Accommodation

[OPTIC1]

I'm looking for some guidance please. I moved from East Dulwich over 50 years ago and settled in Norfolk where our first child was born in 1971. She in turn had a son and settled in Yorkshire after finishing university. Now after all these years its turned full circle and her son, my grandson, who is 19, is moving to London in February after securing a job. He will be training for 5 years. There was a time when I was street wise and knew every corner of every street in Dulwich, in fact I wrote a book on the subject "Wardy The Kid From The Rough End Of The Street". I know my grandson will be fine, hes a good lad and very likable, my problem is, where will he live? I have no idea what the rents cost and no idea where the better/safer places are to live. Can anyone give me some guidance please that I can convey to him. Hes young and happy to just go for it and hope something turns up like magic, we have all been there, I on the other hand, am an old fart and like to have a plan particularly when it concerns my grandchildren. Any advice would be much appreciated. Thank you.

[Angelina]

Have a look on Spareroom; you can see rooms for rent as a lodger and also whole flats. Also look on estate agents websites. You should be able to arrange online meetings so won?t have to traipse around. It will give you and your grandson an idea of what is available and help you narrow down what you want.

Congratulations to him for getting a job and moving - great independence

[OPTIC1]

Thank you Angelina.

[rachp]

Anywhere in East Dulwich is safe by London standards, but not particularly cheap. I think you get a bit more for your money in Forest Hill/Honor Oak but it?s probably not as dynamic for young people. Although I lived there when I was younger and the the transport is good so you can get around easily. But nowhere round here is as good as spots on the tube if you want convenient transport. So really, it depends what his priorities are? Peckham Rye is popular with young people, probably not cheap, not sure how safe it?s considered to be?

[malumbu]

A tad unfair on the neighbours - you could say that East Duwich is not as dynamic as Camden Town - a place I once longed to live. You could also say that Forest Hill is not as pretentious as East Dulwich, or that East Dulwich is not as lovely at the Village, West Dulwich or Herne Hill (and due to that some have a chip on their shoulder). Safety is also a relative term - not so long ago Lordship Lane was well dodgy on a Saturday night.

Anyway rather than berate East Dulwich, it's fair to say that places change, and in recent years that can be quite fast.

Honor Oak and Forest Hill, in particular since the Overground (tube network) started around 15 years which whisks you off to the trendy areas of East London and onto Highbury and Islington. Brockley, Annerley and Penge were much less desirable but are now changing too. Who would have thought Catford could have been a popular place. Deptford and New Cross similarly, but it feels that the Greenwich ripples are spreading. Rotherhithe is also worth looking at, not too much going on but close to the Thames and lots of history.

[rachp]

I wasn?t really trying to get into area bashing. Just reflecting that ED/Peckham seems to be a place where I see groups of younger people hanging out at the pubs etc, possibly a bit of a destination whereas I haven?t observed that so much in FH. I?ve lived in both and see them as having different characteristics.

[Azalea]

Where is his job? Good transport would be important to me as well. What are his interests?

[malumbu]

You tend to adapt to the place you live. If you are young and it is a quiet area, in the central boroughs of London you are likely to have reasonable access to more exciting areas. In the same respect very sociable areas such as Shoreditch and Camden, are no doubt always noisy. The popular areas may also be expensive to eat out and drink.

There will be some leafy areas that are attractive to older people including those with families, but may be a bit dull for younger people. But maybe some will adjust to the inner city country life.

I've lived out of London in a pretty country town but it felt like the middle of nowhere and very parochial. I'd also baulk at living in the outer boroughs but others move there for family reasons.

Lots of horses of courses but as a non-native Londoner I've always enjoyed the mix of people, that said demographics are not that broad in these areas and becoming increasingly less so as gentrification continues (a double edged sword)

[alex_b]

I think it?s very dependent on where his job is based. For instance West London is a pain if you work in Canary Wharf. Also does he know people in London already? Moving near friends is always a good plan.

[Nigello]

Camberwell gets the thumbs up from young (twenties) people I know of via family and work. It is not that far from Waterloo or Oval for transport, even Denmark Hill is walkable and there are buses galore.

[Castleton]

Sorry, but at his stage in life I'd say near a tubeline!

[Nigello]

Kids are different nowadays - more likely to cycle and less likely to have money to splash out on Tube fares, which are at least twice as expensive as bus fares. If your grandson is a cyclist and/or thrifty, then a place in Zone 2 like Camberwell would be ideal. If his work is, say, in West London, then this is not a good option (unless he is a committed cyclist).

[OPTIC1]

Thanks everyone for your response, there is a lot to think about.

[alice]

19 is far too young to be happy in East Dulwich.

[JohnL]

but a lot of young people around Peckham - so often I'm the oldest person in the pub - especially recently since Covid