1 bed flat or 2 bed flat?

[Palmtreebythesea]

I am a first time buyer looking in London and have come to the conclusion that I can either afford a one bedroom flat in a nice area or a two bedroom flat in a not so nice area/has lease issues/looks to be falling down.

I have been reading up online about one bed flats and people seem to have a lot of apprehension about them.

In my situation, would you rule one out? For context, I am 23 so don't exactly need the extra space of a two bed currently but I assume that one day in the future I will want to move so I don't want to be considering something that would be unsellable when the time eventually comes.

One bed in the nicer area. Definitely!

And if you can, over pay as much as possible each month - even if it is just £10

@spotcheck thank you for the advice

The one bed, by the sounds of it, would be a much better buy for you. The two bed sounds like it'd cost you a lot of money.

2 bed but find a better area. It doesn't have to be a 1 bedder in a fabulous area or a 2 bedder in a shit area as the only options surely?

From what I’ve seen on rightmove and from researching the areas it does typically seem to be the case, obviously I’ll keep looking for two beds too but when they come up in my budget in nicer areas, they either have a short lease mentioned in the description or look to be mouldy. I don’t mind outdated and needing a bit of doing up but I don’t want something with such issues like damp that it will be a money pit and cost a load to sort

I downsized from a 2 bed in a borderline area to a 1 bed in a very nice area.

I'm much happier.

The flat I bought is big enough that I have a wall bed for guests in part of my living area. This makes it work well for me.

(I'm older than you but live on my own)

Only issue at the moment is be VERY aware of cladding. Only look at a building that has an EWS1 complete and read the form that has been done very carefully.

Great time to buy a 1 bed in London. They are less popular with people working from home etc, which means prices of smaller flats have dropped in many areas. Long term selling won't be an issue- when life gets back to normal there will be a good market for 1 beds.

I would go for the 1 bedroom as long as it's a true one bedroom and just a carved out space, if that makes sense?

Thanks everyone! @Okdaisy reassuring to read you think this as I was a bit worried about a flat in general as I have read that they aren’t as popular at the moment and was wondering if their popularity would ever bounce back long term

@ExpatForLife thank you, yes definitely Looking for a proper bedroom not a studio etc

There will always be a market for one beds, especially in a nice area. They may be harder to sell right now, which puts you in a good position as a buyer.

What's your budget palmtree?

Probably one bed but I’d go for something that can have value added in future - eg needs decorative updating, or there’s a loft to convert in future etc.

One bed in a nice area will always be easy to rent, so they will always sell to investors, and also will always be popular with single people and either young or retired couples (always many in London).

And they are cheaper to run (bills, council tax).

@MauveMavis

I downsized from a 2 bed in a borderline area to a 1 bed in a very nice area.

I'm much happier.

The flat I bought is big enough that I have a wall bed for guests in part of my living area. This makes it work well for me.

(I'm older than you but live on my own)

Only issue at the moment is be VERY aware of cladding. Only look at a building that has an EWS1 complete and read the form that has been done very carefully.

Unless she's a cash buyer she wouldn't be able to get a mortgage on a cladding-affected flat anyway.

It depends a little on your definition of nice vs not so nice areas, whereabouts are you looking? Do you want to try and make a profit with your sale?

It might be a great opportunity for you to buy a 2 bed in an up and coming not-so-nice area, and then eventually potentially sell at a profit. A 2 bed also means you are likely to stay in the flat for longer.
I find 1 beds in nicer areas are mostly at the upper end of what they will sell for so you are not likely to make much of a profit selling onward in future.

I'd also try and avoid buying in council blocks etc if possible, because there are a few disadvantages there (if they are replacing the windows across the whole building, you may have to fork out for those costs on your windows, for example) - and some of them are fantastic sized flats but they can be difficult to sell on. +1 on cladding issues too, have a few mates struggling to sell due to this

2 bed in an up and coming area. (So just outside a nice area or somewhere they are getting a new tube stop etc).

If times are hard you can rent a room out. The flat will grow with you.

The prob;em with up and coming, they sometimes take ages to 'get there' - and OP will haveto stay for years waiting for prices to go up while not liking the aera much.
Very nice areas always attract more buyers who can often proceed qiucker (parents bying for a child, investors).

She didn't make an emphasis of a long term plan to stay in that flat - even if her personal circs change, it's so much easier to rent it out in good aera or sell quicker. If it was about the long term, then pp may ave a point re 2-bed growing slowly (several years) in value - but still a risk that it doesn't bring profit if service charges are high yearly.

@CatAndHisKit good point about the renting / selling (could probably also Airbnb it if it's the right area). And totally correct in the up and coming areas being a bit of a risk in terms of when they pop! Really depends what you want to get out of it OP :)

Well, which would you rather actually live in? A second bedroom that has no use for you will bring little joy, especially if you don't love the house or the area. You could rent the other room out, if you're happy to live with someone else and do all the logistics.

Unless the flat is in bad condition you are unlikely to have much potential to add value in London, but a nice 1 bed in a good area is never going to drop too much---will be possible to rent/AirBnB out, will be attractive to future investors and first time buyers. Plus now is a very good time to buy this sort of property.

Realistically London is all about location--how quick into central, and how nice the local area is. It's all well and good to talk "up and coming" potential price increases but you're the one who would need to walk home alone at night, go for coffee, visit local bars. When it comes to area you usually get what you pay for in London.

What kind of areas are you thinking, and what is your budget?

I bought a 2 bed in a not as nice area rather than a 1 bed in a nicer area. It meant I could offer a room to friends when they were in need and as the area improved, it went up in value by 50% in less than 5 years.

It’s slightly further from the tube and coffee shops, but I don’t mind the extra walk / using my bike.

But if you can get a one bed in an area you love, it’s unlikely to go down in value, so you have to weigh up what is most important to you - are you looking for something as a good investment to push you up the ladder, or your perfect first home to stay in until you want to start a family?

Another thing to consider would be if working at home is likely to be something you do. A second bedroom would give you space for an office, so you can close the door at the end of the day and have some separation.

Well done on being able to buy so young in London!