

Agree that Pimlico is a bit more sedate, and less challenging than some other areas, but it is local and friendly and very central. It is unusual in that it was never one of the great estates so houses/shops were always owned individually, which has meant it is less corporate and more local. (And cheaper than places owned by Grosvenor, Cadogan, de Walden, Portman and Bedford.)

Another random bit of London property history is that large parts of Victoria Street were owned by a single freeholder and leased as offices for a fixed period. These all came up at the same time. Hence the area first looking down at heel and now being almost completely rebuilt. Almost there now (I hope).

A central Londoner speaks sense! (NeedMoreSleep).

If you are doing it for a short while to enjoy the parks, theatres, art, etc forget the outliers. Zone 1 is the place to be. Borough is fine but you could be straying into Elephant and Castle and that's really no fun. You want something that's not Hard Work.

If you go for Pimlico choose a period conversion. Winchester st, Cambridge st, Warwick Square, Eccleston Square etc. Little roof terrace or balcony. Or a garden square. You should easily get something more than a pied a terre for your budget and will be able to negotiate the rent. They've been stagnant for a while now. Lots of flats have underground parking too. For eg it's 15 mins to Cannon Street (Bank) by tube. Or cycle it in the same time. (There's the cycle super highway too.)

(Old Street, Hoxton etc are fun but I imagine quite exhausting to live in.)

(Meyer was mugged changing tubes at Victoria. Some reports suggested he was pushed and fell, which is not hard to believe. Victoria is heaving. Pimlico is much quieter.)

The only problem with Pimlico is the journey to Bank. It’s not ideal. However it’s perfectly pleasant for everything else. Ditto Marylebone.

I think it does depend whether you want an easy commute to work, or not. Zone 1 or close should be the goal, plus a walk to work or a short commute not in a sweat box!

Richmond and Ealing and a commute of 45 mins is ridiculous. The Central line is the Sweat Line! Avoid if you can and the District Line is slow. Outer areas have few trains. The Jubilee Line is much quicker and the Hammersmith and City is air conditioned!!!! Decide if being near the river is a priority and if you want a family area or glitzy glass new builds. St Katherine’s dock isn’t that great. The other side of the river is nicer now.

What about Restaurants? Do you want a foody area or do you value a supermarket nearby? What other travelling needs do you have? Access to other stations?

Elephant and Castle is strictly yopro. There is next to nothing there apart from flats. Kennington just down the road is more villagey with a pub in Cleaver Square with boules. It’s got a good community feel with lovely period flats to rent. I would avoid the newly developed areas as they can be faceless. People work long hours so no community feel at all. Other areas with a mix of Georgian, Victorian and modern are better.

Vaycayheyhey, Merrylegs, NeedMoreSleep and BubblesBuddy speak sense.

Also join a members club or London library or British library to get working space.

Good tip.

You should def come down and spend a few days hanging out in the different areas and get a feel for where you want to be.

I love Wapping - central and you can get a good amount of flat for your money as compared to e.g Borough.

*relatively central. Not super central.

Chiswick!!!
I’m 46. Works for me.
The high road is beautiful. Chiswick House and grounds plus Dukes Meadows/Chiswick Pier and mall allow for great walks/cycling (I cycle everywhere- I live near Chiswick pier). The brewery is nearby (lovely pubs). Fantastic area if you’re a dog owner.
You’re right by the A4.
Excellent access to Heathrow for travelling and visitors from abroad.
Excellent public transport.
And it’s just beautiful and leafy.

Also, Southwestern rail stops in Chiswick (excellent for us when we want to go into Central London quickly).

What I love about Chiswick is it’s got all the bits of what I love about London and none of the bits I hate about London (I can breathe and have a sense of peace, calm, and beauty- it’s gorgeous along the river and you can walk over to Barnes without having to live in Barnes- I’ve lived in Barnes. Beautiful, way more expensive, and totally pretentious and wanky. Go to Barnes for the pubs. Chiswick is way prettier, way nicer, people are mellow).

Chiswick and Richmond are good if you like planes and have earplugs.

WOW! I'm so grateful to everyone who has taken the time to give me all of their thoughts on this. Loads of places to investigate and we will be planning some visits to them all soon!

I think to answer a few questions that came up....someone mentioned how edgy we would want a place to be and I think the answer is not particularly edge really. I sometimes like the idea of that and then not the reality!

Re our age, I really just put that to demonstrate we don't need to pay extra to be somewhere that's "cool" for the youngsters! I realise now though that there are so many areas all offering different facilities, travel times, general vibes etc.

