London - Where to live?
Hi All - Relocating from the US to London. What areas are good to live in? Myself and spouse, no kids. I'll be working in Shoreditch and my spouse in Soho. Currently thinking of Canary Wharf, due to the more affordable rent and newer developments. Budget: Max 2100 PCM
Sounds interesting. Why did you want to go to UK?
Solely for the work opp and experience. Plan to move back in 3-4 years.
My preference will be something in the West; I personally like Notting Hill a lot. It’s a bit pricy but you will probably get 1 bdrm within your budget.
Canary wharf is the like the financial district. Ghost town in the evenings. It’s also a further commute for your spouse. I’d pick something north or south of central London to be fair to both. Look into something near the tube in clapham common.
Thanks. That's very helpful! Is living south of the Thames and working north of the Thames common? Is Clapham common generally safe?
Not sure how common it is but the tube and bus system makes it easy to get around. I would ask your future colleagues for suggestions and visit in person. There are so many sub-communities and London can vary significantly even within a mile.
Have lived all over London; always preferred to stay within zone 2, but couldn’t afford it back in the day; still prefer North to South (*very* broadly speaking - there are great neighborhoods all over). I used to pay 50 GBP/week for a place way the hell out in East Ham, but those days are long gone. Would happily move back permanently.
Thanks for the response! I know of the zones, but still having a hard time understanding what areas are within which zones. Any safe/cool areas you recommend? I've heard mixed reviews of Canary Wharf, what are your thoughts? Looking for a 2br minimum.
I wouldn’t live in Canary Wharf for the same reasons mentioned above - it’s dead after about 5. If you really want south of the river, Barnes is lovely, but with two incomes, you can get a lot closer in. Check out the Commutefrom website to get a sense of costs and time - it’s really handy.
Angel would be right in between.
Angel is great for young people, second the idea of great commute for both of you
You can probably find good studio for 2100, if you want one bedroom location will suck. As someone said above - Canary Wharf is extremely bad at commute hours and ghost town on weekends. Also agree with other person - North is always better than South. I personally prefer St Johns Wood/Swiss Cottage area, but not perfect for your commute
Shoreditch is your place mate ;)
I’m actually on the same boat... getting relocation to London, I’m hoping to find a place in soho or Camden
Islington.. plenty going on socially. Or even more central.
What was the process like? Do you have EU citizenship?
Not bad...US citizen. Immigration process took about 4 weeks, it was an internal company transfer.