Single FTB in London: how to buy somewhere to suit my needs now and in future?

[ComingUpTrumps]

Hello all,

I’m a first time buyer in my early thirties looking to buy in London. I’m single, but would like to meet someone and have a family at some point.

Taking into account my current priorities and with an eye on my potential future plans, I’m looking at 3-bed houses in family-friendly areas within easy reach of central London and a good commute for me. Currently looking at south London zone 4 (eg South Norwood area).

I’d love to stay in London for as long as possible, as I see myself working in London for pretty much the rest of my career.

However, if I do meet someone and we have kids, what worries me is we won’t be able to afford the next step up the property ladder (a bigger 3-bed or a 4-bed), although we’ll likely have 2 incomes to go towards the mortgage (rather than just my income now).

I’m trying to focus now on finding a place that will hopefully grow in value over time.

What’s the best way of finding somewhere likely to grow in value, to help make a potential next move up the ladder possible? From what I’ve seen, it’s things like: access to a garden and driveway/parking space, quiet street with easy access to transport links, shops/good schools/parks nearby, possibility to add an extension. I haven’t found anywhere in my budget yet that has potential for an extension, but will also factor that in.

Bearing in mind I may not be able to tick off all these things, what would you say are the most ones to prioritise and is there anything else I should look out for? I think easy access to transport links/parks/shops and quiet street are a good place to start, personally, but grateful for any and all thoughts you have.

Thank you!

If I could distill this into one main question, it would be: how can I try to buy somewhere now that will grow in value, to avoid being completely priced out of the London property market in future?

From the below points, what would you say are the key ones to prioritise and is there anything else I should look out for: access to a garden and driveway/parking space, quiet street with easy access to transport links, shops/good schools/parks nearby, possibility to add an extension.

Thank you!

Please could you share your budget as it will help with realistic recommendations?

Thanks, Gekko - of course.

My absolute top budget is £720k.

That needs to cover all the initial house buying costs (stamp duty, survey and conveyancing, mortgage set up costs, furnishing). I have budgeted up to £15k for the initial costs set out here and up to £22.5k for stamp duty.

It will also need to cover as much of the cost as possible of any renovation that’s needed. I’m open to considering houses that need updating or even more extensive renovation, as they’re generally cheaper than fully done up houses, it can be a good way to add value and it also means I can decorate the house to my taste, which appeals to me.

I know renovation costs - especially in London - can be astronomical though, so I need to be realistic about this. I can’t afford to go over budget at all and I’m not at all qualified or experienced in DIY/renovation and work full time in a job where I’m expected in the office 2-3 times per week.

I have family members who are happy to advise on renovation stuff and keep an eye on work being done whilst I’m out at work, but to avoid this being burdensome on them, I want to target places that need cosmetic updates that I can either learn to do myself or hire someone to do, rather than a full-on refurb that might mean I’d have to move out of the house whilst the work is being done.

Putting it bluntly, I’m time-poor and cannot at all afford to go even a penny over budget.

Location first. Stations don’t move (much).
Better locations generally have better schools.
Then off street parking. Any parking.
Then a 3rd bedroom.
Then a 2nd loo or bathroom.

The only way to try and game the system a bit is to look at plans to develop infrastructure and transport in a particular area. I wouldn’t think that would apply to Norwood though.

It’s good to try and make as few moves as possible but realistically it’s probably not going to be your forever house at this stage. Maybe one to enjoy single life and possibly raise one or two small children then move again.

Renovations don't really add value anymore, so I wouldn't think about that too much.

For your budget you'll be able to get a 3 bed house somewhere like South Norwood as you've suggested that doesn't require any work.

Whether it'll go up in value is debatable, but honestly I think that buying any property with a plan to have it grow in value is a fool's errand- there is no guarantee that this will happen, and you'll be better off just buying what you like for the budget you have.

Buy a property suitable for extension, e.g a thirties semi with loft not yet done.

But don’t overthink this. You don’t need a house with more than 2 beds for a baby / toddler. You don’t need a house with good schools until oldest child is 3.

So you have time. And my advice would be to ensure that future partner can contribute to a mortgage that you may need in the future.

Where I am in London, very few people can afford the move up whilst staying in London. I know loads of families with younger children still in parents room etc as moving up the ladder is prohibitively expensive and for some moving out of London is not possible

Thanks very much all.

As well as South Norwood, I’m also looking at the area around Tooting train station in Mitcham (needless to say, I can’t afford Tooting Broadway/Bec tube stations). It’s a CR4 postcode, so might deter future buyers, but it’s zone 3 and looks very well connected. I’ve heard mixed things about Mitcham though. Can anyone advise what the area is like? I’m planning to do some viewings there soon, so will get an idea of what it’s like then.

@CheeseTime agree with you about location! Kirstie and Phil were spot on haha. I’m not intending for it to be my forever home, but I’m aiming to try as much research as possible, as a FTB, to try and avoid a situation where I buy somewhere and need to sell it for whatever reason and it won’t sell. A friend was in this situation with a London flat they bought - they bought the flat pre-kids, had a baby and felt they’d outgrown the flat, tried to sell it and couldn’t and have since bought somewhere out of London whilst keeping the flat. They’re higher earners than me, and they’re finding it all very hard, so I really want to try my best to avoid that sort of situation. I agree with also regarding looking at areas with new transport development plans - I heard there are plans to extend the Bakerloo line to Lewisham and perhaps eventually Catford, so went to view properties in Catford, but omg the main road is so busy and polluted. It put me off big time. And it doesn’t seem very well connected (just one train line).

