North London - which area?

[GreenPalmTree]

Hello all,

Have lived in south London for 10 years, due to a work change now seeking a new home which provides an easy commute to Cambridge and an easy commute to central London…

Preferably want to stay within zones 2/3 and don’t want to leave London (so not St Albans or Essex, or Hitchin/ Royston)

Areas on radar include Angel, De Beauvoir Town, Kentish Town/ Gospel Oak/ Dalston.

Budget £1m to £1.5m, need at least two bedrooms, would prefer a house but if an amazing period maisonette with outdoor space could consider it. Can also consider modern properties if a full house / mews.

Struggling at the moment to figure out what areas are lovely, and attainable. Don’t mind a renovation project!

Also struggling with expectation management as we have the horrible problem of trying to move from a cheaper area to a more expensive one.

Any suggestions or wisdom welcomed!

Barnsbury. Lovely leafy area, smart Georgian houses and you could probably get decent sized flat in one of those for your budget. Easy commute to Cambridge via victoria line from Highbury and Islington to either Finsbury Park or Tottenham Hale. Great pubs and restaurants. I love it here, often walk to the city to get some exercise, but you can also get the train from H&I to Moorgate or bus to Liverpool St. Also easy access to the Heath in a few minutes via the overground from H&I.

I used to live there too Camdenish and to smile at the property posted up thread. Yes, beautiful house but right next to the A12!

I loved Lauriston Road area in the 1970s - 2000s, but far too crowded now.

I'm now not far from Finsbury Park and really like the more spacious feel of the streets. The air is noticeably cleaner here too - I can really feel it when I cycle down to the East End.

I can't believe how expensive the Victoria park area is! It doesn't feel worth that to me - I have visited friends there and it is nice enough but still quite "up and coming"

If you're commuting by train, you could still live in South London if you wanted and just choose somewhere on either the Victoria line or the Northern line to King's Cross. E.g. Brixton is pretty quick on the Vic line or you could look at Tooting on the Northern line.

I blooming loved Befnal Green. I’m afraid there are too many rich people there now. When I was there everyone just sort of bumbled along. When I let the disparity between haves and have nots was so wide, it was depressing.
It was impossible to get on the tube or the bus in the mornings.
I didn’t like to mention the A12 as it’s a handy road but… :)
I saw a nice house in camden for under £1 million, ( toy money) could wander down York Way to Kings X. I’ll see if I can find it.

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/105613829#/?channel=RES_BUY

that one in camden mews looks interesting.
but i guess lots of other people will think so too...

Hello all, OP here - just thought I’d update.

So we have spent the last few weeks walking around North London… didn’t get to visit everywhere but do have a clearer idea of what we do / don’t want.

• Kentish Town, we liked the area heading towards Kentish Town West - however the prices for property seem poorer value for money. Would consider as an area if a place we loved turned up.

• liked Tufnell Park going into Dartmouth Park area. Felt nice and Green, safe etc.

• we went to St Johns Tavern in Archway for lunch which was nice but didn’t feel like a place we’d like to live.

• then went over to the fringes of Finsbury Park but on the side towards Hornsey Road. Liked the houses and area surrounding the Landseer Arms and would investigate further… however we then crossed the Seven Sisters Road and I didn’t like the feeling at all- felt tougher than where we are now, and I think we may be able to do better for our budget.

• walked down part of the Holloway Road - as we got further down towards Highbury &Islington I quite liked it.

• Paradise Park area in H&I I thought looked ok, had seen some crime stats but generally looked friendly and well looked after as an area. Any thoughts on the roads near here?

• crossed the railway tracks and of course ended up in beautiful Barnsbury- sadly think we are out of range for our budget, but maybe a flat is possible if we decide to make that compromise. It ticks all my boxes otherwise.

• Arlington square area near Angel. Love this area and it might be possible to get a doer upper.

So what I learnt…

1. Victoria line is more important to us than the northern line, which suggests areas close to H&I and Finsbury Park are where we should focus.

