How to decide area to buy a flat in London?

MacPingu1986

demontfort said:

Tell me about it but a lot of relatively well off people in London are willing to pay a fortune for a pokey flat in a traffic choked, drug addled armpit of East London as long as they can buy a sourdough kombucha and have an overpriced brunch with friends.

It's all about priorities - if you work in the city or Canary Wharf then living within an easy tube/DLR/cycle/walk to work, and you like doing London cultural stuff at weekend then that convenience is worth it & lots of people whether young or old like eating out with friends.

I lived in a fairly grim part of East London for about 2 years, but worked really well for me & my other half to get to work quickly (and she worked very long hours at the time) + took advantage of having a velodrome and olympic sized swimming pool on the doorstep for my sports, and loads of great restaurants a short tube or bus away. t

Back to the OPs question - super difficult to try and predict where will take off, and vice versa.... If I was buying eastwards then Greenwich would be my preferred spot, good connections, parks, one of the best Z2 areas out east for me. (Personally I am now a SW London convert!)

Nickfirsttimebuyer

@MacPingu1986
thanks for your answer! I saw some flats in HIGHAMS PARK zone 4 and I do like the area however it's quite far out with good connection overground, access to lovely parks, more family orientated I'd say though. Also I saw a great flat next to Maze Hill in East Greenwich zone 2 and I really liked it too. I'm not sure why I'm so indecisive with areas! What's your opinion? I want a residential nice area with access to a park but good connections at the same time. Please help 🙏😭

Nickfirsttimebuyer

@silvercar
thanks for your answer! I saw some flats in HIGHAMS PARK zone 4 and I do like the area however it's quite far out but with good connection overground, access to lovely parks, more family orientated I'd say though. Also I saw a great flat next to Maze Hill in East Greenwich zone 2 and I really liked it too. I'm not sure why I'm so indecisive with areas! What's your opinion? I want a residential nice area with access to a park but good connections at the same time. Please help 🙏😭

silvercar

Nickfirsttimebuyer said:

@silvercar
thanks for your answer! I saw some flats in HIGHAMS PARK zone 4 and I do like the area however it's quite far out but with good connection overground, access to lovely parks, more family orientated I'd say though. Also I saw a great flat next to Maze Hill in East Greenwich zone 2 and I really liked it too. I'm not sure why I'm so indecisive with areas! What's your opinion? I want a residential nice area with access to a park but good connections at the same time. Please help 🙏😭

Not my area at all! My son worked his way down his list: Dalston (too expensive), Bethnal Green (grotty), Stratford (characterless concrete jungle) Hackney Wick (flats in price range too small, but loved the area) and ended up in Lea Bridge. Loves the flat, likes the area, thinks it has potential, likes the transport, lots of cycling pathways. 

Nickfirsttimebuyer

@AlexMac
thanks for your answer! I saw some flats in HIGHAMS PARK zone 4 and I do like the area however it's quite far out with good connection overground, access to lovely parks, more family orientated I'd say though. Also I saw a great flat next to Maze Hill in East Greenwich zone 2 and I really liked it too! What's your opinion about Maze Hill? I've asked a few neighbors and most said it's lovely and safe where one last said it's gone down the hill crime wise 

arthurdick

I know the Maze Hill area very well, it is zone 3 , 1min walk to Greenwich Park, 3 mins walk to the Thames Walk Path.
I have never felt it unsafe, I might be moving there myself in a month or two, if you like going out, which I think you did mention, you have some very good local pubs, Hardys, has to be one of the cheapest pubs in Greenwich for a pint, another lovely little pub a few mins walk away, is the Plume and Feathers, lovely food there.  If you like music, there is the Pelton Arms a few mins walk away or jump on a bus to the O2, 10mins., both have live music, or if you just like to relax, there are quite a few riverside pubs within a few mins walk, Cutty Sark, Yacht or the Trafalgar.
Maze Hill is a lovely 10 mins walk to Greenwich center, either through the park or along the river.  Transport is very good, bus, train, DLR, Thames Uber Boat, you have so many choices.

AlexMac

Nickfirsttimebuyer said:

@AlexMac
thanks for your answer! I saw some flats in HIGHAMS PARK zone 4 and I do like the area however it's quite far out with good connection overground, access to lovely parks, more family orientated I'd say though. Also I saw a great flat next to Maze Hill in East Greenwich zone 2 and I really liked it too! What's your opinion about Maze Hill? I've asked a few neighbors and most said it's lovely and safe where one last said it's gone down the hill crime wise 

What Arthurdick said!  I live a mile up the hill, off the East side of the heath and I love the area, as do friends who live on Maze Hill itself.   One of my neighbours is among the musicians who liven up the local pubs which A'!!!!!! praises. The park is brilliant, and this, with the local heritage attractions and riverside walks make it an attractive area to mooch about in for you and your visitors. 

Not too much of a walk uphill and across the Heath to Blackheath Village which also has good pubs and restaurants. Crime isn't really a problem in my view; my area's really safe and Maze Hill's stats seem comparable, according to https://www.crime-statistics.co.uk/postcode/SE10 8XQ   This indicates that in so far as there are a few hotspots, they're more concentrated in the northern part of the manor, across the other (river) side of the A206 Trafalgar Rd.

A consideration is traffic congestion down the hill on the narrow Trafalgar Road (narrowed even more by bus and cycle lanes) which means I rarely drive there. There is Controlled Parking (like almost everywhere) and half-455ed attempts by the Council to impose road closures and LTNs (low traffic neighbourhoods).  But if you don't drive you'll probably like these initatives (and if you do, you can get a residents' permit) and bus, DLR and rail services (including links to the Jubilee line at North Greenwich) are very good despite having no Tube on your doorstep.   

But wherever you decide, good luck; and thanks for updating this thread so that commentators know they ain't wasting their time!

PennysIntoPounds

Hope you don't mind me joining in, but imo if you have the budget to live within walking distance of a tube station (preferably two) then that's the way to go! It gives you more practical options but also gives friends and family more practical options for seeing you. And it's so easy as a Londoner to get lazy and not do the things we know we'll enjoy and will enhance our lives, tube access tilts decisions towards making the effort 

Nickfirsttimebuyer

@AlexMac thanks for your message! So I will put an offer down for a 2 bed flat in Maze Hill which its guide price is £450K. I have the second viewing tomorrow so I can finalize the amount I'll offer. The only reservation I have though is that the flat is literally next to a primary school and that there are two more flats getting sold in the whole building, the one above me and another one next to me. Does that really mean anything? I went to the area asked neighbors re noise and they said its not so noisy. Any help much appreciated 👍

silvercar

Nickfirsttimebuyer said:

@AlexMac thanks for your message! So I will put an offer down for a 2 bed flat in Maze Hill which its guide price is £450K. I have the second viewing tomorrow so I can finalize the amount I'll offer. The only reservation I have though is that the flat is literally next to a primary school and that there are two more flats getting sold in the whole building, the one above me and another one next to me. Does that really mean anything? I went to the area asked neighbors re noise and they said its not so noisy. Any help much appreciated 👍

I would have thought primary schools are great neighbours, quiet in the evenings and at weekends. Bit of a nuisance with traffic and parking around start and finish times, but otherwise very peaceful.