London - Areas

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I would love a second property in London (we live up north but visit regularly).

I have looked and dreamed and Googled but I need some local insider knowledge - can anyone recommend areas to look at?

criteria would be

1. on the tube line
2. safe area, I like a bohemian vibe - Notting Hill, Portobello Road, Camden Market, Covent Garden, South Bank are the areas I spend time although I am well aware they’d be way out of budget (hence the struggle, I don’t know anywhere further out).
3. house rather than apartment to remove service charges
4. in an ideal world under £700k

Am I living in a dream world to think this may be doable? Can anyone suggest areas to look?

Thank you so much, this is exactly what I was hoping for from the post.

Point absolutely taken on central London flat vs suburban house. You are all right, I live rurally now so it’s not as though I’m looking for space and fresh air from this!

And again, I understand the flat prices not rising and reasons for it. So I think my big takeaways are:

1. flat not house
2. Westminster area is a good one
3. no rush as flat prices are pretty stagnant anyway
4. don’t buy a flat if looking to sell on as that can be difficult - however on reflection as much as I would love to entirely move once our daughter is grown up, I’m also an only child to a single parent whose elderly care and support I’ll need to consider - so realistically it will remain a second base for quite some time, if not permanently.

Thanks so much once again, it’s hugely appreciated and has helped so much for me to collect and organise my thoughts into something that actually makes sense!

Have a look at the Dover House estate in Putney. 10-20 minute walk to Barnes station where you can get to Waterloo in 20 minutes. Anything under £700k might need some work but it's a lovely area. Walkable to Barnes and East Sheen for weekend brunches etc, Putney itself has nice rest, lots of green areas very close and accessible.

There is a huge difference between living in Z3/4 and living in Z1

I never said otherwise? I just disagreed z3 was like living in the Midlands!

I’ve got a choice of Norwood junction or east Croydon. Both will take you to central in 12 mins I think it is to London Bridge or a little longer for heading a bit further north. Direct fast line. Easy.

@NonmagicMike I know E.Croydon and it’s like 14 mins to LB, maybe 17 mins to V, definitely not 12. My train journey is actually 12 mins sometimes, same for the tube to V. But the length of the tube/train journey is only part of my journey, the only way I could get into V in 12 mins was if I lived on the platform one end and didn’t want to go anywhere but the platform on the other end and even then that’s only if there is zero wait for a tube or train, so my door to door journey is more than 12 mins. There’s what 45 min walk between NJ and EC so you do have to factor in your journey to your station of choice as well.

And whilst there is nothing wrong with Croydon (I have often defended it on MNs) there are some lovely parts. But even the nice parts are not the obvious choice for a pied a terre in London.

Surely if your husband is going to be using it as a pied a terre for work, the key thing is for it to be within easy reach of his office and/or the mainline station back home.

Anptjer thing to think about if you are used to living in a cheap rural area in the North is Londoners live pretty compactly, so you will have to massively adjust your expectations in terms of how much space £700k will buy you.

One of the blocks of flats up Shepherds Hill so you can walk to Highgate tube would work.

Thank you - v useful!

Entirely agree.
This is what hotels are for.

Would love to see second homes banned in London ( and other places).

@Savemysweets I'm z5 and can get to Victoria in under 20 mins. I suspect pp and I are in the same place.

Op where does your husband need to commute to. I'd look at Crystal Palace, Hither Green for the vibe you're after for more house for £.

@longdistanceclaraclara door to door though?

I'm 5mins walk to the station and my office is 5mins walk the other end so it's a short commute. Bromley South

The prices of small flats in central London fluctuate wildly, based more on exchange rates than domestic demand.

