London madness

Jaybo10

MGCP wrote: »

Ruggedtoast - you make Walthamstow sound like downtown Mogadishu! Perhaps that is how it feels if you're the type that is scared of their own shadow but that's never been my experience there. I have a lawyer friend who has lived there for years (and not even in the "Village"). She loves it and has never had any problems. Perhaps if you ever visit she could accompany you as a bodyguard (she's small, blonde and lovely by the way)!

OP - try having a look at Leyton/Leytonstone. I looked in Walthamstow last year but decided the prices had just shot up too much so settled on Leytonstone instead and got a lot more house for my money. We are 5 minutes on the tube from Westfield in Stratford if we need access to a large range of shops quickly, otherwise it takes about 20 minutes on the tube to get to Oxford Street.

The newly opened Olympic Park is nearby and is lovely (particularly if you go on to have kids as the facilities for young children to play on are fantastic). On the other side to the East you have Wanstead Flats, Hollow Ponds and the start of Epping Forest if you fancy a walk somewhere less manicured. There are also some really good primary schools around, like Davies Lane which has just received an Outstanding rating from OFSTED.

There is a very active and friendly Leytonstone facebook group who share news about what is going on in the area. The local councillors also use it so it is a good way to speak to them directly about issues and hear their plans for the future. To me it feels like the area has a real buzz about it at the moment and I'm loving it. I know there are people online who seem to think that any area outside of Holland Park or Hampstead is a cesspit but the reality is that for those of us who could never dream of buying in those sorts of areas there is still a lot of pleasure to be had living in the more affordable parts of the city.

Another vote for leytonstone here. We moved here 6 months ago and we are really enjoying it.

Friends in Leyton are also seeing some positive changes and Forest Gate may be worth investigating due to future crossrail links.

Good luck

padington

Wood green gets my vote, saying that 2 bed houses are more like 400k now, when i was suggesting them originally 2.5 years ago you could get them for 275k.

posh*spice

Jason74 wrote: »

£850k . For a 2 bed flat in Balham. Now that is proof that the market in London has gone mad. Even with all of the obvious upward pressures on London prices, I don't how anyone can think that buying that property at that price makes sense.

I think that's really lovely....and haven't people always and forever been saying that about London prices...

posh*spice

Jaybo10 wrote: »

Another vote for leytonstone here.

155 Norman Road, Leytonstone. The home of a football legend.

Metranil_Vavin

posh*spice wrote: »

I think that's really lovely....and haven't people always and forever been saying that about London prices...

That is indeed a beautiful flat, and right near Clapham Common which will inflate the price even more.

I reckon they'll get asking price for it. Someone with money to spend and wanting a place in 'move in' condition will snap it up.

850k is an incredible amount of money though.

115K

Jason74 wrote: »

To be fair, I kind of get why that is the price it is. It's actually a pretty big property, with a garden, in one of the nicest parts of central London. Yes it's a tad ugly, but I can almost see the appeal of that, even at that kind of money. Far harder to fathom imho is stuff like :

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-46552235.html

£850k . For a 2 bed flat in Balham. Now that is proof that the market in London has gone mad. Even with all of the obvious upward pressures on London prices, I don't how anyone can think that buying that property at that price makes sense.

I think that is a gorgeous flat, but yes the price is eyewatering.:eek:

Conrad

On the Sky Newspaper review last night the chap was saying how a well known journalist that bought her place in Notting Hill for £950k has now sold it for £36 millions!

TrixA

MGCP wrote: »

When I first came to London I spent most of my 20's renting in some of the most 'well to do' parts of the city. I spent years in St John's Wood, Primrose Hill and Belsive Park. All great fun. I've also lived in Harlesden (which had a very different reputation - a cab driver once referred to it as "cowboy country", ie the Wild West), and then I moved out East and have now bought in Leytonstone.

Looking back I've had a pretty good time everywhere I lived, and was certainly having just as much fun when I moved East as I was in the rarefied atmosphere of posh North London (to be honest some of the places in St John's Wood were a bit stuffy so we'd head further afield for a bit more life when I lived there with friends).

For that reason I've never really had too much sympathy for people who get snobbish or insulting about parts of London. If you are open minded, tolerant and you love the particular type of lifestyle that city living brings then you can have a great time all over London. Of course having more money is generally a pretty good thing, but in terms of day to day happiness I don't think living in Leytonstone makes me any less happy than when I lived in Primrose Hill etc.

Thanks for this post, it really sums up how I feel about London. We currently rent near Hampstead Heath and it's lovely, but also has its downsides, one of which is that we're increasingly surrounded by wealthy foreigners who seem to have little interest in being part of a community. I know there are things we'll miss if we move, but I'm also looking forward to discovering a new part of the city, which has been the case every time I've moved.

TrixA

TickersPlaysPop wrote: »

I haven't read the whole thread, but wondered what some people thought about the idea of properties only being availaible to owner occupiers for the first 6mths of being on the market?

This idea if implemented 2 yrs ago would have been a much more socially positive policy. Plus, councils could have been given some power to decide how much this policy was applied, for example, 50% of a new build estate could be for the coucil to decide how much could fall open to buy to et hands.

It's a nice idea but I'm not sure it could practically be implemented, other than for new builds - you can't tell private owners who they can sell their house to. Even if you did it for new builds there's nothing to stop people on-selling to investors. Personally I would like to see much tighter restrictions on BTL mortgages, which I think would be a more effective way of balancing things in favour of owner/occupiers.

cells

Mortgage income multiples will surely stop this at some point

Ex council flats gping for £500k

Even if you have a £100k deposit that is still a £400k mortgage.

Even if a couple get a joint 4x mortgage they would need a joint income of £100k which isn't common and only to buy an ex council flat