Where next to live? ED too pricey

[NewWave]

just tested it..this one works : )

[fazer71]

Nice forest Hill no1 spot.

I agree.

[fizzmoll]

Very interesting! Does the forum think that FH will reach a status, vibe and price level similar to that of ED? If so, when?

I always thought the south circular was the big problem - I thought that with that big noisy road cutting right through FH, there will never be a truly prospering high street. But I have recently started to doubt this theory - things are changing pretty quickly. Maybe the south circular isn't an issue?

Curious to hear peoples' thoughts about this.

[sydres]

Forest Hill and / or Sydenham for me...and I speak as an ex-ED resident.

[Otta]

Lee is a bit of a funny one. It's kind of an in-between area bridging Blackheath (the posh bit) and Lewisham, so pretty mixed.

[miga]

The bit on the east, near Colfe's School etc. there's lots of 30's housing, driveways, frontyards etc...hence my suburban comment. The bit towards Lewisham is Hither Green, no?

About FH being a "smart move"...these articles really get printed once the horse has bolted, don't they? A place where a 1 bed flat is 10x average London earnings probably doesn't need to be "discovered".

[hornimanslope]

fizzmoll Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Very interesting! Does the forum think that FH

> will reach a status, vibe and price level similar

> to that of ED? If so, when?

>

> I always thought the south circular was the big

> problem - I thought that with that big noisy road

> cutting right through FH, there will never be a

> truly prospering high street.

>

> Curious to hear peoples' thoughts about this.

I would say only a small minority of the folk in Forest Hill live on the South Circular itself. And of course noise drops off very quickly once you are off it. I can't hear a thing where I am - it's pretty much silent (apart from seasonal fox mating) - true I suppose that the High Street will never have a that supposedly sought after village feel because of the main road but that doesn't bother me. It does have a good Sainsbury's, the great Wspoons old cinema and there is interesting stuff up Dartmouth Road. Not sure if I'm allowed to say this on this forum but though I realise that East Dulwich has some excellent Victorian housing stock I've never quite seen the attraction of the East Dulwich flatlands. The rail/tube station in F Hill also seems more central. And despite what a property article said that I read over the summer, the Horniman is in Forest Hill, not Dulwich.

[Calsug]

Surprised no one has mentioned Ivydale / Hawkslade road area - close to Honor Oak park rail station, much more reasonably priced than ED or Peckham and decent housing stock.

[Jeremy]

hornimanslope Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Not sure if I'm allowed

> to say this on this forum but though I realise

> that East Dulwich has some excellent Victorian

> housing stock I've never quite seen the attraction

> of the East Dulwich flatlands.

You're allowed to say it, in fact it's a common theme... anyone who doesn't live in ED seems to think that their area is better. Whether it's Peckham or Penge, or even rural Kent. One of those things that it's impossible to view objectively, I think.

[Otta]

I've always always thought Sydenham had nicer houses than ED. And as already mentioned, Brockley definitely does. These opinions were formed whilst living in ED.

Don't mean to offend anyone, but I honestly think South Norwood is pretty grim.

[NewWave]

We live on the Horniman side of FH, and we can't hear the noise from the South Circular unless perhaps the emergency services go past. We've lived here for almost 5 years and have seen it change for the better.

The old HOB pub opposite the station has new owners and sounds like its going to be superb with food cooked on open fires, craft beers, local suppliers and cocktails.

It takes me 35mins to get to work in Bond st and about the same to get to Shorditch high st.

I've actually never lived in a friendlier place theres a really good community feel.

And also we do have FOREST HILL FASHION WEEK AND an upright piano outside the station for anyone to sit and play..and trust me people often do and very well at that!

[Ctheo]

For those who are moving (or considering)to South Norwood, feel free to sign the following petition

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/norwood-junction-wants-thameslink

[Otta]

NewWave Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> The old HOB pub opposite the station has new

> owners and sounds like its going to be superb with

> food cooked on open fires, craft beers, local

> suppliers and cocktails.

>

Great, so a cool place that offered live music and comedy will now be transformed in to yet another boring food pub.

Goodo.

[NewWave]

Otta Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> NewWave Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > The old HOB pub opposite the station has new

> > owners and sounds like its going to be superb

> with

> > food cooked on open fires, craft beers, local

> > suppliers and cocktails.

> >

>

>

> Great, so a cool place that offered live music and

> comedy will now be transformed in to yet another

> boring food pub.

>

> Goodo.

They are retaining the live music,

And I hear continuing the tradition of the Comedy club.

I read that the new owners admit to not knowing a great deal about the comedy circit so they are looking to recruit someone to run that side of it and then the comedy will be re-instated.

[Otta]

Fair play, that's good to hear.

So long as it's not jazz! ;-)

[Ctheo]

Finally, we'll get a decent pub!!! Yippee!!! Can't wait...

http://www.croydonadvertiser.co.uk/Trendy-pub-company-Antic-close-securing-deal/story-27846926-detail/story.html

[rorsome]

For those that missed it, a reference to "the growing pomp of East Dulwich" from the Guardian's "Let's move to Syndenham" article:

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2015/sep/25/lets-move-to-sydenham-south-east-london

[NewDad]

Dammit, rorsome!

