Nervous about buying in London - advice needed

maintenanceman

padington wrote: »

Bounds green is like being stuck in a boring Sunday afternoon in the 1980's ill give you that but I have recently been eyeing up the new bowling green on the rec, which looks quite tasty ...

LOL I think you summed it up very well.

rainbow_carnage

Hillbilly1 wrote: »

I would still regard it as such (sorry OP!). Worked there for 4 years. Regularly (at least monthly) had to give our CCTV footage to police officers for rape/stabbing enquiries as their CCTV didnt cover our front door...which apparently was nicely sheltered for such activities. Used to time our shifts by the drug dealers outside, they were regular as clockwork. Didnt watch crimewatch during that time very often as usually knew a few of the photofits... you learnt to be careful.

However I think familiarity with an area says alot. Now I don't work there I can see it for the cr*phole it is, which I glossed over having to go through it every day. OH hated me going there!

Interestingly when we called the police they often came up from Holborn as FP station was busy. Nice when there was armed men looking for a crack dealer gone awol with their stash in our hallway (said dealer was eating the evidence under a chair....) at 3pm in the afternoon. And this was not a one off... although different dealer each time. Not sure how much crack one can swallow and be safe!

I really don't know where you'd go in London to get away from that sort of thing. A friend had her front door smashed in by the police, who were looking for her dealer neighbour. That was in Stokey. Another friend heard a guy being stabbed to death underneath her window. She lives in Clapham. Both are trendy, expensive areas full of young professionals and families.

Most neighbourhoods have dodgy areas. What I see on a day-to-day basis are families pushing strollers, people walking their dogs, students, hipsters, the occasional goth...

I've also seen two guys trying to light a crack pipe opposite a primary school. But that happens everywhere.

maintenanceman

I've also seen two guys trying to light a crack pipe opposite a primary school. But that happens everywhere.[/QUOTE]

I woulddn't say that open air crack piping happens everywhere. Stoke Newington as a reference as a good area. sorry No. You seem to be young and cosmopoliton. It seems that the conversation has drifted from If to buy now as to where to buy.

totallybored

Hillbilly1 wrote: »

I think the ladder is really expensice for what it is have yo considered the other side of the road above Wood GReen tube. Nice little street son houses/maisonettes and you would not need to spend your whole budget, unless you wanted a 2-3 bed house!

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-35902111.html?backListLink=%2Fproperty-for-sale%2Fmap.html%3FlocationIdentifier%3DUSERDEFINEDAREA%255E%257B%2522polylines%2522%253A%2522y%257B%257CyHfjYsaAtf%40%257Dd%40hRuAgCkBa%255DT_k%40hBeP%257EH%257BZrGyY%40a%255D%257E%40c%255E%257Cn%40a%40hj%40jSiXmc%40%257ETglAhlCpaAjXhfAk%2560Dbt%40iFvv%40%2522%257D%26sortByPriceDescending%3Dfalse%26maxPrice%3D325000%26minBedrooms%3D1%26retirement%3Dfalse%26partBuyPartRent%3Dfalse%23_includeSSTC%3Don%26auction%3Dfalse%26locationIdentifier%3DUSERDEFINEDAREA%255E%257B%2522polylines%2522%253A%2522y%257B%257CyHfjYsaAtf%2540%257Dd%2540hRuAgCkBa%255DT_k%2540hBeP~H%257BZrGyY%2540a%255D~%2540c%255E%257Cn%2540a%2540hj%2540jSiXmc%2540~TglAhlCpaAjXhfAk%2560Dbt%2540iFvv%2540%2522%257D%26maxPrice%3D325000%26minBedrooms%3D1%26partBuyPartRent%3Dfalse%26previousSearchLocation%3DUntitled%2520(Drawn%2520Area)%26radius%3D0.0%26retirement%3Dfalse%26searchLocation%3DUntitled%2520(Drawn%2520Area)%26searchType%3DSALE%26sortByPriceDescending%3Dfalse%26useLocationIdentifier%3Dfalse%26box%3D-0.11552%2C-0.08677%2C51.58977%2C51.59972%26popupPropertyId%3D35902111&fromMap=true

Oopps - long link...

All around here have the tloiet off the kitchen. You would have the money to move bathroom to silly second bed, have reception and bedroom as nice size doubles and then extend kitchen cupbaords into old bathroom space and dining room becomes sitting room. Less than 10k to make a really nice job of it. Under budget, own front door and garden as a bonus!

I don't know North London well but I just wanted to comment on this flat. I rented a very similar layout one in Leyton when I first moved to London and this layout works really well as either a 2 bed or 3 bed. We had a dining room almost identical to this and reception at the front. The people before us used the dining room as their reception and had 3 bedrooms.

