Moving to London - Need Help !!!

[isolated_hero]

I will go on studying on a Master degree in London in early September. I am planning to moving there at the beginning of September and I am desperately searching for an apartment (flat) to share. My university is located on Oxford Circus. So, I am looking for something with convinient tube connections to there.

Does anyone of you guys have any recommendations? I've only checked gumtree.co.uk so far.

Also, does anyone coincidentally have a room available? I am looking for a rent not higher than 200 pounds per week.

I would be grateful for any help.

Cheers.

[fre-co]

There are other threads similar to this if you search but here you go...

Oxford Circus is on the Central and Victoria lines. Look at areas on those, £200 per week sound like quite a lot so you should have no problem finding something good in some areas.

If you want young hipster chicks and arty types all around, vintage shops and plenty of good bars then look at Shoreditch, Hoxton, Spitalfields, Aldgate and Brick Lane. These are all very close together and have decent access to buses and tubes into oxford circus.

If you want posh chicks, rich people, boutiques and fancy restaurants then you wanna look west to Ladbroke Grove, Notting hill etc. I've no idea how much your £200 per week will manage here though.

Other areas to look at:

Dirty drug ridden chicks, crusties, gang warfare and shitty bars.... south in Brixton/stockwell. Easy access to tube and cheap.

Pimlico/Victoria for posh houses in nice streets.

North of oxford street you have some very fancy areas.

Are you going to the University of Westminster then?

[homeboy]

Gumtree is a great place to look and you should be able to get a very decent room in Zone 2 for £120-160. There is no point in looking at places in Zone 1 since they tend to be incredibly expensive. If you want to live near your Uni you should browse for a room in the west, south west or north west.

[isolated_hero]

Thanks guys !!! Appreciated !!!

200 pounds is my absolute maximum. Actually, I am looking for somewhat around 120-160 pw.

Have been to London quite a lot of times. However, never been that far in the east. Will have to visit those places definitely the next time !!! What you are writing about Shoreditch, Hoxton, Spitalfields, Aldgate and Brick Lane sound good to me. How safe are these areas? Any gang violence or some other shit going on there?

@fre$co: May I ask you where you are located?

I will go to the University of the Arts London (UAL). I will study MA Strategic Fashion Marketing. As I am not gay, I hope that I am not the only straight guy studying something like that...

[Cue]

IH - you just have to keep your head down around most of London - if you have got any street smarts at all you will be OK. I lived in some of the rougher areas and never got in shit.

The Victoria Line is the key for you - best line on the underground IMO - so Highbury way.

Or - try getting a place around Liverpool street/ the 'ditch and Central Line away

[sybaritical]

Nawhhhhh man. I respecfully disagree. Piccadilly line is where it's at for transport

OP? £200 a week will get a you a decent studio flat somewhere nice in leafy SW London or an OK one bed place out East where the action is. You might want to consider living East anyway, as the majority of fashion and art related business is going on there. Just stay out of Clapton if you're worried about trouble.

Bear in mind though, it's expensive living on your own and bills and council taxes will hit you hard.

[Cue]

Piccadilly line get RAMMED in the morning but - actually, what am I saying - what line apart from the East London line doesn't?

[Tyro1]

Piccadilly line get RAMMED in the morning but - actually, what am I saying - what line apart from the East London line doesn't?

I would live east if I was to go back... You'll have more fun, and travel less on nights out. You wont get as nice a place there though...

If you want a cheapish place that is nice, look around the docklands area.

[Cue]

I dunno - docklands is pretty grim - esp on the weekends - it's a concrete desert.

I lived in Aldgate East and that was good from a location point of view.

East is a fun area - loads of decent places to go out ...

[fre-co]

IH I am actually in SW London now because unfortunately I work in this area. I lived in east London for years up until 2 years ago. In fact my family is all from the areas I suggested.

In my opinion for someone like yourself there is no better place than east London. I lived with Swiss photographers, French furniture designers, film makers all around the area. As Syb said, avoid Clapton and you are pretty safe. All the girls I lived with would roll home drunk as hell at all times in the night without worrying.

The best nights are to be had in the area, even the fucking celebrities head to the Dolphin on Mare street these days.

A little further east from Shoreditch you will find Broadway Market and Victoria park, these are both wonderful places to live but a longer commute. If you can get a place around spitalfields or Brick lane, it's an easy journey to Oxford street, better to cycle I'd say.

[isolated_hero]

Thanks a lot for all your postings !!!! That's nice !!!

Although I've been to quite a lot of different areas in London, it seems as if I have missed the most interesting places though.

What I am reading about the areas in the east sounds nothing less than perfect to me...

I really have to visit those places soon...I am already checking flights...:-)

Thanks for the warning about Clapton !!!

Are there any areas south of the Themse in the south east which I should better stay out of?

[darkanimal]

What neighborhood can I find the chavs & pikeys?

