Thinking about moving to / buying in Croydon

Dr House

Dr House

Dr House

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I want to get a place in London soon, my original plan was Bayswater (2 bed hole in a old building) but East Croydon seems to be interesting (its half the price and you get a bigger and better place in a new build).

My understanding is that they are going to build a westfields, Box Park and generally redevelop the place with £6bn investment in the area.

Train lines look good:
London Victoria 16min
London Bridge 18min
London St Pancras Intl 40 min.
M25 is around 20 min away.
Gatwick 30min.


New developments
www.thequarterscroydon.co.uk
www.vita-ruskinsquare.co.uk
https://www.redrow.co.uk/london/developments/morello-croydon

So I know its a hole at the moment but in years to come it could become quit a nice place, does anyone have any thoughts or local knowledge. Im going to look at a place in the Vita development this week.

Or Does anyone know any other new builds in London with good transport links.
 
Your points are good, you just have to weigh up if that's worth the risk of getting stabbed/mugged every time you step outside :p

Seriously though it is still a hole but with all the development if you buy somewhere now you are almost certainly going to see a serious rise in property prices in the area in 5+ years so it would probably be a good investment
 
I live down the road (far enough for it not to be a problem) . My advice is look at the areas surrounding Croydon rather than Croydon itself. It's a hole.
 
XeNoN89 said:
Your points are good, you just have to weigh up if that's worth the risk of getting stabbed/mugged every time you step outside :p

Seriously though it is still a hole but with all the development if you buy somewhere now you are almost certainly going to see a serious rise in property prices in the area in 5+ years so it would probably be a good investment
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Yes I don't know if its really as bad as people say it is but I don't hear good things.

dowie said:
jeeze Croydon costs that much these days! :eek:
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Its around £450k for a big 2 bed, which does sound crazy but when you compare it to other new builds in london its around £100 to £150k cheaper than other ok(ish) areas. In a nice part of west london you are looking at £800k for a poor quality 2 bed in a converted old house.

It sucks that it cost that much to be in london but it is what it is.

WYNIR0 said:
I live down the road (far enough for it not to be a problem) . My advice is look at the areas surrounding Croydon rather than Croydon itself. It's a hole.
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I like Purley but Im not going to be having a family anytime soon so london access was top of my list. I can rent it out when I finally move to a house in the future. Do you see it improving over the next 5 years or so?
 
Yes it can be as bad as people say, but it isn't that straight forward you really need to know the area as its very patchy - it isn't all bad (there are some quite decent areas) but there are some bits best avoided.
 
Croydon is an area on the up, but make no mistake at the moment it is a complete dive. From what I understand properties in Croydon might well be overvalued at present, as there are a lot of property investors buying in the area with no intent to live in them, just looking to flip them for short term gains.
 
Do you actually need to live in Croydon?

If it was me, I'd live in Zone 1 or 2 *or* live actually outside London in a commuter town, basically somewhere with better quality of life. You probably will make some money if you invest in a property there but then you have to live in Croydon. Perhaps look at the Crossrail route as an alternative?
 
WYNIR0 said:
I live down the road (far enough for it not to be a problem) . My advice is look at the areas surrounding Croydon rather than Croydon itself. It's a hole.
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Problem with that - depending on where you are going - if you need to commute by road at busy times it can be a nightmare - its taken me over an hour before when its been really bad to get from one side of West Wickham to the other :S


I'd try and be more helpful but I moved out of the area in 2006 and rarely if ever looked back in the almost 10 years since.
 
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XeNoN89 said:
Your points are good, you just have to weigh up if that's worth the risk of getting stabbed/mugged every time you step outside :p
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This lol.

I live in Purley. Train lines may *look* good but 1 little delay and the whole line seems to crumble. Mornings are very busy especially on the victoria trains (I believe the 6:52 to victoria is one of the busiest there is in the country).

Purley is probably an extra 10minutes if that on the fast trains and is closer to the M25 which I find nice.
 
Dr House said:
Or Does anyone know any other new builds in London with good transport links.
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Stratford or surrounding areas (if you can), was at a facilities management tour/seminar not too long ago and can see things changing heavily in the next few years.

I'd research the Pudding Mill Lane area, as a fair majority of the space is currently undeveloped.
 
I live practically next to East Croydon station, and have been here for 2.5 years.

- East Croydon station is the most ridiculously busy station and needs more platforms
- The transport links are great, most of the time. The link to Victoria is usually a bit more reliable than to London Bridge
- The value for money is generally good, although right next to the station has risen in price by about 40% in 2.5 years
- Boxpark is coming some time next summer
- Most of those new builds will probably get 1gbps internet

EDIT: Oh, there's a Waitrose very close to East Croydon station as well.
 
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Dr House said:
I like Purley but Im not going to be having a family anytime soon so london access was top of my list. I can rent it out when I finally move to a house in the future. Do you see it improving over the next 5 years or so?
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It'll probably improve, Balham was a slum 20 years ago and now it's gentrified, same with Clapham. I live in Carshalton / wallington and can see signs of my area going upmarket (not least the house prices) so I imagine Croydon will get better.

Surrounding travel links are good, I can get to Victoria, Waterloo, City Thameslink, Blackfriars, London Bridge from the 2 stations within a mile of my front door.
 
Most of those developments are a few minutes walk from the main line station and are hardly really in the middle of Croydon. Chalk and cheese. If all you are after is a good value safe apartment what would be different to say Clapham or Balham for twice the price?
 
They are 'regenerating' Hackbridge at the moment which already has a fairly new build next to the station with all the other new builds/shops which will be coming in the next year or two.
The only thing is delays are regular to Victoria and the traffic can be bad.
 
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