Would you live in Central London or Zone 2/3?

[pinktinge]

We are going to move flats soon.

Option 1: Live in the middle of Zone 1 (near St Paul’s) and be able to walk to work in 20 minutes. Flat in a block with porter, balcony, urban setting.

Option 2: Live in leafy Zone 2/3 borders, 35 mins commute to work on tube. Garden flat in a victorian house.

I would prefer to enjoy the super central urban lifestyle but dh prefers something a bit more relaxed.

Zone 2/3 isn't that relaxed though, is it? It's hardly open countryside and fresh air. So I think I'd go for the flat in Zone 1.
Unless you can afford a flat on the edge of Hampstead Heath of course.

For me it would be option 2 garden flat.

Forgot to add sorry the Option 2. Flat is Clapham/Balham area.

Garden flat, having an outside space like a garden is something I wouldn't swap for a balcony.

Option 1. It's a completely different experience living in central London

Clapham or Balham are great. Garden flat for me in good location.

Option 1 for us.

Depends where it is, it's very green and open with big parks in some parts of zone 2.

Clapham is great ,that would be my choice.

Are you new to London? Zone 2 can also be “super urban” but without the tourists and with better cafes, and is usually very different from zone 3.

When you’re there every weekend for years the tourists in zone 1 get too much. Too much of the property is Airbnb with different people coming in and out not caring about noise.

St Paul's/City is dead at weekends. Quiet and a bit soulless. Getting to the west end isn't that different from there than it is from Clapham.

You also have the commons for green space in Clapham/Balham.

Didnt see the update. I’m not the biggest fan of Clapham, but it depends what you want to be in the area and where you work.

I wouldn’t want to live around St Paul’s at weekends tbh. I would want somewhere with a bit life to it at weekends and less tourists. I lived just off Covent Garden for a couple of years in my youth and that was great at weekends. Bloomsbury and Fitzrovia too (love Fitzrovia!)

Why are you restricted to those two options?

How long might you be living there?

A couple of years = worth the novelty of living in the City for a short period. Bear in mind the area will get incredibly hot in summer because the heat is retained by the solid buildings/roads/pavements.

And living and working in the same area means you don't have a contrasting place to 'escape' to for downtime.

If a long-term move, I'd go for a leafy suburb with a short commute.

How long for? If it’s pretty short term - maybe renting for a year or two - I think it would be good to experience living right in the centre of London. Have lived in London most of my life but never properly central. It would be cool to be able to walk to the Tate, jog along the South Bank etc
If longer term then would probably go further out and more outside space.

Just about to say this. The City feels very different at the weekend. Very quiet.

I loved living near Clapham in my 20s

I’d choose central St Paul’s is a bit dry on the weekends but you can walk lots of places.

I can’t stand Clapham and a good size balcony achieves the same as a garden with less effort

St Paul's area is dead at the weekend, I'd prefer Clapham/Balham as more parks, but still easy to get Tube into central.

I'd go for central, but make a point of trying to have nice days out at the weekends. The time saved on commuting and recovering from commuting can be used to keep up with housework in the week, rather than having things to do at weekends, so weekends should hopefully feel more leisurely.

Same here.

I've done both, St Paul's very quiet on weekend, lots of things closed.

Balham has nice weekend vibe, easy drive/train out to country and good rail links.

I couldn't bear the thought of not having a garden to grow stuff and always worry about another lockdown.

I love the City feeling like a ghost town at weekends. I’d choose that every time. My only concern, as pps have said, would be the presence of Airbnbs in the building.

My parents live over the river from St Paul's. There's plenty to do at the weekend these days. I find Clapham a bit meh myself so I'd probably go for the city location. The advantage of being about to walk to so many places would swing it for me.

Part of the reason we are moving is that our current flat is in a building full of airbnbs.

The Option 1. Flat near St Paul’s has banned all airbnb and from friends who live there, are excellent at getting rid of any that crop up.

I'd go for St Pauls all day long, and I lived in Balham for 10 years.