[fre-co]

South East London has some of the worst areas in London in my opinion. Stay away from places like Charlton, Woolwich, Peckham, Lewisham, Bermondsey. Unless you want to see chavs and pikeys, get robbed or stabbed.

Some people like Brixton, I personally hate the place. Streatham is pretty horrible too.

[englandmj7]

What neighborhood can I find the chavs & pikeys?

EVERY neighborhood, in any town, in all of Ireland, Wales, England and Scotland.

JOIN THE REVOLUTION !!!!

On a serious note, I guess my perception of the housing situation in London is completely skewed. When I had a very small chance of relocating there last year I did some quick research on a couple sites and wasn't finding anything decent in notable parts of London for £800 a month. Hell, half the stuff was on the outskirts and was closer to £1,000 a month.

So you can get an okay 1-bedroom in a good, happening area for that cheap?

[fre-co]

^hell no! you can get a room for that cheap.

[englandmj7]

^hell no! you can get a room for that cheap.

Ah, ok. That's what I figured. What would be looking at for your run-of-the-mill older 1 bedroom in a decent part of town? £1,600?

[fre-co]

depends what you mean by a decent part of town..... zone 1 central london, i guess £1200. I'm just guessing though. I think east london, in shoreditch or hoxton which are the priciest areas would cost you around £1000-£1200. I dunno though, the last place I rented was £1600 for a fucking grand old 4 floor house in victoria park in east london.

[Cue]

South East London has some of the worst areas in London in my opinion. Stay away from places like Charlton, Woolwich, Peckham, Lewisham, Bermondsey. Unless you want to see chavs and pikeys, get robbed or stabbed.

Some people like Brixton, I personally hate the place. Streatham is pretty horrible too.

I lived in Peckham - and really liked in. In fact if I had stayed in London I would have looked at buying in Peckham.

You have to be careful where in Peckham of course, some of it's dodgier than others, but it's good value for money.

Not that I would suggest IH live there - East will sort you out chap.

[sybaritical]

England, if it's any help, right now I pay just over a grand a month for my two (closer to 1.5) bed flat in SW14. It's small but cool, in a relatively affluent leafy area with some great pubs and restaurants. Got a view of the Thames 100m away out my window and a small park to chill in over the road. Transport is 20-30 minutes overland or underground to central London.

My flat in Bethnal green was 850 a month and that was in a pretty grotty building that looked out on to another pretty grotty building on a filthy street full of sketchy characters, and it still took me 30 minutes on a bus to head central. But the social life was great and some of the people I met were cool. I just grew out of elegantly slumming.

[Cue]

we paid 1700 for a really nice four-bedroom place on the border of Peckham/ Camberwell

train to blackfriars took ten minutes ...

[Tyro1]

england...

if you want to live north queens park is a nice area, zone 2, close to nottinghill, ladbroke etc, also close to st johns wood (lords, abbey road, hot rich bitches) plus it's close to HARLSDEN, which is THE place for yardie parties... fuck yeah

[fre-co]

There was something on the news the other day about Addison Lee (Big taxi company) refusing to send drivers into Willesden and Harlesden because too many were being robbed.

But saying that I used to get the best curry goat in Willesden when my ex lived there.

Edit:

We need to keep a decent London thread going, like that Tokyo General chat thread with long running feuds and bitching.

[englandmj7]

Interesting. Thanks for all the info. gents.

Will be good to know if I consider moving to the motherland anytime soon.

[Tyro1]

I lived in willesden for 6 months, that place aint hard at all, harlsden is a little worse, but generally speaking London is a pretty safe area... (from what I experienced) in the time I was there, I wittnessed and heard about the after effects of gang stabbings, beheadings, and multiple knife homicides, but never felt like it was a threat to someone like myself.

[Tyro1]

p.s where was the goat curry from? on the high road?

[isolated_hero]

That's lots of helpful news. Thanks so much guys !!!

Having all those information, I will try to get something in the area around Shoreditch.

Alternatively, although somewhat more expensive, I think the area north / north west of Paddington seems to be good too.

One more question: How about those areas south of the Themse...Battersea, Newinton or Lambeth.

[Tyro1]

dont know about those areas, but another good area to live would be around angel / islington... between there and camden

[isolated_hero]

yea...I agree...I know those areas indeed...don't like camden that much though. islington is nice but kinda too quite. it's getting better when you go more to the south...

[fre-co]

The area between islington and kingsland road is nice too. It has a name that escapes me now.

Curry goat was from a place on the high street between willesden and dollis hill end. It was getting on for 10 years ago now though.....

South of the river, battesea is alright enough. A bit estate agenty if you get my drift. Lambeth is nice. I like the area around waterloo very much. The road running between waterloo and kennington is nice. Oval and kennington are also worth a look.

[East the Beast]

i'm really considering on moving to london.

would it be an bad idea to pack my things and go?

before i do i would like to visit for about a week or so