Renting in London

lau_dicker

Hi,

I'm looking for some advice. At the moment, my boyfriend and I live in Middlesbrough where we attend uni. I finish in 8 weeks (yey!) and in July, we are moving to Brentford where my boyfriend has a placement for the year with GlaxoSmithKline.

So far, we have lived in student accomodation, renting houses with our friends from companies specifically for students. Now we are going to have to live in a "normal" house/flat/apartment, and we're a bit stuck. Obviously, we have an ok idea of whats involved with renting, but we're only going to be able to get to Brentford once or twice before we move (money/distance/uni commitments etc)

Someone my dad knows has sent us some of the free papers with houses/flats for rent, so we've had a look through them. I was just wondering if anyone knows of the good/bad areas around Brentford, where would be good to live, what would be a good price to pay, companies to avoid etc. We were hoping for a one bed apartment, but with the cost being what it is, I think we'll have to go more for a studio apartment. I'm hopefully going to go to uni in Roehampton, so anywhere around the Ruislip, Ealing, Brentford, Greenford area, up to about 10 miles from Brentford really. Also, when would be a good time to look for houses if we need to move in in the first week of July.

Thanks for your advice!

MJMum

---

lau_dicker

We've had a bit of trouble sharing this year ... my boyfriends place - last minute flat mates, stuff going missing from fridge, freezer etc etc We were hoping this year it would just be the two of us

littlesaint

I think most areas in that part of London are 'good'. As you are quite far out it shouldn't be too pricey for a studio or one bed flat. Avoid anything too near to Heathrow, though. Check out https://www.moveflat.com and https://www.gumtree.com for ads.

Gingernutmeg

This is probably totally irrelevant, but I currently commute in to Roehampton uni, and I just wanted to say really check the travelling times etc to Roehampton from where ever you choose to live. Roehampton can be an absolute nightmare to get to travelwise, as it's a bit 'out of the way' and although it's on a fairly major road etc the traffic can be so bad. The trains aren't great and the traffic makes using buses very time-consuming, especially if you're travelling during rush hour. It might not be a problem to you if you're not in much, but it's well worth trying the journey out before you commit o a place, especially if you're going to be coming into the uni a lot.

olly300

Gingernutmeg wrote: »

This is probably totally irrelevant, but I currently commute in to Roehampton uni, and I just wanted to say really check the travelling times etc to Roehampton from where ever you choose to live. .

It's not irrelevant.

In London you can be just 4-5 miles away from somewhere but if you travel at the wrong time of day or by the wrong method (normally on the road by car or bus) it can take you an hour to get there. Ealing Broadway to Brentford (where GSK is) can take 45 minutes by bus in rush hour. However Wimbledon to Brentford (where GSK is) can take 35 minutes on the train.

Bargain_Rzl

Good point Gingernutmeg. I have friends who live on the Roehampton/Barnes border and it really is not the easiest corner of London to get to by public transport.

Mind you, it's a lovely area to cycle round

Gingernutmeg

Glad other people agree with me! I live about ten miles from Roehampton, and some mornings it can still take me over an hour to get there. I freqently have to get two buses, and that too can take me well over an hour and a half. I use the A3 and it can be a terrible road, and getting on and off Roehampton Lane is a complete nightmare!

mgw99

Hi,

Might be worth looking at Putney for flats (although it's not the cheapest). From there it should be fairly quick and easy to bus or cycle into Roehampton, and it's 15 minutes on the mainline train to Brentford station, which in turn is about 5/10 mins walk from Glaxo.

I think Barnes would also be good for the same reasons, but Putney is better for transport links to central london as it has the district line as well.

Brentford and Isleworth would be cheaper (although not the new dockside flats) but it's usually a fair old hike to a tube station so you tend to use trains and buses.

findaproperty.com is good for finding agents for the areas you're looking in

Sorry, I've rambled a bit now. I know the glaxo area fairly well, so PM me if you want to ask any specifics

tony863

Hi

My Sister lived in Ealing for a couple of years and she really enjoyed living there. I visited her on a number of occasions and thought it was quite nice myself. She lived in a flat and was only on a low wage and still managed to afford the rent.

Hope that is of use to you

sooz

It might be worth checking which building your boyfriend will be working in. as well as the large building on the A4, GSK also has premises in Greenford.

Travelling from Brentford to Greenford (or the other way - living in Greenford and getting to the A4) can take ages in rush hour. Greenford Rd from Uxbridge Rd up is particularly bad, at any time of the day.

If he will be working at the main building on the A4, other areas to look for renting are Boston Manor and old Hanwell. Both would be an easy bus journey or walk to work. I think GSK also runs a shuttle bus service from the nearest tube station.