First time buyer family house in London

Redux_2

Hi, I'm looking for some advice from people with better knowledge and experience than me.

My wife and I are looking since few months for a property in the south west part of London but without success so far. We're first time buyers, top budget 650k, looking for possibly a family home.

We both need to commute to London every weekday so being close to a train station to either Waterloo or London Bridge is essential.

What areas and house type can we realistically aim for?

PasturesNew

http://www.commutefrom.com/

Pick the station and travel time, it then shows you where you could achieve that journey and average house prices.

hazyjo

Surbiton? Not sure how long to commute but got a friend there, and a work colleague.


This is up to £700k: https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/find.html?locationIdentifier=REGION%5E1296&minBedrooms=2&maxPrice=700000&propertyTypes=detached%2Csemi-detached%2Cterraced&primaryDisplayPropertyType=houses&includeSSTC=false&mustHave=&dontShow=sharedOwnership%2Cretirement&furnishTypes=&keywords=


(sorry for long link, won't let me add it to the link thing above)

Redux_2

Thanks, I've used that site but the results are a bit too generic, I wish I'd get a more 'humanized' advice

Redux_2

hazyjo wrote: »

Surbiton? Not sure how long to commute but got a friend there, and a work colleague.


This is up to £700k: (cut)

(sorry for long link, won't let me add it to the link thing above)

Looks nice but is it suitable for a family? Ideally we won't move for a long time so we need good schools and all the other services.

Also, about prices: it seems vendors aren't willing to even negotiate, we made an offer on a property for 95% of asking and the agent didn't even called us back. The property is still unsold. So is it OK to go for above budget?

hazyjo

Redux wrote: »

Looks nice but is it suitable for a family? Ideally we won't move for a long time so we need good schools and all the other services.

Also, about prices: it seems vendors aren't willing to even negotiate, we made an offer on a property for 95% of asking and the agent didn't even called us back. The property is still unsold. So is it OK to go for above budget?

My friend and her husband have lived there for over 10 years. She lived all over the country before that with lots of moves. They have brought their daughter up there and extended their house so I presume they're happy! I've stayed there and found it nice enough - and loved the fact it's near to so many lovely London parks, etc.

Woman I work with has lived there as long as I've known her too (20 years) and brought her family up there too.

Pretty sure trains are into Waterloo.

https://www.foxtons.co.uk/local-life/surbiton/


Obviously Foxtons are going to be biased (and I'd not touch them with a 10 foot barge pole), but it gives a little insight. Look at sites like mumsnet for honest opinions. A quick glance tells me there's a sewage works nearby so you'd have to know which roads to avoid which are near/suffer with any smells! But generally I'm sure it's a pretty safe option.

My friend had trouble getting her daughter into a primary school despite there being one in her road, and she's a teacher. They opted for private primary (against what she wanted, but there wasn't much choice) and I'm pretty sure it wasn't a private senior school but can't be sure.

If you'll go more SE, look at Beckenham and Tunbridge Wells and Tonbridge.




PS I'd be looking up to £675k but there's no bracket for that on RM. Obviously something new to the market will be looking for near its asking price. If it's been on a while, it's worth trying an offer. Nobody can say what the vendor will accept. Some properties will be realistically priced, others will be a case of 'dream on'.

bouicca21

Wimbledon, Southfields both good for Waterloo.

nkarma

All of the SW London has access to Waterloo via Southwest Trains - just print their train map and get going. In general the further away from Waterloo, the cheaper. I find the neighborhoods to be VERY similar to each other in terms nice schools, middle class families, etc.

So similiar I am moving out of the area to get more variety.

What about Raynes Park or Surbiton, New Malden, Twickenham, Strawberry Hill, Motspur Park, Kingston, etc etc? Those all are far enough out that you 'might' get a 3 bedroom home for your budget. Also if you are willing to live next to a rail line, you might get a bit of a discount.

My friend just bought a really nice 4 bedroom House in Charlton, East London.

Redux_2

bouicca21 wrote: »

Wimbledon, Southfields both good for Waterloo.

I like Wimbledon but the nice bits are unaffordable for me

Redux_2

hazyjo wrote: »

My friend and her husband have lived there for over 10 years. She lived all over the country before that with lots of moves. They have brought their daughter up there and extended their house so I presume they're happy! I've stayed there and found it nice enough - and loved the fact it's near to so many lovely London parks, etc.

Woman I work with has lived there as long as I've known her too (20 years) and brought her family up there too.

Pretty sure trains are into Waterloo.

Obviously Foxtons are going to be biased (and I'd not touch them with a 10 foot barge pole), but it gives a little insight. Look at sites like mumsnet for honest opinions. A quick glance tells me there's a sewage works nearby so you'd have to know which roads to avoid which are near/suffer with any smells! But generally I'm sure it's a pretty safe option.

My friend had trouble getting her daughter into a primary school despite there being one in her road, and she's a teacher. They opted for private primary (against what she wanted, but there wasn't much choice) and I'm pretty sure it wasn't a primary senior school but can't be sure.

If you'll go more SE, look at Beckenham and Tunbridge Wells and Tonbridge.




PS I'd be looking up to £675k but there's no bracket for that on RM. Obviously something new to the market will be looking for near its asking price. If it's been on a while, it's worth trying an offer. Nobody can say what the vendor will accept. Some properties will be realistically priced, others will be a case of 'dream on'.

Thanks for the contribute. Tunbridge Wells and Tonbridge are a bit too outside London, we'd prefer to stay closer. We'll take a look at Beckenham.

need_an_answer

I have friends who commute daily to London Bridge from Beckenham...they have been doing it for the last 10 years so it cant be an horrendous commute by London standards!