Where would you buy in London to make money?

[nafplion]

Currently renting in Zone 1. Looking to buy a
do-er upper somewhere in or nearby London in order to build equity and climb the ladder. Obviously it’s a lot harder to do now. But where do you think would be a good place for first time buyers? Absolute max would be c600k which doesn’t go that far in London.

Alternative is that we purchase outside of London, and split time between the two when doing up a cheaper property.

Norwood junction or Croydon. £600k will get you a 3-4 bed in very good condition close to a station. The overground/ line into London Bridge runs regularly, great connections to Gatwick and Brighton and it’s near a lot of fun places! You could also buy on that stretch of the overground (Penge, Sydenham etc) which are nicer areas and closer in, but less well connected IMO! I bought there and really liked it :)

let us know how you get on!

Be aware that the overground splits after Sydenham so frequency of the excellent service drops from one every 7 or 8 mins to just four an hour. makes a big difference.

Unless you have a good source of free labour eg excellent at DIY, you will find doer upper is costing you more than you'll make, not to mention the hassle of finding anyone good who can start any jobs within 6 months.

I don’t think there’s much money to made in London until the uncertainty of rates subsides.

Only london areas, i can think of with cheaper housing, would be around East ham, manor park...both fairly grim...lots of houses ruined in the 70's with pebbledash..all original fittings removed etc....as mentioned, building costs so high i doubt you could make any money buying a wreck and doing it up, in my area, houses fetch appx 800k for some that need a little work, wrecks sell for around 700k still so not worth it really.

Maybe, maybe Plumstead or Abbey Wood but I think you might be too late to capitalise on the Crossrail bump.

Barnehurst.

@pendleflyer - the line does split but Penge East is literally 5 mins from Penge West and it has four trains an hour to Victoria.

I was going to suggest South Norwood or Penge too. Both Penge and SN will have Victorian properties in nice roads for less than £600k and both seem to have nice new cafes/bars added regularly.

SN is grittier and can be a bit messy on CPFC matchdays but there's been a sudden addition of nice cafes/delis, etc near the station which probably reflects the changing demographic.

@BovineJuice

pendleflyer - the line does split but Penge East is literally 5 mins from Penge West and it has four trains an hour to Victoria.

True but I think it's better to hook straight into the tube, as the overground, effectively part of the tube - that line hooks in very easily at Canada water for the jubilee and multiple at Whitechapel including spectacular new Liz line.

By the by I understand that TFL is aiming to soon give names to specific lines on the overground. Though this won't boost services/connectivity I suppose it could boost the perceptions/perceived value of the areas on it.

>>True but I think it's better to hook straight into the tube, as the overground, effectively part of the tub,e DOES

(word missed)-

Norbury / Streatham / Mitcham

@stevalnamechanger - I think the ship has probably sailed for Streatham. Not a fan of Norbury or Mitcham.

Interesting , how so ?

@stevalnamechanger - which statement? Streatham is close enough to some trendy places (Clapham, Balham, etc) and has a busy useful High Street so inevitably ended up being one of those "I wanted to live in X, couldn't afford it so moved to Y as it's nearby". Similar to Tooting.

Yes but why don't you think there is price appreciation to be had

Because they only have £600k so that probably means a flat and every place has a price ceiling and it strikes me that once you hit that figure you want more for your money. It's a lot to spend as a first time buyer and only get a flat. Obviously the OP may have different views.

In Streatham you can get a 3 bed for 600

Also between clapham north and Brixton there are some bargains to be had in an area that is going through "gentrification" currently

With the price drops you could get a 2 bed flat in Tooting or one of those teeny "cottage" type 2 bed houses also

I’d also say south Norwood - Norwood junction has both the 12 min train to LDN bridge, Thameslink, and overground (so way better than Sydenham connection wise), Selhurst is also on the direct Victoria and Gatwick line. Lots of new places opening, clear will be quite different in five years - at same time, very strong community feel with many community initiatives. CPFC match days aren’t an issue, only if you want to drive at specific hours on match days.

@Helloworldimback - I agree about S Norwood being worth a punt but Selhurst is cheap for a reason.

This is not a market for doer-uppers currently.

Trades are expensive and in short supply.

The general view on base rates is that they will top out somewhere between 6 and 7%, so some way to go on that yet.

I would look to buy somewhere you will be happy to live for 5 years or so. And that can become your home.

You will have security of tenure and a place you can personalise. This is worth quite a lot IMO.

I lived in Ederline Avenue in Norbury and it was totally fine.

i would say sydenham is better to be honest for normal london travel because of frequent and very easy hooks into the tube. Trains to rail termini are all well and good but when folks get to one of those they then usually have to hit the tube - and that can take a fair old while from the termini. I wouldn't usually for instance choose to hop onto the london spanning jubilee line at london bridge unless I had to.

What about Hatfield in Hertfordshire? It is slightly grotty but it is very well connected which suggests it should be on the way up.

These are all the direct trains:
20 mins to Finsbury Park
25 mins to Kings X
30 mins to London Bridge
35 mins to Farringdon (the 10 on to Canary Wharf)
46 mins to Moorgate
60 mins to Cambridge

30 mins to Luton Airport, 40 mins to Stansted

Lots of potential for this one:
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/136777823?utm_campaign=property-details&utm_content=buying&utm_medium=sharing&utm_source=copytoclipboard#/&channel=RES_BUY

Hatfield itself has good sports facilities at the University, Hatfield House has nice greenery and regular events of different types. The old town has pretty bits and a nice old pub. There's a cinema and a discount shopping centre.