your opinions on cheapish commute and reasonable housing locations

vouch0r

Im currently living at home still and have saved a 30k deposit, i have inheritance incoming possible of around 40-60k in possibly 6-7 months.

looking at london rents it is currently horrendous, i would prefer to go the mortgage route and you dont really get much for 200k in London... so looking slightly further out such as basildon or hemel hempstead where you for 150k you can get alot more (basildon definitely alot more)!

only issue is you have to pay for a 4k a year travel card!

what locations can you recommend that are good value for money both on the travel side (possibility of parking at west ham station if driving is an option for free) and get a nice one bed flat or house?

many thanks

edit:
i work in farringdon and on 24.5k
gf works in bond street and on 27k.

she has no deposit currently but i guess when the elizabeth line comes in all prices on that route will double but it would be beneficial as both of us will work on the same line.

AnotherJoe

Impossible to answer without knowing where in London you'll be working. No point mentioning Southend if you work in Shepherds Bush.

always_sunny

vouch0r wrote: »

edit:
i work in farringdon and on 24.5k
gf works in bond street and on 27k.

Apologies for sounding blunt, but if you and your gf are on less than £30k each, wouldn't you be able to find equivalent paying jobs outside of London?

hazyjo

I'm usually pretty good at finding things but even I'm struggling. Is that literally your budget - £200k max?


I wouldn't want to be driving round West Ham in the mornings. Will be very busy.


As you say, the further out you go, the more the travel... vicious circle.


Jx

Cornucopia

Plenty to choose from (though not many houses) in the East of London, both North & South of the river.

Areas like: Ilford, Romford, Purfleet, Chafford Hundred, New Eltham, Sidcup, Erith, Crayford, Dartford.

Many of those areas are within Travelcard zones 1-6, so a maximum cost of £2364 per year.

There will be an interchange to Crossrail at Abbey Wood, connecting to Erith and Dartford. In the meantime, Cannon Street - Bond Street by Central Line or Waterloo - Bond Street by Jubilee Line, or a short bus ride from Charing Cross. Farringdon would be a connecting mainline train at London Bridge or a 17 or 521 Bus from London Bridge or Cannon Street, or a 4 or 341 bus from Waterloo.

AndyBSG

Really not enough info to give decent advice.

- Would you prefer to stay within the underground zones?

- How many rooms do you want?

- Are you after a house or would you accept a flat?

- Although you're open on area, I'd assume you want to remain near family/friends so do you want the North, East, South or West suburbs?

To the East you have 3 basic options. Something on the Liverpool Street Line, the C2C line or zone 5-6.

Liverpool Street line you can cross off places like Billericay or Brentwood as they're out of your price range so my recommendation would be Chelmsford. Chelmsford to Liverpool Street or Stratford during rush hour is about 30 minutes so once you add on commute to and from those destinations you'll probably be looking at an hours journey. Liverpool Street line isn't one of the most reliable lines though.

For C2C you have a few more options. You've mentioned Basildon which will get mixed feedback on here. It's a quick commute and cheaper than Chelmsford in terms of commuting costs and house costs but some areas of Basildon and Pitsea are pretty dodgy. West Horndon is better as it's more rural but trains are less frequent and it'll be pricier for property. Benfleet is a nightmare for traffic and house costs. Canvey Island may be good value for property but traffic is even worse than Benfleet. Past Benfleet season ticket prices go up and so do house prices. Chafford Hundred is a reaosnable commute with loads of New Build and young professionals/first time buyers but the surrounding areas are very downmarket

If you want to stay within the underground zones then the District Line or Overground options to the East would be Hornchurch, Chadwell Heath, Harold Hill/Wood but you may struggle to find something for 200K

For North, South or West hopefully someone else can offer advice as I don't know those areas well.

vouch0r

im so happy with the responses so far. gives lots to think about with regards to location/commute.

im happy with flat or house.
not fussed about staying near to east London.
try to keep commute under an hour or so.
i guess staying within TFL reduces possible travel to max of around 2.5k which is nicer. its a thin line between distance to London and commute cost/time and what you get for the money in a property.

1 bed is fine with me. no future offspring will be likely for a LONG LONG time if ever.

200k to stay under would be nice maybe MAX 250k but for me thats a lot of money.., but of course if the bank would give me that when i have a meeting soon can raise it slightly.

thank you all for the recommendations,im familiar with ilford and there is zero chance of living there haha!

always_sunny

vouch0r wrote: »

200k to stay under would be nice maybe MAX 250k but for me thats a lot of money.., but of course if the bank would give me that when i have a meeting soon can raise it slightly.

The bank maybe inclined to believe you'll leave on instant noodles... so go with a budget you're comfortable repaying cause ownership comes with obligation of upkeep :eek:

hazyjo

vouch0r wrote: »

thank you all for the recommendations,im familiar with ilford and there is zero chance of living there haha!

Did cross my mind to suggest it, but ruled it out very quickly (also know what it's like)! Romford, not so bad. However, don't be quite so harsh with Gants Hill (sort of part of Ilford). It was once a very decent area, and I have seen a few nicer shops/restaurants creep back in. Wouldn't be my first choice, but may be worth considering as you may (just may!) be able to add a bit of value over the next 5 years or so.


A lawyer from work lives in Barkingside and they're usually very fussy and live all around very smart areas - so it can't be all bad. Again, it was once a decent place. Hainault too - a friend of mine lives in The Holt - the Hainault/Chigwell border runs straight through their road, although she paid far less as she's the Hainault side of the street. Avoid Limes Farm estate. Probably all out of budget, but worth keeping an alert set in case a bargain doer-upper comes up.


Jx

hazyjo

Pricey on fares, but have heard good things about Wickford lately.


Also, I'm moving to Leigh-on-Sea next. It's actually cheaper to travel in from there than say Billericay as it's on the C2C line. Still fairly pricey on fares and property, but such a lovely area you might want to consider it.


Could do a lot worse than this flat http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-54479311.html


Prices are still rising rapidly. Was voted in the top 5 best places to live in The Times this year. I was there Sunday. Adore it.
PS Also up with another agent with more (but worse) pics http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-42161424.html

Jx

needhouseadvice

how about woolwich or abbey wood? both on the elizabeth line. i've been looking for places in your budget and there's loads of properties that come up in those areas. you could probably get a 2 bed in abbey wood for £225k.