First time buyers in London

vixst

If you're looking for a 1-bed flat in South London I'd recommend looking in Beckenham, Penge, Crystal Palace, Tulse Hill, parts of Streatham, Dulwich, Honor Oak. More expensive areas would be Brixton, Clapham and generally moving more south west (so SW postcodes are generally more expensive than SE postcodes. BR postcodes will likely be a bit cheaper than SE postcodes). I lived in West Dulwich for five years and had a really quick commute into the City. SE London on the whole is a good place to live, obviously some areas/roads are nicer than others. I echo what someone suggested earlier, you should spend weekends looking around different areas to get a feeling of them.

bouicca21

What part of London do you need to commute to ?  What sort of area would you prefer to live in - green space, suburban feel, city vibe, cafes, nightclubs?

Newnoel

Bicester is just over an hours drive from both Brum and Guildford

Plenty of 1 bed flats in the sub-£200k range:
Find 1 Bedroom Flats and Apartments for Sale in Bicester - Zoopla

trance_abbey

london21 said:

Curiousbuyer123 said:

Our budget isn’t huge so our previous residency (Islington) is out of the question but somewhere in zone 3 that is easy enough to get into the city would work great.

Some areas. Better researching online and possibly visiting  areas around London. Depending on your budget some areas Wimbledon, Wandsworth, Highgate, Charlton, and woolwich dockyard

If Islington isn't in the budget I can bet that Wimbledon wouldn't be either.

There's some reasonably cheap properties around Colliers Wood and South Wimbledon (which is on the Norther line) if you're looking for 1 bedroom flats. Anything bigger gets eyewateringly expensive though

Indigo_and_Violet

If you could give us a rough idea of budget we would be able to give better advice. £300k? £400k? £500k?

I agree with lonibra that 1 bed flats in London have experienced a bit of a price correction so you might be able to get more than you could two years ago. 

It would also be useful to know where in London you're commuting to. By 'the city' do you mean City of London or are you aiming for somewhere else in town?