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Posh/safe areas in Leamington Spa - Sydenham?

gcoopermax
gcoopermax Posts: 64 Forumite
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in House buying, renting & selling
We are considering few properties in Sydenham (Leamington Spa), however several forum posts I read suggest this area should be avoided! There is an ASDA superstore, an oustanding school and in general semis with large gardens and driveways in this area, so why would this suburb (and in general South Leamington) get a bad reputation? Also what are other posh/safe areas in Warwick/Leamington?

Comments

  • Cakeguts
    Cakeguts Posts: 7,627 Forumite
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    gcoopermax wrote: »
    We are considering few properties in Sydenham (Leamington Spa), however several forum posts I read suggest this area should be avoided! There is an ASDA superstore, an oustanding school and in general semis with large gardens and driveways in this area, so why would this suburb (and in general South Leamington) get a bad reputation? Also what are other posh/safe areas in Warwick/Leamington?

    Why are you trying to buy a property in an area that you don't know very well? Doing this could lead to a really really expensive mistake. Why not rent locally until you know the area better and then you will be able to see where the best places to buy are.
  • keithdc
    keithdc Posts: 459 Forumite
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    What cakeguts said!!

    There are areas of Leamington (typically south of the railway line) that have high concentrations of student housing.

    I am not sure there is anywhere in Warwick or Leamington that is particularly dangerous!!!
  • sitesafe
    sitesafe Posts: 544 Forumite
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    Any town will always have areas labelled bad even if they're not that bad. It could just be the not as desirable spot in a really nice place. A bit like having the worst house in the best street.
  • Cakeguts
    Cakeguts Posts: 7,627 Forumite
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    sitesafe wrote: »
    Any town will always have areas labelled bad even if they're not that bad. It could just be the not as desirable spot in a really nice place. A bit like having the worst house in the best street.

    Or it could be the local rat run or the road that the concrete lorries use to get to the concrete factory. If you don't live there you won't know.
  • Doozergirl
    Doozergirl Posts: 33,813 Forumite
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    keithdc wrote: »
    What cakeguts said!!

    There are areas of Leamington (typically south of the railway line) that have high concentrations of student housing.

    I am not sure there is anywhere in Warwick or Leamington that is particularly dangerous!!!

    Ditto. I've not seen any evidence of danger there; quite the opposite! It's like the perfect English town.
    Everything that is supposed to be in heaven is already here on earth.
  • diggingdude
    diggingdude Posts: 2,445 Forumite
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    My cousin lives in a lovely village in south Wales. There are two houses known as the rough houses as they were badly built about 20 years and one set of owners work in a supermarket. I feel like showing them some of the places I have lived but they wouldn't get out of the car I guess
    An answer isn't spam just because you don't like it......
  • gcoopermax
    gcoopermax Posts: 64 Forumite
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    Cakeguts wrote: »
    Why are you trying to buy a property in an area that you don't know very well? Doing this could lead to a really really expensive mistake. Why not rent locally until you know the area better and then you will be able to see where the best places to buy are.
    We live in Warwick and want to live in this area. But properties in Warwick are pricing us out. Workplaces of myself and wife are commutable from Sydenham and it seemed like a nice area. However how is it possible to know history/quirks about exact area in the time available for us to put an offer? Renting in that area means we would be wasting money that could be put in our house and being at mercy of luck in finding another property coming on the market in same area. So thought of posting here to get some idea from the folks who may be living in the vicinity.
    Ditto. I've not seen any evidence of danger there; quite the opposite! It's like the perfect English town.
    We agree, so we feel hesitation to move away from this area. Warwick is pricey but southern Leamington seems to have decent properties in our price range. But few online posts alerted me about Sydenham. Hence the post
  • CM66
    CM66 Posts: 602 Forumite
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    As you live in Warwick then get in the car / on the bus and have a look around the area.....try going at different times of the day to get an idea of traffic / anti-social behaviour / parking etc etc

    I live in Warwick as well and would probably avoid that area myself (for no specific reason other than its reputation - but saying that there are also areas of Warwick i would definitely not want to live so i guess its all subjective)
  • Ithaca
    Ithaca Posts: 269 Forumite
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    edited 9 May 2018 at 1:14PM
    My wife works as a GP in Sydenham. It's not as "posh" as other parts of Leamington but it's not Beirut.

    There's probably a higher proportion of social housing generally, and probably lower average income that other parts of Leamington, but that's changing as more people get priced out of Warwick and start to gentrify it. Plus you can get some nice family homes at a decent price, esp. when compared to some of the new build estates springing up around Leamington at the moment.

    As a long-term location for a family home I think it's a great option - Leamington and Warwick are prospering at the moment and will continue to do so as more and more people and business move away from London towards Birmingham.

    Historically there was a marked difference between north Leamington / Warwick and south Leamington but that's reducing so many of the comments you'll see online are from people who remember how it was in the 1980s and 1990s and who probably haven't been any further than the big Asda recently.
  • FabFifty
    FabFifty Posts: 146 Forumite
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    I believe the reputation is due to lots of housing association properties in the area.
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