I was hoping the residents of ED wouldn't see this: I was convinced the terrible photo chosen by the Guardian was sufficient to put people off. Sydenham is a lovely well-kept secret, and was hoping it would stay that way.

Now there will be a stampede over the hill!

Batten the hatches ...

[adsyb99]

Anyone have thoughts of Crofton Park? Similar to several others on this thread, we've been priced out of ED so looking at other areas. Found a place we love, but never spent much time around there, so don't know what it's like.

[Jeremy]

Crofton Park is quite nice. Some good pubs and stuff. Nearby Honor Oak and Brockley are pretty good areas too. I'd say go for it.

[twofourseven]

We used to live in East Dulwich for a good number years. We moved to a few places after ED and now find ourselves in Crofton Park.

We think that it is certainly up and coming. It will take a good number of years to get to ED standards, we do miss it, but we are not far away.

There are some good local shops openings, grocers, coffee shops and restaurants. It is not far from Brockley and transport into town is very good, IMO much better than it was for us from ED - Farringdon in 20 mins and Charing Cross from Ladywell in 15 mins.

Schools round here are also getting rave reviews. But as I say, Crofton Park is a work in progress.

[LondonMix]

I like Honor Oak. I reminds me of ED 10 years ago or so. We considered it when selling our flat and buying our house. Ultimately we decided to get a smaller place in ED rather than a bigger house in Honor Oak but that was down to me. The houses there can be really large (which appeals to my husband), the primary schools are very good and there are lots of nice green spaces including a nature reserve. Transport links a very good too.

[Earl Aelfheah]

Are places like Forest Hill, Honor Oak and Brockely any cheaper than ED? They used to be, but I'm not sure there is much difference now.

[LondonMix]

Yes, they are much cheaper- at least Forest Hill and Honor Oak. The difference is around 20%

[rjr]

Just thought I'd share our personal experience of recently moving from ED to Kent House (between Penge and Beckenham) for those seeking similar adventures.

We'd been on Crystal Palace Road for the past 3 years. Bought a classic 3 bed and spent every penny we had turning it from a bit of a dump into something more pleasing to inhabit. We had no intention of moving originally but circumstances changed, a baby popped out, and all of a sudden it was too much of a struggle to make ends meet.

On top of that, the aforementioned pet human was naturally shifting our focus (garden now trumps proximity to good coffee, good state schools trump distance from central London).

We looked at all the areas mentioned on this thread - started with Brockley as already had friends there. Nice roads and victorian houses, a few delis and such to keep those seeking signs of gentrification happy. But for us it felt like somewhere to pass through rather than somewhere to stay, if that makes sense.

Forest Hill - obviously the Horniman is great (especially for kids), couple of nice pubs and eateries, and reasonable house prices to be had for the 1930s streets from topps tiles towards catford (long gardens too) - but as mentioned in another post, the south circular put us off as the thought of walking near that volume of traffic every day was not for us.

Honor Oak - Love the little strip of shops. Stillness school is very highly regarded so this was a definite option for us. Stillness road itself has some lovely victorian houses too and is actually quite peaceful. The little park (blythe hill) is nice with good views over SE London. The houses prices didn't seem that different to ED though - maybe 70k less for a 3 bed.

Nunhead - The streets around Ivydale Road are great and you're just a few minutes from peckham rye and good bus routes - the school is also better than the two we had locally (Goodrich & Heber) - but prices seemed to rise by 100k during our house search! In the end the 3 beds were in the region of 850k - so hardly any cheaper than ED anymore.

Penge - Yep, the high street is scruffy. Yep there are pound shops. Yep there is a fair amount of estate housing between Oakfield Road and Maple Road. Yep it sounds like a part of your reproductive anatomy. BUT, in particular the roads around Penge East station are really nice, great houses, bigger than ED, and probably around 150-200k cheaper for a 3 bed. The Bridge House is an awesome pub, the watermens almhouses are beautiful, and you have great transport links into central london from either Penge East (Victoria, Farrigdon) or Penge West (London Bridge, Overground to Shoredtich High St and beyond). You've also got Crystal Palace Park on your doorstep. If we were without child, we'd probably move here, but the schools aren't quite up to scratch yet......

So we ended up in Kent House. Why? Well, just go and walk around Barnmead Road and Kent House station and you'll see there is a little parcel of SE London that time forgot. There is a footpath from here through fantastic allotments over to Cator Park, which is all very idyllic. The roads around Cator Park are all really good. The schools are great and I just felt relaxed being there, like it was a little bubble protected from the surrounding busyness. My commute to work (moorgate) is actually quicker than from ED, and house prices are again great value. We bought a bigger house for considerably less than the one we sold. You obviously have all the amenities, shops & restaurants & cinema of Beckenham up the road too. And finally, its easier to get out of London now. That sounds like a funny thing, and something that wasn't even discussed as a plus point, but trips to the coast/countryside are now just that little bit easier!

Hope that is useful for those seeking better value! Good luck........