Where to live in Surrey

[Pleasesendhelp]

Hi all, my husband and I currently live in SW London and have decided to move to Surrey for more space and greenery etc. We would love some recommendations to start our search as well as any areas to avoid as we are totally clueless. We have started looking in Epsom, but are open to other areas. Our budget is around 1mil max for a 3 or 4 bed semi/detached period house and would be willing to do some renovation if needed. It would need to be close to good state schools, a nice highstreet for shopping, cafes and pubs. My husband works in the city so would need a reasonable commute to Waterloo and I drive to work in Kingston, Surbiton and Raynes Park. Thank you 😊

Banstead - though the trains aren't that good
Reigate
Ashstead - not as big as others suggested
Bookham - smallest High Street but close to others
Dorking
Guildford
Epsom - as you have suggested but more outer edges of London
Haslemere - the most furthest out

All of the above vary in size, but they each have a High Street - Ashstead and Bookham being the smallest. They also have a train station as well !

Sometimes it's best to literally look down the train line and work out the acceptable commuting distance for you and then go from there, coupled with your drive to Kingston etc.

Esher? On the train line to Waterloo and a fairly quick drive to Kingston and Surbiton.

You could consider Reigate? Cobham and Weybridge are also both nice although pricy.

Don't discount some parts of Redhill and Earlswood... there are some lovely houses and good railway connections. Also Redhill is being regenerated so is on the up.

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/122741342

Weybridge

What time do you drive to those areas? My husband drives to New Malden and the traffic in that area is pretty bad around rush hour. I'd recommend staying as close to that area as possible. We live near Purley and it can easily take him an hour. Agree with suggestions of Epsom. Personally I would avoid Sutton and Wallington - I don't think the high streets are very nice. Dorking could work - it's lovely and I don't think the drive would be too bad. The train to Waterloo is quite slow though.

I'm guildford/godalming/farnham area and think it's great but don't underestimate the pain of the commute from anywhere south west into your working areas. Maybe check driving times before making a commitment.

Oh sod off with your adverts

Thank you for all your suggestions! We spent last weekend on a long drive around Surrey through some of the suggested areas - they were all lovely. Some areas are out of our price range and the property market is absolutely bonkers at the moment. We have added Ewell and Ashtead to our list based on commute for both of us and affordability. My husband and I work long hours (12hrs+/day) so keeping the commute as short as possible is priority.

Sorry, I should explain that someone advertised their property finding business. The post has now been removed.

Egham and Englefield Green are nice

Driving in to those areas for work I wouldn't want to live outside the M25, as a rough boundary. But it depends if you go early enough to beat the traffic or what length of commute you're happy with.

The Esther, Walton, Weybridge train line is a quick one, so it's worth looking along that, but be aware stops such as Hersham have fewer trains stopping at them so it's worth checking that level of detail.

Ewell village is also nice as is Claygate.

I assume Thames Ditton is too much in London still? Same for Hampton?

Where did you end up? Moving from clapham to surrey and would love to kno

We ended up moving to Ewell East and really love it here. We are on the edge of Nonsuch park, which we love and spend a lot of time here.
Highstreet - we walk through Nonsuch park to get to Cheam (20 min walk). Which has a lovely little high street. Otherwise Ewell Village is only minutes away.
Commute - easy drive for me to work - take the A3 the whole way. I took everyone's advice on avoiding New Malden/Worcester Park - it really is a nightmare driving through at peak hour.
My husband uses Ewell East station which takes him to London Bridge or Victoria in 45 minutes. This is on the Southern line which is much faster, less busy and less cancellations than than SWR. However, he does occasionally use Ewell West or Stoneleigh station (SWR) if there's issues on the Southern line.
Schools- Good state schools and private school options. We are also in the radius for several grammar schools.

We also liked the Cheam area near Nonsuch park and in Epsom we liked the woodcote estate, college area and near Epsom common.