Moving to London

[Linamogh]

Hi, I am relocating to London from Dubai in September and was wondering whether anyone would advice to ship all the furniture from Dubai to London or sell and buy from there. My firm offered me a new role and they will pay an allowance for shipment. The assignment is only for 3 years.

The office is in Brentford, couple of colleagues advised to rent in ealing or feltham. Others advised to rent in central London due to social activities etc. now in total confusion

Any advice is highly appreciated .. Thanks

[expatathome]

Hi - you don't say if you have kids or not? Re location that makes a difference. Ealing fantastic for families - can advise you on that area more specifically if you like as have lived there for nearly 8 years. If you're on your own and can afford it central London could be fun but commute might be a pain as Brentford only on mainline train, not tube. If you are young and pre kids then Clapham might be a good bet - trendy and lively with fast direct trains to Brentford and a few minutes from central London. Have never even heard of Feltham but think it is Middlesex and very suburban. Good luck choosing!

[Joppa]

Feltham is just south of Heathrow (but not under flight paths) and is suburban. Nothing to write home about and a bit boring.
Brentford itself is part-suburban, part-light industrial/commercial (lots of warehouses!). A4/M4 slices through, though the area along the Thames (with Kew Gardens across it) is quite pleasant. Again not for culture or much entertainment (other than cinemas etc).
Chiswick further down the Thames towards Central London is more upmarket, pleasant and has a fair bit of life. Ealing as stated ticks a lot of boxes, with excellent transport links. For Brentford (South Ealing and Northfields are nearest) you can probably take Piccadilly Line changing at Acton Town. Acton is even handier as it's on same sububan train line as Brentford. A bit downmarket compared to Ealing but parts of it are quite plesant. Living in Central London is possible if you can afford higher rent and longer commute (about 30 min from London Waterloo), though you'll be travelling against the flow so not too bad.

[EGK]

Joppa,

I have a similar question & hope you can provide some insight & experience. We currently live in SW France, and hubby travels to London all the time so we're thinking about renting first to get to know an area, but then later maybe buy. Our problem: BUDGET. We don't want to get stuck in Commuter/ Suburbia land, on the other hand we have no kids, no areas we have to live in, just be walking distance to a tube or train station, and have the area be as safe as we can afford. Areas we have been recommended have been Forrest Hill, West Norwood, but honestly we are clueless. Number of bedrooms will depend on how much we can get for our money between 800-1000/month. Do you have any comments about the areas just mentioned, or can anyone add to the list? We don't need schools, parking, etc. Just a nice, safe and as affordable as London can be. Can someone give us some ideas? Very grateful for any advice provided. We don't care if it is a flat or a house, but nothing on a council estate. Thanks.

[Linamogh]

Thanks all to your reply. I do not have kids so no need for schooling rather a safe friendly area and not far away from work. Appreciate everyone's guidance and help. Thanks again

[Joppa]

Originally Posted by EGK

Joppa,

I have a similar question & hope you can provide some insight & experience. We currently live in SW France, and hubby travels to London all the time so we're thinking about renting first to get to know an area, but then later maybe buy. Our problem: BUDGET. We don't want to get stuck in Commuter/ Suburbia land, on the other hand we have no kids, no areas we have to live in, just be walking distance to a tube or train station, and have the area be as safe as we can afford. Areas we have been recommended have been Forrest Hill, West Norwood, but honestly we are clueless. Number of bedrooms will depend on how much we can get for our money between 800-1000/month. Do you have any comments about the areas just mentioned, or can anyone add to the list? We don't need schools, parking, etc. Just a nice, safe and as affordable as London can be. Can someone give us some ideas? Very grateful for any advice provided. We don't care if it is a flat or a house, but nothing on a council estate.

Your budget is quite low for London and for that sort of money, you either have to live in the suburban land or in not so nice area nearer the centre. I know less about South London than North or West London, but I have spent some time in South London this month and my preference is still North or West London. Clearly you have to compromise and I would say, from personal knowledge, I'd look for nicer parts of Acton or Ealing in West London or North London around Belsize Park, West Hampstead or Tufnell Park. But as I've said, don't expect more than acceptable standard of accommodation, maybe a flat in an older Victorian block with so-so decoration and fittings. London varies tremendously and one or two streets can make a difference between pleasant and grotty, so there's no substitute for on-the-spot flat hunting and personal investigation.

[expatathome]

Good suggestions there - I'd say though that Acton is a bit more expensive than Ealing and not nearly as nice for the sake of being one stop closer in. Yes there's a bit of a commute (though only 10 mins by mainline train to paddington and on 3 tube lines) but remember London, more than any other huge city, eg New York, is a city of villages - most having very individual identities whilst very much still feeling part if the hub of the metropolis.

Your budget as said is quite low and to live in a half decent location you're probably looking at a studio to live nearer the centre (say zone 2) of a 1 - at most 2 - apartment in say zones 3 or 4. Ealing is zone 3 - I think Hammersmith zone 2 - a full tube map will show you the zones.

That said I know people living in decent parts of Ealing paying £1,000 for a 2 bedder - mostly you'd only get a 1 bed even here though on that budget.

I'd agree with other poster that west and north London are nicest - but also most expensive. Though some of south London also pricey incl Balham and Putney.

Near there but cheaper you could try Tooting - not the greatest area in itself but a short walk from much nicer Balham.

Or in Trendy Clapham - the area nr Clapham junction or Stockwell (note this is almost Brixton) are a bit cheaper.

As a general common sense rule, the nicer - and more central area, the more you'll pay and the nearer you live to a tube station, the more you'll fork out too.

Good luck - you can always start of somewhere compromising your ideal to save money and once your on a decent London salary, you'll probably be able to afford more quite easily if there's two of you paying.