It feels crazy that nearly £900k isn’t enough to buy a nice house with a garden in a safe area of London!

[Propertyahhh]

A complaint post really.

I know, first world problems. But we have almost £900k to spend and it won’t get us a house with a garden in any London neighbourhood we like (Blackheath, Hackney, Muswell Hill, Crouch End, East Dulwich). So we thought we’d look at Bath, Bristol, Hove, etc and it doesn’t even stretch very far there. Tiny terraces with tiny gardens - if that.

Why is property so expensive?!?! How can so many people afford excess £1m to spend on houses?

@PicsInRed

£900k only a tiny terrace in Bristol?! Only if you were trying to buy in Clifton.

What constitutes a "safe" area, such that only £900k will do the job?

Rightmove, Detached, Clifton +5 miles, you're welcome.

I came on to say the same. Perhaps lose your delusions of grandeur and buy something you can afford. My son just bought his 1st house (Bristol commuter town) for £170k. (3 bed semi)

Wow @stillcrazyafterall - do you mind me asking where that is?

Look OP,

I have just found you a gorgeous semi with a garden in Hackney, completely modernised, a few minutes stroll of gorgeous Victoria Park and that famous pub where all the families have Sunday lunch.

If this isn't want you want for the money, I think you don't want to live in London.

Nicely overlooked then!

I wouldn't want that garden

Yes, but that's London. I think if you want more space around you, you recognise that it's time to move out of London.

@Cruddles

I wouldn't want that garden

There's lots you could do to it to screen and develop it. For central London it's not bad. I've seen some houses advertised as 'with a garden' when all they have is a very shady damp side passage leading to the bins!

@Cowbells the issue with that property for me would be the kitchen is far too small and I wouldn’t be keen on only have that one large reception area. Whilst there’s lots of room upstairs I think the ground floor would feel cramped.

But you’ve totally made the point which is that people need to compromise on something. Layout, garden, location, whatever. And in that kind of budget if you’re not willing to compromise on something then you won’t find something in London.

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/109529402#/

Nice part of Hove

Yes, but that's London. I think if you want more space around you, you recognise that it's time to move out of London.

London is very big and there's plenty of places where the garden doesn't have to be overlooked by two apartment blocks, especially with £900k to spend

I've been thinking about this thread and wondering at things, and just had a quick look at RightMove for East Dulwich. There are houses for 900k and less? For example

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/110116781#/

This is fine, decent garden, and loft can be converted?

Or this?!

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/79645020#/

@Cowbells

Look OP,

I have just found you a gorgeous semi with a garden in Hackney, completely modernised, a few minutes stroll of gorgeous Victoria Park and that famous pub where all the families have Sunday lunch.

If this isn't want you want for the money, I think you don't want to live in London.

I actually think the ‘modernisation’ is vile in this house! It’s just blinding shiny white everywhere. If you’re more like me and like period features you can get a 5 bed semi for 700k here in a very safe suburban area www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/79904022#/

Also I’m really curious as to what people mean when they say a garden that isn’t overlooked… u grew up in a terrace, I’ve lived in 4 different cities and more houses and flats than I can count and I can’t think of a single one that had a garden that couldn’t be seen from neighbouring properties. I don’t think I’ve ever actually encountered this mythical non-overlooked garden in real life! Do people who want/have this all live in detached houses at least 10 metres in all directions from the next inhabitant?

@TedMullins as a Londoner I don't know what this is like either 😆

Yeah, I can't really conceive of a London garden that isn't "overlooked". Thems just the breaks especially with most houses now having loft conversions. You deal with people being able to see into your garden or you move out. Nobody cares what you're up to in your garden anyway, unless you're conducting Satanic rituals or having an orgy or something more than usually interesting.

Theres an awful lot of garden/neighbour threads that baffle me on MNs because I know no different.

There’s degrees of overlooked though - one place I lived they built a massive block of flats across the street with the balconies facing our garden and the delightful residents used to sit out on said balconies and use our plant pots for target practice! Which is what one of the properties above reminded me of! But I’m totally used to living in a terrace where you can nose into everyone’s gardens (Londoner).

That house by Victoria park is horribly overlooked at the back, one of the worst I’ve seen. And is loomed over on the side by another block of flats. It’s also hideous inside.

Go to south london - St. John’s and Brockley have plenty of decent sized houses with nice gardens and great transport. People are willing to pay £2m to live in the area so it also must be safe enough :)

Forest Hill feels safe, it’s highly residential so lots of families

People are willing to pay £2m to live in the area so it also must be safe enough I lived there for 20 years, it was fantastic for transport, not a lot else. It's zone 2 that's why it's so expensive. 30 years ago Brockley was meant to be up and coming and was going to be the next Dulwich, still hasn't happened.

For £2.3m in Brockley you get this.

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/110431031#/

So although it's possible to spend that much there, by contrast it will buy you this in Dulwich:

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/108439223#/

Which is very nice but basically just a large extended semi.

My point being (sorry, have a child sitting on me) that most of Brockley property is far, far cheaper than £2m, and agree with @MrsPelligrinoPetrichor that it's been up and coming for a very long time but is a long way off arriving still.

@MrsPelligrinoPetrichor

People are willing to pay £2m to live in the area so it also must be safe enough I lived there for 20 years, it was fantastic for transport, not a lot else. It's zone 2 that's why it's so expensive. 30 years ago Brockley was meant to be up and coming and was going to be the next Dulwich, still hasn't happened.

Same here lived & worked in Brockley for many years, some beautiful Victorian villas around hilly fields & the roads leading down to St.Johns station but not a lot else, some chi chi bars/coffee shops along the Brockley road but no real useful day to day shops, I never felt that safe walking back alone at night.

Same here lived & worked in Brockley for many years, some beautiful Victorian villas around hilly fields & the roads leading down to St.Johns station but not a lot else, some chi chi bars/coffee shops along the Brockley road but no real useful day to day shops, I never felt that safe walking back alone at night
I used to get the last train back from town in my 20's without batting an eye lid but we had more trouble the last 5 years of living there than the whole time we lived in London.