Good areas in London?

[DimPrawn]

you can get to Darlington in 2:30-2:45 and prices there are far far cheaper than York.

£250,000 will buy you a grade ii listed 5 bed terrace next to ofsted outstanding schools and walking distance to the station.

True, but this is in London and is cheaper.

Garagefor sale in Charleville Road, Barons Court, W14 through Foxtons (Property for sale)

And because it's in London, next year it will be £400K.

[d000hg]

you can get to Darlington in 2:30-2:45 and prices there are far far cheaper than York.

Yes but York is beautiful and Darlington is a dump. Especially in the town itself
Durham is beautiful and there is a very good development literally 1min walk from the station, but you'd be looking £350k - although being able to fall out of bed onto the train could be worth it.

[DimPrawn]

That a long time to sit on a train everday, and if it's a once a week commute, you'll be spending a fortune on a London rental/hotel anyway.

Trains aren't cheap and often very unreliable too.

If you want London wonga, live near London.

[d000hg]

I wouldn't do it but 2.5h hours on a train is FAR better than 2.5 hours driving... my point was mainly that some train routes let you commute from far further out than driving the same time anyway.

[Basil Fawlty]

True, but this is in London and is cheaper.

Garagefor sale in Charleville Road, Barons Court, W14 through Foxtons (Property for sale)

And because it's in London, next year it will be £400K.

That's a beauty - I like how they added a floorplan to the details in case you were wondering what the garage layout would be...

[doodab]

you can get to Darlington in 2:30-2:45 and prices there are far far cheaper than York.

Add another 30-40 minutes to / from client co, factor in the cost of train ticket + digs cos you won't want to be doing that every day, add in the cost of a messy divorce when you're wife leaves you for someone else because you are never there, and £2k pcm for a family house somewhere like Surbiton starts to look surprisingly reasonable.

[sasguru]

Hi, considering a new hood that would not break the bank yet is pleasant, safe and practical for a family, zone 2 and further up to 40 min commute to central London. Any recommendations? I know all the hidden gems have long been discovered and command an appropriate price, but I'll try asking here anyway...

Most of the posts on this thread have, not surprisingly, been from people who don't own property in London and never will because they can't afford it.
What you are asking for is impossible.
There is no nice place in zones 2 (or 3 for that matter) which are affordable unless by affordable you mean a million quid.
Your best bet is home counties towns that are <40 mins by train from a London terminus.
Even then you have to chose the area carefully (and there are some very nice areas) to escape the chav masses and to do that you're certainly talking about > £750K.

[eek]

Add another 30-40 minutes to / from client co, factor in the cost of train ticket + digs cos you won't want to be doing that every day, add in the cost of a messy divorce when you're wife leaves you for someone else because you are never there, and £2k pcm for a family house somewhere like Surbiton starts to look surprisingly reasonable.

ironically I know someone who moved to near York because the journey from there to London was less painful and only 10 minutes longer than they journey from Surbiton into London.

I learnt many years ago that the best plan for travelling is to reduce the number of steps required. The fewer steps in your journey the less likely it is to go wrong.

[Bunk]

ironically I know someone who moved to near York because the journey from there to London was less painful and only 10 minutes longer than they journey from Surbiton into London.

I learnt many years ago that the best plan for travelling is to reduce the number of steps required. The fewer steps in your journey the less likely it is to go wrong.

I can't see how that could possibly be true if it takes 2h25 to get from York to Kings Cross and 18 minutes from Surbiton to Waterloo. What were they doing, walking from Surbiton?

[sasguru]

I can't see how that could possibly be true if it takes 2h25 to get from York to Kings Cross and 18 minutes from Surbiton to Waterloo. What were they doing, walking from Surbiton?

eek is not famous for his numeracy. he's probably got 2 numbers switched round or got confused with some fractions or summat.