Living in London

[Il Duce]

Wimbledon is a good area and very close to Clapham time wise, but it is getting a bit pricey. I used to have the usual prejudices against South London until I started looking around, but there are plenty of decent spots. Greenwich and Blackheath are nice but shit for getting to Clapham. South West London has several nice areas but it is more expensive.

I currently live in Purley which, although close to Croydon, is actually quite a nice residential area. And it has 24/7 trains to London and back which is great for the weekends. Plus it is easy to get in the car and down the M23 to God's county.

 

[Meade's Ball]

I now live in Finsbury Park with a rasta man called Eugene. I like it so far, even if the waterworks in the flat groan repeatedly like determined weightlosers eyeing their slimline husband's hefty plates of a Sunday.

 

[Storer68]

and of course you won't find much of a time saving

 

[hans kraay fan club]

I haven't read the whole thread, but has anybody warned him that London is full of Albanian rapists and 4 year olds with Uzis? [I read it in the Daily Express]

 

[Badger]

I haven't read the whole thread, but has anybody warned him that London is full of Albanian rapists and 4 year olds with Uzis? [I read it in the Daily Express]

Well if it's in The Daily Express then I'm definitely not moving to London, how many Diana stories did you have to plough through to reach that?

 

[The Clown of Pevensey Bay]

As someone who lives in North London, I've never actually heard of a place called South London.

Seriously, though, I reckon you could get a flatshare in Clapham itself for 500pcm. Problem is, it's full of wankers. A good tip if you want to save on council tax is to move to the London Borough of Wandsworth (which has the second lowest council tax in the UK, I think). This takes in the "nice" part of Clapham (which is still full of wankers I reckon), as well as Wandsworth proper (can be a bit rough, but more or less all right) and the really rather nice Putney and Barnes. These are linked by railway to Clapham Junction.

Or you can move to the much cheaper and more colourful Harlesden area, which has some suprisingly nice houses but rubbish shops and the occasional gangland killing. It's 20 minutes from Clapham by train. I live here, and it's genuinely pretty OK, although I have to go to the shops/pubs/etc a bit further away on my bike.

Shepherd's Bush will have a direct rail link to Clapham from next month. It's also nice, though the place you get will probably be smaller.

And the Kensington/Earls Court bedsit belt is where you will get the least for your money, but there are loads of fantastic shops/pubs/restaurants. And it's ten mins from Clapham by train.

 

[essbee]

I haven't read the whole thread...but how about Southfields? I lived there
and it's a top place......

Quiet and walkable to Earlsfield main line.....you're almost in Clapham
there....also student country because of Roehampton Inst (Univ. Surrey)

 

[¤DãŃn¥ §êãGüLL¤]

You could always join one of the gangs, maybe they'll sort you out with some accomodation for like, drugs running or summat?

 

[blue'n'white]

Mate of mine lives in Tooting and says its very good - not rough and safer than a lot of places.
I know it's in North London but Crouch End is very nice and there's loads happening virtually every night of the week - decent boozers and a few music venues, I spend a fair amount of time up there and it's a good place. Mind you £500 might be pushing it

 

[Cheshire Cat]

Living....... AND working....................... in London.........................

Why?

 

[clapham_gull]

As someone who lives in North London, I've never actually heard of a place called South London.

This takes in the "nice" part of Clapham (which is still full of wankers I reckon), as well as Wandsworth proper (can be a bit rough, but more or less all right) and the really rather nice Putney and Barnes. These are linked by railway to Clapham Junction.

Those wankers would know that Clapham Junction is at least a 20 minutes bus ride away from Clapham (on a good day), what with it actually being in Battersea and all that

Herne Hill is easy to get to Clapham from. In fact, if you wanted the exercise you could walk it (I think)

I've was walking into the West End from Clapham in the summer a couple of times a week, only takes an hour.

 

[Rowdey]

Herne Hill is easy to get to Clapham from. In fact, if you wanted the exercise you could walk it (I think)

Yep, through Brockwell Park, along Acre Lane, into Clapham Park Road - Doddle.

Have to say the view of fit birds will be a fair bit less than going along St Johns Road, up Battersea rise, and a dawdle along Clapham Common Northsde though..

 

[Stumpy Tim]

Living....... AND working....................... in London.........................

Why?

London is a great place to live in your early 20's... FACT. I always lived in North London which wouldn't be good for Badger as the commute to Clapham wouldn't be great. I've heard Tooting is pretty good - my best mate lives there & seems to like it.

 

[Gwylan]

I lived in London for more than 20 years - nearly all of it in Sarf London. It's a greater place to live: generally cheaper than over the river and certainly far greener. There have been plenty of tips above but I would heartily endorse the recommendations for Tooting: I lived there for three years and it's the best place I've lived in: fantastic curry houses, Tooting Common (and the fantastic lido in summer), some decent old-fashioned pubs and, according to the Standard, the highest proportion of young singles in London. It's also relatively cheap.

If Tooting is too expensive. Then you could just look further south on the Northern Line: Merton's not too bad, there's Abbey Mills close by, a tramlink to East Croydon for trains home or easy access to the A23. And Clapham is just 20 minutes by tube.

I take issue with the COPB though about council tax. My tax for a 4-bed house in Brighton is about the same as a two-bed house in Tooting, The council tax in Wandsworth used to be the second cheapest in the country (for a couple of years it was about a fiver a month) but it's crept steadily upwards since Labour came in and stopped the subsidies. Having said that, it's still cheaper than most places in London.

 

[vauxhallexile]

Yeah I'm looking at graduate house shares, bedsits tend to be slightly more expensive. From what I've looked at online, 500 seems to be about the norm.

Take a look at the Loot newspaper - also on line - normally some good options there tho' the best ones go very quickly. Balham/Clapham North also has quite a few places for rent.

 

[Storer68]

Ther's a whole world out there. Why do you want to live in a shit hole

 

[Badger]

Ther's a whole world out there. Why do you want to live in a shit hole

I don't see how you can class the whole of south london as a shit hole, if that was the case then everywhere would be run down with gangs living there. Every city has areas to avoid but I think overall London is pretty good. LA on the other hand now that is a shit hole, not somewhere I would go back to in a hurry.

Thanks everyone for the advice, I have noted most of it and will start looking around soon. I'm hoping to find something through mates because I have heard of people looking at loads of places and either being too late or not liking them.

 

[Cheshire Cat]

I don't see how you can class the whole of south london as a shit hole,

I don't - I class the whole of London as a shit-hole

 

[Fixtures]

Might I suggest the Nyerere Estate, Peckham? Nelson Mandela House looks nice. Nuclear fall-out shelter on the roof by all accounts.

 

[dougdeep]

Dulwich. Thread closed.