@ChocHotolate I need to stay in London for my job, so I want to try and make the most out of being a FTB as I can. The big advantage I have is choice and flexibility, as I don’t have anything to sell, so I’m very keen to make the most out of that.

Move a bit out. Try Sutton or Cheam or Epsom - really nice areas

Catford had two train lines one into Charing Cross and one to Blackfriars. The main road is terrible, but most of us avoid it and go to Ladywell, or Crofton Park for cafes and drinks.
If I were you, I would buy a two bed garden flat in an area you do want to live in, and then move on/up when you have two salaries. Wealthier friends bought their family amazing Telegraph Hill homes, by both having Shoreditch flats from their single days, and selling one for the deposit and renting the other out to cover increase in mortgage.

OP, Mitcham area is full of people making the (perfectly good) best of what they can afford, where they can afford it.

Mitcham common is vast and fantastic.

You might also look at Norbury which often gets dissed but it is well within your budget, good mainline connections, bus or a couple of train stops to Balham, quick bus to Thameslink at Streatham etc. Active community, lots of schools Ofsted ‘good’. Norwood Grove is an excellent park. Two trendy coffee shops, a nice Italian, v good Indian restaurants.

I would just move to somewhere you want to live and enjoy yourself. You might meet someone with a flat too and you can both sell and upsize. Surely if you can't afford a bigger place you can do a sideways step in a few years to somewhere that suits a young family?
Saying that I'm in a 2 bed flat and really wish I'd bought a 3 because now I have a baby and no space and feel rushed to buy somewhere 😂 but I had a great time living here due to its location

The worst house on the best street and then do it up

Croydon. The transport links are great and you can get some nice Victorian terraces for some of the cheapest prices in London. Lots of young families moving there. An actual town centre, but minutes from central London also, as well as near enough to the countryside!

Abbey Wood. That's a crapper transport wise but is getting better. Also fairly affordable.

Acton/Wilsden junction/Harlesden/old oak common, again plenty of nice housing stock and lots of new builds and a new transport link coming soon.

Bow/Stratford

Forest Gate/manor Park

Sydenham/Forest Hill

Lee/Grove Park/Catford

Even Watford if you don't mind not actually being in London. It's only 15 mins from Euston and obviously cheaper than London. So it takes less time to get to central from there than most of South London.

i wouldn’t bank on making much money on London property now tbh so you shouldn’t focus on that. If you want to future proof you need to buy near good schools with young families so outer London as inner London is seeing bigger drops in birth rates.

I read somewhere that the 3 bed semi is the house type most likely to hold its value as you will have families wanting them and downsizers. Things like off street parking, utilities, healthcare, etc all getting more expensive etc will make them more desirable.

Having said that you don’t have dc yet but stamp duty is £££ so you don’t want to paying it twice tbh. The Tooting side of Mitcham is fine.

I would go for a house over a flat though.

Wait until you have a partner, no need to settle until kids are on the horizon. There is no money to be made in London property.

I'd seriously look at SE London Even a flat. Nunhead, telegraph Hill, Brockley. All very popular with younger adults and families. The area is massively increasing in popularity. You couldn't afford a house here but there are some decent sized 3 bed flats in large Victorian conversions - all of which are mainly share of freehold that are currently around the £650/700k mark.

On mainland trains, overground and excellent bus routes. There is the ongoing rumour of the extension of the Bakerloo line too. A 6 minute journey to London Bridge and two stops on the overground to the tube.

Given the massive increase in house prices where I am, I don't think that's a London wide problem.

Mitcham is fine. It's not glamorous but it feels safe and has good transport - loads of buses, you can be on the Northern line within ten minutes on a good day, Tooting rail gets you on the Thameslink line and easy to Wimbledon. There's Eastfields station about 15 minutes walk from Tooting station, which also has Thameslink but also a Southern route to Victoria. There are trams too.

I prefer it to Croydon, I'm very familiar with both. Also Mitcham and Tooting are zone 3, which saves a couple of hundred a year if you need a season ticket to London!

I disagree with those who say there’s no money to be made. There always money to be made. Our area, sw London, has consistently risen in value - this year by 20% approx.I don’t know how younger people afford to buy but they keep coming.

I’d second pushing your budget in a very more central desirable area and buying something smaller to maximise return.
Have you looked at places like Earlsfield or Colliers Wood?

I’m in SW London, it’s must be a very specific part to increase 20% in a year..

Other areas outside of London are growing price wise because affordability does matter. We still have the fallout of higher interest rates to play out as loads are still to come off fixes.

Location, location, location
Off Road parking
tired but structurally sound e.g. where an older person has lived for years. Not a full Reno project, liveable but over time needs redecorating throughout

I’d definitely go for South Norwood over many of the suggestions above. Its connections with Thameslink, Southern (also via Selhurst) and the overground are miles better than some other places mentioned. 12 minutes to LDN bridge, 30 mins to Gatwick, overground to east London etc- it goes under the radar as an area, but it’s much better connected than many other SE London locations. Including when there are train issues, there tends to be options given the two train stations (Norwood Junction and Selhurst), if you choose a location between the two, and overground being TFL not national rail.

if you want to find out more about the area, there’s lots of FB groups for South Norwood locals you could ask in.