Relocating to London/Renting

Waino696969

1940sGal wrote: »

Despite me saying it would be far away from family, you saying that has reminded me that one of my dad's cousins lives in Brentwood and as far as i know he likes it there. He works in London for an IT company but i don't know what his wages are like.

Brentwood (Shenfield) is only 20 mins from Stratford, 25 Mins from Liverpool street, so its a dream to commute from. However, there will be very few house shares in Brentwood and to get a one bed place will be around £700+ per month. Good Luck with the search.

1940sGal

Thanks for the advice everyone, it's greatly appreciated. I guess i will bite the bullet and opt for house share. Having a look round there do seem to be some nice places about.

BitterAndTwisted

Maybe your Dad's cousin would be interested in taking you in as a lodger for a month or two until you find your feet?

jozbo

in addition to gumtree, try spare room http://www.spareroom.co.uk/

lots of friends have found houseshares through it and has much easier format than gumtree and probably fewer nutters

1940sGal

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Maybe your Dad's cousin would be interested in taking you in as a lodger for a month or two until you find your feet?

With 3 small kids I don't think he'll have the space

Dave_Ham

Brentwood is nice, IT in the City is well paid and Brentwood is not cheap for sure.

I disagree about the house share though, I know friends who have shared a home in Brentwood and there are some big houses near Brentwood Station that are definitely room and communal facilities only..

All the best

Kynthia

If you wanted to live near your Dad's cousin at first until you settle in I'm sure you could find a house share or someone looking for a lodger. If not in Brentwood then along that train line would be good, like Harold Wood and Romford. You can get a room in a house for £400pcm and these areas have the advantage of being within the travel zones and therefore being a cheaper commute than Brentwood.

I think your commute would mean you getting the train Stratford then changing to the jubilee line to Southwark. This is 45mins plus the time to get to the station.

jbreckmckye

I live in East London - Stratford, specifically.

Generally speaking, you're not likely to get a studio for any less than £500 a month, and even that's pushing it. In reality, a decent one-bed flat will cost at least £800+.

Flatshares are a little more economical, but can be quite annoying. I paid £300 a month for mine in Leyton, and it wasn't a great experience. Not terrible by any means, but not something I'd want to go back to.

If you do go for a houseshare, make sure it doesn't have too many people in it, and it looks well equipped. Small kitchens and a small ratio of bathrooms / amenities to residents is a very bad sign.

Also, this is going to be slightly offensive to some, but don't live with students. I know that's quite a bold thing to say, and hey, I was a student myself not so long ago, but they're not people you want to live with. They are generally poor at keeping things in a nice state for others. Just my experience.

FTBFun

I wouldn't suggest living in Brentwood if you're working in Southwark - that's quite a trek for someone not used to London.

Definitely somewhere south of the river, or if possible up the Jubilee line in the North West - this is a fast tube line which would take about 20-25 mins to go to Southwark Kilburn/Willesden Green - decent enough parts of inner NW London.

BitterAndTwisted

A working-person sharing with students would be madness just from the Council Tax angle.

Have a look at the tube, bus and local train maps and see which places have good links to Southwark. A Zones 1-3 travel-card will cost you about £30 a week