Overseas buyers seem mainly attracted to new builds. I would avoid them. Better to find a flat in a converted Victorian stucco house in Pimlico or as someone suggested, the Millbank Estate, or perhaps a smaller 80s block. Mansion blocks around Westminster Cathedral have lovely proportions but are probably out of your price range. There will be problems associated with older buildings, but at least they have stood a long time. The quality of some new builds is underwhelming. The key is a long lease or share of freehold and that it is well managed. I own a couple of rental properties in the area, and am Director of the Freehold company on one. Worth asking early about management arrangements, and about service charge arrears. (The latter is a growing problem with flats owned technically by off-shore companies.) Check also if you can see any flats listed on Air BnB. Its often not the owner. Instead there are rogues posing as tenants who collect a portfolio of rented properties which they sublet. One overseas owner in a neighbouring property has fallen for the scam twice, but the competent management company acted quickly. Rental is pretty straightforward and one of my "young pro

It is a great area, full of surprises. (Buy your afternoon tea via TooGoodtoGo from the Westminster Catering College, or fresh fish from Tatchbrook Street Market. Or go to Chinatown for dimsum then a cheap matinee ticket from TodayTix and walk home.) I would not want to live anywhere else.

FWIW the small mews house in Kennington linked earlier will be leasehold because there will be shared communal facilities, like garages. But this is not necessarily a bad thing, and these sorts of houses can be ideal for those who want a lock and leave, but not a flat.

I don't think the areas you favour are particularly bohemian - they were maybe 25 years ago but have since been colonised by hedge funders. If you're regularly coming down from northern England, keep to the north side of central London (we live in south west London and getting up to M1 adds an hour onto our journey). Spend a bit more time here and get to know some less chi-chi areas but accept that they aren't going to very Richard Curtis-y. I think Walthamstow is a good call, also Dalston, Archway, Holloway. Yes, you should definitely be looking at flats - far more lock up and leave.

I'm 5mins walk to the station and my office is 5mins walk the other end so it's a short commute. Bromley South

I have not argued the commute is long? I just find it disingenuous when people say my journey is 12 mins when that isn’t reflective of the actual journey.

If you're regularly coming down from northern England, keep to the north side of central London (we live in south west London and getting up to M1 adds an hour onto our journey).

Thats a good point.

I was going to say Pimlico too. Also, there are surprisingly good value flats in Bloomsbury. I lived there for several years and it was a great place to be and within easy reach of everywhere in central London, walkable to train lines for most of the UK and even the Eurostar for weekend trips to Paris.

But for £700k, you won’t get a whole house anywhere central or, to be honest, very nice. Since you are looking for a pied a terre, a flat is more sensible anyway. Go for purpose built rather than a conversion too. Better layouts and better soundproofing.

@Needmoresleep westminster catering college! I love that place, didn't realise they did the toogoodtogo bags, will check it out. I've eaten in their restaurants a few times and the service and quality are fabulous for the price (as they're students!).

Look under The Vincent Rooms. Extraordinarily generous and great quality. Though term time only. Save as a favourite and it should pop up when they have something.

Complete thread divert but did you realise that they sell fresh bread each afternoon from the reception, and wonderful hand made chocolates. The latter are my go-to for gifts.

So so many nice things about the area. Sitting outside Goya on a sunny afternoon. The St Georges Square fete. Concerts in St John's and so on.

You'd get one of the 2-bedroom maisonette flats on the lovely Golden Lane Estate (EC1, next to the Barbican) for under £700k. Brilliant area. Architecturally interesting (and listed), well built flats. Good community. Easy to come and go from/ low maintenance. Downside is that your landlord is the evil City of London and the planned future capital works (window replacement, but they've been talking about that for yeeeeears and still have only done one of the buildings on the estate)

No pets in the Barbican- that's the only reason we didnt buy there as it is lovely (some parts are much better than tears)

Wasn’t going into how long it might take to get to the station, just what the journey is once there. Norwood junction to London Bridge 12 mins. East Croydon to most places central 15 ish then. If you wanted to go via tube from somewhere would there also not be a walk to get to the station too? Of course you have to get off the station at each end and find your way there from home, but the point is that the actual journey itself is very fast.

If you want somewhere “bohemian” have you looked at Greenwich? Lots of flats round there (in the nice bits, not Deptford) for less than £700k. Pretty busy on the weekends though.