Renting rather than mortgaging & where in London

sum123

Hello,

I moved to the UK a few months ago, precisely London. I still do not have enough experience or knowledge about the place here, but I learn a lot from this website and these forums; many thanks to everyone here really.

I am married with a newborn baby, and my wife is a homemaker. I also make less than 20k pa. I have this impression that, according to my specific circumstances, I cannot afford to mortgage a Double Studio flat or a 1-bedroom flat with an acceptable standard and in a good area (and acceptable and good here have nothing to do with "high" and "posh"). Do I have the right impression?

I think that I should just find an affordable double studio flat until I can afford to mortgage. However, I do not have enough experience in finding properties here either. A friend just recommended that I get a copy of Loot newspaper and check it out, which I did, and it actually proved quite useful. I got to know many property agents, and also had an idea of the range of rents available.

I noticed that the flats in SE London have the cheapest rents. But a colleague of mind said that I might not like the area, and recommended that I try to find a place in northern London. But the prices seem high there. From the prices I saw in Loot, I was hoping to find a double studio for 95 to 130 pounds per week. Is this realistic or not? And would such a range find me a furnished double studio that is also an acceptable place in which to live? And by acceptable I mean things like cleanliness, working utilities, no bug infestations, etc, just something that does the job acceptably without necessarily being posh or so.

Can I find a double studio with that range of rent in NW London or near Finchley?

Sorry if I was long-winded, but I just wanted to make sure that I don't have too many misconceptions.

I thank everyone taking the time to give tips, information, and knowledge.

johannamse

Hi,

I would say with a newborn baby space inside the home is more important than out of it. THe benefit of a newborn is that it will be easy for your wife to meet new people in ALL areas of London. I have only ever lived south of the river , in nice areas and not so nice areas. I would think in SE London you could get a 1 bed flat for 120 pw. I used to live in Catford, which has great transport links and good amenities. Some people might say it's a bit scummy, but I thought it was absolutely fine. Where do you work? With a newborn, your wife will need lots of support, so pick somewhere that is convenient for work. Don't forget as well, the longer you live from work, the more you have to pay to get there. HTH. Good Luck.

sum123

Hi johannamse,

Thank you very much for the positive attitude and helpful tips. I also heard from a friend of mine before that he lived in a certain area (I forgot its name), which had a bad reputation, but he was totally fine with it. I also tend to expect that I would get along fine with most areas in London, so I was happy to hear that I can indeed go for an area known for cheaper rents, and I would get along well with people there and all. I also agree with you that the space inside is more important to us now that we have a baby. I am dreaming of a 1-bedroom flat or even 2-bedroom, indeed, so I can get some much needed sleep at night while my wife takes care of the baby, because I would have to go to work early in the morning, but she would have a flexible schedule for the rest of the day and can sleep whenever she needs. However, the prices of 2-bedroom and even 1-bedroom flats seemed scary to me. So I eventually just thought of settling for a double studio.

You know, I just paid 69 pounds to an agency so they can help me find a flat. I do not know if that was a wise decision with my tight budget or not, but it is just nowadays I am kind of desperate to find a place very soon, because I am living with my in-laws (my wife is from London, btw), and it is pressuring for everyone. But at least with the encouragement I got from you, I can call them or go to them again and this time tell them that I am willing to look at those 100 or 120 pw double studios or even 1-bedrooms, and see for myself whether I would be ok living there or not.

Thank you, again. I look forwards to hear more tips, leads, or specific names or areas to look into.

Froggitt

Try Stratford E5........transport links will be excellent in a few years time!!!