Liberal/ quirky areas outside london

[Southlondoner88]

Hi,

DH and I are planning to buy a house (would consider a flat if location was amazing) we plan to also start a family and our first buy will likely be be a home for about 5-8 years so looking to make a profit in that time (I guess that’s not a guarantee in this climate though?)

We don’t know many areas outside where we live as we’re from a different country and I was wondering if you lovely mumsnetters had any ideas of where to start looking.

We need easy access into London as we will need to commute Mon-Fri.

We used to live in hackney and Peckham and loved the vibe/ independent coffee shops etc but now live near oxleas woods/ greenwich and love the green space. Somewhere with a cross between hackney and greenwich would be amazing, does such a place exist?

We also want somewhere not too urban now we’re getting older, lots of green space, we like living near water (sea, rivers, canals) good schools and community feel. We were looking at Essex but don’t really know the area.

Our budget is 250-300k. Husband gets free transport so that will save us money so expensive season ticket although not ideal, not a deal breaker either. I’d love to find somewhere we can meet like minded people, not super rich like the people we meet in london but more normal earning, left wing folk. I work as a therapist so tend to gravitate towards charity workers etc but also into fashion/ music so have many friends in these industries too and would like to find these people if we move out. I worry the Home Counties will be too stifling for us as we are still quite young at heart but ultimately the main deal breaker is just a nice area with good transport links and things to do.

Thanks in advance.

Hitchin

I love Leigh on Sea

FYI, Leigh is quite right wing, has Tory councillors and MP. But there are liberal folk too and the high street, social (including art scene) and opportunity to be by the beach is definitely there. Plus decent schools.

You can't get a house for that budget without heading out of the main town, which in turn means far from the station and the vibe.

Something like this flat (with garden) is a good area for schools, station and goings ons. https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/134029475#/?channel=RES_BUY

Hello OP did you get any further with this big decision? We have exactly the same criteria! I just can’t think of anywhere. Want to leave the dirty city and clogged transport but I also love the creativity, good coffee, restaurants x1 a month and would like to meet similar people.

Luton? Huge amounts of it are rough but it does have nice bits and it’s very cosmopolitan and leftie. If a flat will do then London Colney just outside St Albans, much cheaper than the town itself but largely suffers from snobbery. Loads of shops in the retail park and high st, and excellent road links. Thameslink trains from Radlett or St Albans nearby. £250k will get you a two bed flat on the Watersplash estate

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/135158972

I think with that budget you could move along a borough to Bexley. Short drive back to Shooters Hill, Blackheath and Greenwich. A bit more suburban but very good primary schools on the whole, green spaces, good transport.

Postcodes DA14, DA15,

www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/131430383

I would go for Royston in Hertfordshire. It’s as little as 40 minutes train to London, has good schools and you could get a house for £300k potentially.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/86214936#/?channel=RES_BUY

Stay in London, OP!

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/137655425#/?channel=RES_BUY

I personally wouldn’t send my kids to any secondary schools in Portsmouth, I’m from there! Primary schools yes.

Where did you end up buying?

I have a new user name.

we bought a small small place in Barnehurst, it’s definitely not quirky but I’ve met a lot of liberal mum types on mat leave. Great schools around here, Kent on your doorstep/ Greenwich up the road.

Ah yes we moved out to Beckenham. Now we want soemwhere even more leafy acne chilled but close to London but not sure where that is

So i think it also depends how close you want to be to a station, as stations become more of a 'premium' outside of london. I moved to chelmsford from south london and you could find a small house for that budget, but probably not in walking distance from the station. On terms of what you are looking for, my requirements were similar to yours. Chelmaford defintely isnt Hackney or Peckham, but there is a few nice coffee shops and restuarants, it is big enough to have a bit of culture, and my part of chelmsford is mostly ex londoners and everyone is pretty liberal

@rosewater55 i guess some parts of the Bexley borough are leafy. Erith definitely not but here in Barnehurst we have two woodlands and three parks in walking distance and then there’s more leafiness around danson park or
even Abbey Wood, it has Bostall woods and les nes abbey. There’s also Bexley village, joydens wood, sidcup. Trains around there not as good as where I am though.

Look at Bedford. The train is an hour, the river is lovely, there’s a nice independent and arty scene and it’s very international. Not cheap, but not as ridiculous as much of the south east.