Looking for a new home but don't know where to look!

[srah21]

Looking for a new minimum 3 bed family home in London. Our budget is under 600k but we really don't know what area we should be looking at. The kind of areas I like are way over budget and you really don't get a lot for what you're paying for. I basically want a nice area with good schools. Any suggestions would really be helpful!

Where do you need to commute to? What's important to you? Which areas do you like, so we can see if we can suggest some cheaper alternatives with a similar feel?

Most schools are quite good if your kids are smart enough. Unless you mean schools that provide the most enjoyable and well rounded experience, in which case there are lots of good fee paying schools around London.

Where are you now? Where do you have links? What do you like about the areas you can't afford?

My recommendation would be Sutton and areas around there, Cheam, Carshalton. 3 bed semis around the £550k mark.

@LBOCS2 I want somewhere where there are nice cafés, nice independent stores, clean and nice areas to take long strolls . I currently live in east London but not the very nice side unfortunately. I currently live in zone 3 underground and it has been helpful given we both work in central London. We don't abit of a travel. We used to live in Surrey and would cost us around £700/month combined to travel into London- something we want to avoid as zone 1-3 costs around £300/month. Underground is important as in London it's all about public transport! Would love to hear your thoughts!

@BendingSpoons thank you! We're in East London at the moment but keen to move out as soon as we can. I find the schools around here are ok but I don't feel like the children/ parents have the right attitude to learning. Worried that may rub off on my kids.

@housebuyingistheworst please see above! Sorry!

What part of central London do you need to commute to? That will influence where best to look massively. For instance when DH changed jobs from Canary Wharf to St Pancras we actually moved outside of London and he now gets the HS1. The commute time to the new work was equal to where had been in suburbia but the change in stations meant we could move to a far nicer, yet cheaper area further out...

Wanstead? Charlton/Shooters Hill? Close to Blackheath and Greenwich or further out in South/East London?

It's a bit depressing to find that £600K, an enormous amount of money, barely buys you a two bed house in zones 1-3. The Borough of Bromley is good value for money and, although a bit suburban, there are quick train links to the DLR, LB, Waterloo and Charing Cross. Surbiton is nice but may be out of budget.

I think it’ll be a case of compromising on something.

www.primelocation.com/for-sale/details/52482695?search_identifier=d5a708bde6599fb77b12eb442a89dce6

This would meet the posh shops/cafes criteria + it’s near the river, the vast royal Bushey Park and not far from Kingston for shopping. Turing House is a recently open free school that seems to be popular + you could try for the Tiffins (grammar schools, one for boys and one for girls). The trains aren’t the greatest.

www.primelocation.com/for-sale/details/53120823

This sort of house is between Sutton and Cheam Village. The trains from Sutton go to Victoria, London Bridge and City Thameslink/King’s Cross etc + it’s a bus ride to Morden tube if needed. Sutton has lots of restaurants and cafes, a cinema with sofas etc and practical shops but doesn’t feel posh. Cheam Village is the sort of place with a Waitrose, a butcher, bakery, cafes etc Nonsuch Park is gorgeous, coutryside very close + there is a David Lloyd, tennis/rugby/cricket etc A great place for a family. The local comp is the outstanding, high achieving Cheam High + you can try for a catchment place at the 5 local grammar schools.

Alternatively, you could maybe try for a 3 bed flat but you’ll find that schools closer in have much more mixed intake/don’t feel like a bubble.

PS My suggestions are zone 5.

It's tough isn't it! We made a similar move a couple of years ago. We decided on a nice zone 5 suburb. The compromise is being further out and either a train to work or a bus to the tube, plus less in the way of independence cafés etc, although there are lots of good pubs to eat at.

Good luck figuring out where you want to be.