I'm not sure where the OP works but what about South London? It's really not that bad and you'd get a three bed house with a garden in some parts.

padington

totallybored wrote: »

I don't know North London well but I just wanted to comment on this flat. I rented a very similar layout one in Leyton when I first moved to London and this layout works really well as either a 2 bed or 3 bed. We had a dining room almost identical to this and reception at the front. The people before us used the dining room as their reception and had 3 bedrooms.

I'm not sure where the OP works but what about South London? It's really not that bad and you'd get a three bed house with a garden in some parts.

Problem with south London is when people go south, deep south anyway with kids, you never see them again. They may as well be in Bristol. I think that's the real reason us north Londoners hate the South so much. Also south Londoners in different area's don't seem to see each other much. The transport links jut aren't up to it yet.

rainbow_carnage

maintenanceman wrote: »

I woulddn't say that open air crack piping happens everywhere. Stoke Newington as a reference as a good area. sorry No. You seem to be young and cosmopoliton. It seems that the conversation has drifted from If to buy now as to where to buy.

I'm 32. I've lived in the city since I was 20, but I only really know North London and the trendy bits of East London. I rarely go any further south than the South Bank.

I think you need to find a place that suits your lifestyle. While I appreciate that you can get more for your money south of the river, I'd still like to stay in this general area.

I grew up in a large suburban house. Now we live in a tiny one-bed flat. So I do know the difference. I'd still rather have a small flat that we love, in an area that we love, than a three-bed house in E16. And the more I think about it, the better Ally Pally looks.

maintenanceman

rainbow_carnage wrote: »

I'm 32. I've lived in the city since I was 20, but I only really know North London and the trendy bits of East London. I rarely go any further south than the South Bank.

I think you need to find a place that suits your lifestyle. While I appreciate that you can get more for your money south of the river, I'd still like to stay in this general area.

I grew up in a large suburban house. Now we live in a tiny one-bed flat. So I do know the difference. I'd still rather have a small flat that we love, in an area that we love, than a three-bed house in E16. And the more I think about it, the better Ally Pally looks.

i don't know anything about East london or South of the river. I am not really in your age era . TBH I see alot of young attractive people in my local supermarkets and around, especially the the people from from the Chocolate Factory passing through Morrisons.
There is also Primarni and Argossi for those bargains we all love.

padington

rainbow_carnage wrote: »

I grew up in a large suburban house. Now we live in a tiny one-bed flat. So I do know the difference. I'd still rather have a small flat that we love, in an area that we love, than a three-bed house in E16. And the more I think about it, the better Ally Pally looks.

Yeah getting the right area ( that's going to go up in price and hospitality ) is all about micro post codes. The sweet spot in the post code. I reckon if you stick with somewhere off station road, n22 you'll find you did well, especially with that new school which will become the new 'Fortismere school' for that area and when your kids are of the right age to go to it, the property market will have got sky high with parents fighting to get in its catchment area.

Also when it snows, you've got a seriously good sledge run down ally pally.

maintenanceman

padington wrote: »

Yeah getting the right area ( that's going to go up in price and hospitality ) is all about micro post codes. The sweet spot in the post code. I reckon if you stick with somewhere off station road, n22 you'll find you did well, especially with that new school which will become the new 'Fortismere school' for that area and when your kids are of the right age to go to it, the property market will have got sky high with parents fighting to get in its catchment area.

Also when it snows, you've got a seriously good sledge run down ally pally.

If you are willing ti forget your life for a postcode ane resolve yourself to N"" for the rest of of your life Staion Road is a very busy road during rush rush hours. If youa re a postcode snobe forget N22 . its the cusp of a suburb and the wrong side of ALLy Pally. Maybe a rew roads but not station road., beware of the council flats around there as you go from pretty to sh""ty.

padington

maintenanceman wrote: »

If you are willing ti forget your life for a postcode ane resolve yourself to N"" for the rest of of your life Staion Road is a very busy road during rush rush hours. If youa re a postcode snobe forget N22 . its the cusp of a suburb and the wrong side of ALLy Pally. Maybe a rew roads but not station road., beware of the council flats around there as you go from pretty to sh""ty.

I'm off station road, can't hear a thing, got a wood behind me full of wildlife, no houses directly in front of me, garden, cute 2 bed cottage, roof terrace, free council land to use because its landlocked on top. All for under 300k. However I'm also 2 mins from Tube, train, cinema and supermarket. There are five or six streets fairly similar, 5 streets full of lovely railway cottages built around 1880.

It's all about knowing the micro area, you need to walk the streets, map the area, talk to the estate agents, spot the sweet spots.

As I say, it's not about post codes, it's about micro post codes, probably in every post code there is a sweet spot (s) - it's just a matter of finding them. Obviously you could live nearer N10 or in N10 but you'll be paying for it and then you'll need to find another sweet spot. Personally I love to be within spitting distance of the tube and shops whilst having the feel of the countryside at the back at the same time. Everyone to there own.