Moving to London

purt

Hi folks,

I'm relocating to London next month from elsewhere in the UK and finding the experience of finding accommodation a bit overwhelming. In truth, I don't even know where to start.

Does anyone have any advice/tips?

Savvy_Sue

If you're moving for a job or studying, then it is quite important to work out how you're going to get there. If you've got to get to Central London, close to one of the main line terminus stations, you can do that from anywhere, quite easily, but you might want to look at where the tubes / trains go from that terminus and look along the train lines - generally the further out you go, the cheaper accommodation will be, but travel will be dearer. If you're not near one of those terminus stations, then see what the transport links are like around your destination.

Transport in London is better than it used to be, but I wouldn't want to drive across it every day, and while I used to travel from SE London to N1 every day, it wasn't a lot of fun, so these days I'd look North if I was working North etc.

Mk14:37

Remember that London is much more than the Tube lines - as Sue suggests above, look at rail stations particularly in the East and South East if you want cheaper properties. Where will you be working?

This is the Estate Agent we used to buy a home in SE London:
http://www.robinson-jackson.com/

But to find an affordable area we started on rightmove.com and entered Euston +5 miles, +10 miles and so on!

soolin

Which bit of London you move to makes a real difference price wise. Even with the Olympics coming East London is still a cheaper place to rent than say West London.

mystra

Hey!

I just moved to London myself (well 2 months ago... it's flown by!)

I found it so overwhelming though... had 1 month to find a place before i stared my new job.


Best thing to do is work out a budget first, go in knowing how much you can spend per month/week.

The work out where to live that keeps the costs of transport down or the hassle down!

I live in SE London (Canada Water). It's not the most exciting area of London to be in but within great reach of everything (better in a way... you're not tempted to blow all your cash by going out!) I pay £220 a week (between me and my boyfriend) so obviously depending on if you're going alone or whatever you can get great house shares and there's lots of nice bits by the dock (the same prices as the less nice bits bizarrely). We also have ducks that come to visit lol.

I chose the area as it was on the Jubilee line same as work, but i didn't realise the cost of the tube! it's a 10 min walk to the station (apparently not 'walking distance' lol so we got a good deal because of that - how silly 10 mins is nothing!) but when a Zone 1-2 travel card on Oyster is £100 a month (and I'm only 3 stations away from work!) it was time to rethink.

Best advice is be in cycling distance from work! You'll save a fortune, investing in a decent bike etc doesn't have to be expensive (mine was about £180 and its really sturdy and puts up with me very well - you could prob get cheaper! I just didn't have time to shop around forever or the tube costs would eat into the Bike Fund!)

It's just a case of working out the best option for you... we found that we'd rather be closer in rather than having to take a train in from the outskirts and we havent done too bad as i make savings on travel now. My boyfriend doesn't live with me yet, he still works in stoke on trent until he gets a job in London... which is rubbish but he's happy to pay hald the rent as it is 'our place' then we don't have to move again and faff about when he gets a job here!

Don't be tempted to live in the trendy areas... just go somewhere quiet and boring... then walk to the fun bits!!! :rotfl:

Hope that's helpful

harrietthespy

Definitely consider living south of the river, depending on where you'll be working... Most of it is a lot cheaper for rent than North London and I actually find that - despite the bad press - I feel safer in south London than north and east.
Also, depending on what part you live in, transport links to central from south London are very good. Don't be put off places that aren't near a tube station (as I was when I first lived here)- rail links can be just as good. I've lived in both SW and SE London - first Oval, then Lewisham. In Oval I paid a premium for living near the tube (around £460 a month once I'd paid the bills, and that wasn't including council tax since I was a student!), but my rent in Lewisham is much cheaper (around £300 a month including bills AND council tax!) and I live near the rail station and DLR which gets me to central a lot quicker and the bus links aren't bad either.

Savvy_Sue

:rotfl: I never knew sarfeast London HAD a bad press ... no worse than any other part of London!

Little_Chicken

One thing that people haven't mentioned is that if you plan to make the most of the London nightlife it can be a pain to get home in the evening. My friends who live in South London quite often leave early - especially during the week as there aren't as many trains.

I've never lived 'down south' myself so can't judge what it's like though. It always seems like a pain to get to from Central London

mystra

Little_Chicken wrote: »

One thing that people haven't mentioned is that if you plan to make the most of the London nightlife it can be a pain to get home in the evening. My friends who live in South London quite often leave early - especially during the week as there aren't as many trains.

I've never lived 'down south' myself so can't judge what it's like though. It always seems like a pain to get to from Central London

good point if you like to go out make sure there's a good night bus where you are planning to live

I'm alright where i am, got a few night buses that stop near me, i'd hate it if i couldn't get home on the once in a blue moon occasion i go out! Plus bus fare is much cheaper than a taxi home i'm sure

omen666

Would also suggest moving to an area where you can get maybe two different tubes on different lines or one tube and say one overground train. That way if there is anything wrong on your way into work or way home you have a alternative route that takes just as long as the other.

Savvy_Sue

omen666 wrote: »

Would also suggest moving to an area where you can get maybe two different tubes on different lines or one tube and say one overground train. That way if there is anything wrong on your way into work or way home you have a alternative route that takes just as long as the other.

Or even if it takes longer, at least you've GOT a way of getting home! I used to go by train, in the days before the tube came south of the river, and the DLR was just a twinkle in someone's eye, but if the trains were out there was always the 53 bus!

I could have used the riverboat service too, that was fast but pricey!