Loads to look into - we plan to do six months and see how we like it and then carry on for longer if we are enjoying ourselves.

hollowtalk the rent we'd get on our current home would pay the mortgage and hopefully give us a bit more to put towards London rent and then we can put our normal mortgage payment towards the rent too if that makes sense. Plus we'd only need one car maximum which would save us some money. That's the master plan anyway!!!

Thanks all! I must try and do some work today rather than stalking rightmove!!

Honestly, Maida Vale - chic and elegant, close to town but not touristy, nice pubs, green spaces but still urban. Lovely place to live.

I am not sure I agree with Bubbles, who possibly lives in a different bit of Central London so has a different take.

There are supermarkets everywhere in Central London, so that ouoght not be a problem. At least two dozen within walking distance of where we live (and a dozen prets, Pizza Expresses and so on. It always feels weird to be somewhere where provision is not automatic and the choice huge.) Ditto it would be hard to find a niceish bit of Central London where there is not a good choice of restaurants.

I am surprised at the mention of Cleaver Sq. It is lovely but very "pink pound". You would be better off living somewhere with a greater diversity of bars and restaurants.

And explore routes to work. With congestion charge Central London can be quite quiet traffic wise, and walking, buses and bikes the better option. I would not see getting from Pimlico to Bank as a major problem. In contrast places like Barnes, where people own and use cars, the traffic can be a nightmare. Tubes can be nightmarish, but my experience is that they are often worse as you go from Zone 1 to Zone 2/3 rather than in the centre where people get on and off. Weekends in Central London can be very quiet indeed. Residents take possession!

Oh and Maida Vale/Little Venice is also lovely.

I would choose Barbican- it's a 400yard walk to Bank! Think of all that commute time saved, when you could spend it having fun, seeing things...

My dp and I rent a two bed flat in Central Islington. It's lovely place, really central, zone 1, easy 5-10min walk to tube and dp is 20mins to canary wharf.
We have a garden and lower basement flat, very nicely done and we pay £2100

Oh and we were late 40's when we moved there, I love being central, I love walking home from the theatre or evening out, I love having everything just a short tube or bus or walk away... But... And this is big but... We have a family home in Cornwall and do split our time. Zone 1 living can be quite full on and sometimes claustrophobic.
I have times when I can happily be in town for several weeks and other times a few days and I need to get out, so plan for this. Have you lots of friends or funds that you can use for weekends out of town?
Plus.. Don't spend all your money renting and have none for the London lifestyle.. It is expensive, though I love the free stuff too! Galleries, museums, just walking around...

I agree Chiswick is great but Chiswick to Bank is a total pain!!!

Well there are supermarkets (of course) but unless you have a car, distance can be a problem in some areas. Otherwise it’s the handy but small “supermarket” names with little choice and high prices.

I think edgy is a strange concept. Does it mean lots of noisy clubs and tattoo parlours or lots of art galleries and trendy types selling a variety of breakfast cereals?

Basically, as someone who visits two areas of London as my DDs live there and we have property as well, I think you have few areas where there isn’t a bit of “edge” in one way or another. If you want utterly genteel, £2000 a month won’t buy it.

DD didn’t want Clapham due to the strip on the High Street full of mc young people getting drunk and bouncers patrolling outside the clubs. However the common is lovely and so are many of the streets.

We have a flat near a super little park in West London. Any warm weather brings out young men who are really noisy well into the night. The Police move them on. Others quietly smoke dope. Neither really cause massive problems but neither are they unusual for London. The children happily use the play equipment during the day! However drug dealing certainly happens in broad daylight. DDs have long thought the ice cream van has too many adult ice cream buyers!

If you are anywhere around Notting Hill or the surrounding areas after the Carnival it can be full of noisy drunks. It’s once a year. By and large, most areas with flats renting out for £2000 plus a month are not really edgy! They just might have the odd incident. We had a murder just round the corner a few years ago where we used to see a Lamborghini visiting. Yes, it was undoubtedly drugs related. However, although that’s rare you can find all sorts of things happening on residential streets that you don’t expect. However, in many ways it’s a great area and there are pubs and restaurants, two parks, cherry tree lined streets, it’s a conservation area and the houses and flats are lovely! Super shopping with Waitrose just up the road. But, it’s London so it’s a mix!

Tufnell Park, Dartmouth Park, Maida Vale, Clapham, Battersea, Millbank.

Bubbles it hasn't changed much from my day at all from your description. Personally I was not impressed with Europa turning into Waitrose and the decline in the Selfridges food department and I'm scared to ask if Berwick Street market is still to the fore - best veg but somewhat like the ice cream trade in parts.

Now you can get Ocado deliveries etc supermarket access is not so much of an issue. In truth DH and I used to eat out most of the time when it was just us 2.