1. I don’t want to spend over £1m to live next door to houses with gardens full of crap… this rules out certain roads rather than certain areas.

1. Didn’t investigate other parts of Highbury or Finsbury Park. Any views on area near Blackstock Road?

More exploring is needed!

Thanks again for the ideas.

I'd go Belsize Park, Kentish Town, Dartmouth Park, Crouch End, Muswell Hill (the latter has not so great transport).

Go further up from Finsbury Park to Stroud Green or Crouch End. I got a 3 bed double fronted flat in Stroud Green for £1m and it's a lovely area. Close to villages atmosphere of Crouch End, and increasingly nice bars, cafe and delis in north Finsbury Park, Parkland Walk nature reserve etc. my road has great views of the city in one direction and Ally Pally in the other.

Did you ever look at de Beauvoir, OP? We are selling our 3-bed (need something bigger but will need to go further out for that as it’s now out of budget, although the kids would prefer to stay local now they’re enjoying the nightlife!). If Highbury & Islington (also Northern & Overground nearby) for travel & proximity to decent schools plus leafy back gardens are considerations it’s worth a look around here. Good community too. Gentrified quite a bit since we arrived!

Couple of things - stoke Newington (particularly Church Street) is not easily walkable to FP. Well - it is easy but it’s a good 40 minutes.
Harringay station only goes direct to Kings Cross when there are engineering works T the weekend - normally into FP then onto Moorgate.

@Bouledeneige

I'd go Belsize Park, Kentish Town, Dartmouth Park, Crouch End, Muswell Hill (the latter has not so great transport).

You won't get anything in Belsize Park with your requirements and budget

I would aim for N1 with Blackstock road and Stroud Green as a compromise. Good transport, plenty to do and probably a younger demographic than the leafy burbs.

I used to live near Highbury and Islington station, Upper Street is great.

What about something like this

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/119796950

[quote fleurpots]I used to live near Highbury and Islington station, Upper Street is great.

What about something like this

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/119796950[/quote]
Thank you- saw that one but noted the flat is on a separate lease to the upper section of the property so might be tricky to convince a mortgage provider…

In response to other queries… I think De Beauvoir (as much as I like it) might be slightly in the wrong place for the commute.

Belsize Park isn’t a contender due to the budget!

Blackstock Road area and Stroud Green sound like contenders… I feel like I know about Stroud Green a bit - but not so much South of Finsbury Park towards Highbury or H&I - more exploring needed.

Refreshes RightMove in case new properties have been added

I know the length of Holloway Road plus very well

I would not live off Blackstock Road on the run up to Finsbury Park station. It has a long running serious drug dealing (centred around the Tesco/College) & street harassment of women issues. It falls on the borders of 3 different boroughs and despite massive efforts is still not effectively policed. Plenty of info if you Google it.

Paradise Park always felt pretty creepy to me, j don’t like that area at all and it does suffer anti social behaviour.

I actually felt very safe always south of Seven Sisters Road to Holloway Road station, it’s oddly very safe.

Love Stroud Green, a very good friend lives there but there have been issues of women’s safety along Stroud Green Road late at night.

I would look at the area around Mary Magdalene - the school is very highly sought after and it’s just a bit cheaper than the bits around the Fields. Quick walk to the tube as well and there’s a great strip of shops between Palmer and Madras place.

Thanks @Porridgeislife that level of detail is very helpful.

So crazy how things vary street by street… that’s London I suppose!

what about upper holloway.
some lovely streets around mercer road, and a short walk/bus down the well lit holloway road to holloway rd tube station, or up to upper holloway stn if you can triangulate from there.
i'm not sure of the prices though.

Look towards Crouch End from Finsbury Park. You could get a house on the Harringay Ladder for your price range.

Spanner in the works, maybe. Walthamstow. Victoria Line and virtually at M11 for Cambridge. Or South Woodford for central line and M11. Both slightly further out but good transport links and possibly more for your money.