Buying. a flat in London

[MissMuffetisin]

Could anyone who knows the London property market help my eldest DC, who is looking to buy a one bed flat in London ? They want to buy at between 250 to 300 k - nearer the lower end if possible. They work in Islington and are a bit of a culture vulture so would like to be able to get into the centre at weekends. They currently live in a rented room in Muswell Hiil, which they love and would like a similar vibe but realise they can’t afford it, so are looking for somewhere safe that won’t cost a fortune in commuting. Our family don’t know London at all so we’re flummoxed - they could get a detached house where we live for that, but looking on Rightmove I’m thinking they’ve set themselves an impossible task !

I used to commute from there to Angel and was very easy commute

@MyFirstLittlePony what was the service charge like there? I'd imagine in a block like that with facilities they'd be fairly steep?

Yes good point! Service charge was very £££

I wondered why a flat in Bow Quarter was so cheap. It's because it only has 89 years left on the lease. One to avoid.

It says £3600 service charge py

Presumably they are familiar with London though if they're currently renting in Muswell Hill. Have they been in London the whole 10 years they've been renting? That's a long time not to have a sense of the more affordable areas.
I think they'd have much more success speaking to colleagues, esp those who own, than asking their mum who doesn't know London to ask Mumsnet. It's lovely that you want to help but this is an adult of presumably at least 28, who is about to make the biggest financial decision of their lives. They sound a bit passive from your posts.

Ahhhh sorry! Bad recommendation then, scrap it. Eek

but yes as an Area I found Bow very good to live, very commutable to work areas (especially city) and beautiful flats.

Have lived in Bethnal Green too, which I also really like.

East London gets overlooked a bit so wanted to mention it

SE14 would be v convenient for Islington as mentioned up thread - overground train to Highbury & islington Station direct from New Cross Gate.
up and coming area - flats will rise in value.
close to goldsmiths uni & Deptford- lots going on for young urbanites

@MyFirstLittlePony I agree that East London is often overlooked on MN. I think some MNetters think it's some rough den of inequity. 😂And some are just a bit ignorant/west biased with their geography and think that central London is the West End so anything further east is "miles out".

I know this building and it's a great location. If you used to live in Bethnal Green, I'm sure you also appreciate what a nice spot this is.
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/143217407#/?channel=RES_BUY

This is in the heart of hipsterland and very well connected for Islington (direct line and only a couple of stops plus buses etc). Lots of 20 somethings in the area and lots of creatives.
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/86733468#/?channel=RES_BUY

For those who mentioned Sydenham, I know it well (lived there for a long while and recently moved out of London). It's a lovely community with cafes and a nice vibe, but very much Nappy Valley territory with a lot of families, so may not be good for a single man (I wouldn't touch Lower Sydenham, but that is just me). When u was heavily pregnant, apparently I was the 4th pregnant woman to ask the guys doing roadworks on one of the main roads when they would be finished as I was due to give birth any day...

Forest Hill is a fair bit livelier, but still a lot of families, especially if you don't want to live on top of the S Circular (Stanstead Road- I can see a place for sale there). Parts of both are expensive, though you may have a little.more luck in Penge or maybe CP (both overground).

Both are def a little grittier than Muswell Hill, though!

If they like Muswell Hill and need to commute to Islington then please don't be recommending flats in Croydon. The overground between Highbury and South London has frequent disruptions. I'd advise Hornsey, Bounds Green, Walthamstow areas but I don't know what £250-£300k would buy in those areas now.
Someone linked to a flat in Crouch End which would be good location-wise too.

@HundredMilesAnHour yes I know that area too 😁 and Hackney! I used to live in Hackney in the 90s before it was hipster (though already slightly going that way, some fun pub near a canal doing beer and oysters 😁)

I’ve always had a weak spot for East London but my generation (Gen X) have often been a bit snobby (maybe?) about it

i lived in Bow in early noughties.

it’s so commutable with the district and central line in zone 2

and I used to go rollerblading in Victoria park and then eating a cheap fry up in taxi drivers greasy spoon 😁

to be fair some of my friends hated e East London and thought it was grim. But worth for OP/OP child to have a look around

Bounds Green, Hornsey, Wood Green (Allu Pally side), Palmers Green, Finchley...

For that budget you should be able to find a one bed flat in: Enfield (EN2 and EN1, not the east side of the A10), Barnet, Palmers Green, Winchmore Hill, Finchley, Crouch End. If they work in Islington I wouldn't suggest going south even if there are trains that can get to central to connect to the tube - they will need to consider the additional cost of using two different service providers. Though if you are able to find a really good deal, it could balance out vs the travel cost.

@catswithbowties you don't need to switch to tube to get from south london to north- overground and national rail go from south through central to north without the need to pay twice!

I was going to suggest Forest Hill, Sydenham or Brockley in SE London - on the overground; tho only because I know it!

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/137130494#/?channel=RES_BUY

This is 5 minutes from Brockley station

No you're right, I was thinking specifically about getting to Islington. I don't think there are any that go there directly from south are there? I always find it tricky to get south (east in particular) from north, have a friend in Beckenham and another in Hither Green so have had to do various changes to rail to get to both those places!

That looks good. Close to Brockley station for the daily commute. Not far from Deptford, and the overground is 24 hour on Fridays and Saturdays to New Cross Gate.

I was thinking specifically about getting to Islington. I don't think there are any that go there directly from south are there?

@catswithbowties The Overground does - straight to Highbury & Islington (amongst other places).

I don’t understand what kind of help you think you can give your DC if you don’t know London at all? Surely if they currently live and work in London and have friends and colleagues and flatmates there, they must be able to work this out for themselves? Someone who doesn’t know London at all, and is asking a bunch of strangers on the Internet, is only going to throw up even more options than they probably already have, rather than narrowing things down.

Indeed. Especially asking a bunch of strangers on Mumsnet who are more likely to recommend suburban / Nappy Valley types places rather than somewhere for a single man in his 20s (as is very evident from some of the recommendations).

South Norwood. Lots of youngish single people have moved here in the last few years (including me) and flats are cheaper than 250k. I agree it’s a bit weird he’s asking you to help though rather than his friends/doing his own research when you don’t know London. My dad grew up in London but my parents had zero involvement in my flat hunting

I wouldn’t want to do south east London to Islington for work every day. This place in Leyton is nice and wouldn’t be too bad for commute - two stops overground to Blackhorse Road then four stops on the Victoria line. Easy to get to Walthamstow, Wanstead and other areas with things going on in east london. https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/140026817

South Norwood is flippin' miles from Islington! 45 minutes on a slow Overground train to live in a 1 bed in an area they have no connection with. This whole thread is bonkers.
OP's "child" must be late 20s/early 30s and really needs to be doing their own research and visiting areas and speaking to friends and contemporaries about this.