hi all,

After 6 months of living the bachelor life in Brixton, my girlfriend has found a job in London and is moving over here (from Finland).

We have a big dog and would like to be near a big forest/ park (such as Richmond Park). I’d prefer to rent a house with a garden, rather than a flat. We’ve found a place 2mins from Richmond Park and 700m from Norbiton station and 1600m from Kingston Station.

What’s Kingston like to live in? How’s the commute by train? Does anybody here commute by bike to central London?

looking forward to learning more,
rich

Moving?

Did you make her?

(Badumtish)

The riverside area has been redeveloped over the last few yrs & has a reasonable selection of bars etc. The shopping centre is all you could want (probably? I’m not a huge one for spending my time in malls etc), The market area is pretty good with a fair selection of outside eateries, delis, grocers, etc..

A couple of good pubs in the area & an independent bike shop – Neils Wheels who seem pretty good. Huge Sainsburys..

Richmond Park is 5 mins away on quiet roads – you can ride up the towpath almost all the way. Trains are pretty frequent as its on the Waterloo loop, I don’t know about commuting on the bike..

Green & leafy for London & near the river..

Kingston is lovely if you earn good money. I used to commute kt2 to wc1 and easily beat the train, sometimes on a brompton. Put the 2k or so saving into bikes. My route went across the park, putney, Kings Rd, St James Park, strand. Best 50 mins, worst I used to stop for a beer in Chelsea.

Norbiton is nice where you describe but avoid the council areas, which you are. They are obvious and the trouble starts at the bus stops serving them, by macdonalds in the centre coincidentally.

The best deli is on park Road, fratellis, proper Italian family run deli. His pizza and calamari are the best, in fact pre rugby that’s where we go and eat.

I don’t live there anymore but own flats there, rents only ever go up and I think are very expensive, 2 bedder c 1400 pcm, council tax 200 pcm, starts getting expensive.

The pub on the Richmond Rd by evans cycles has good music and whiskey, only a bus ride to Richmond and putney.

Go for it you can afford the living costs.

If you’re walking your dog in Richmond Park, (a) make sure it has been trained not to chase the deer and (b) prepare to spend a lot of time removing ticks…

I lived in Kingston and Surbiton and they’re both good places to live. There’s rough parts of Kingston (and Surbiton) but as above, they’re really obvious. I’d live there again if I needed to.

Still running your Marin Quake mate?I have always fancied one.Proper mtb.As for Kingston it looked nice when I visited but then again I,m comparing it to Middlesbrough!

I’ve lived in Surbiton and now in KT8 but the whole KT area is pretty decent. Anything you’d realistically need in Kingston, decent trains to Waterloo but no fast ones IIRC, an excellent and very doable 40 minute bike commute into London through the park, solid pubs lots of green space etc etc. from the place you mentioned it’s 40 Minutes by car to the hills or a 20 minute ride to the local trails around Esher, Oxshott, Cobham so plenty of riding nearby. I’d also consider areas around Bushy park with possibly slightly lower rents like Hampton Wick or Teddington. With similar considerations East Molesey is ideal for me but has a slightly longer commute but lower rents and is more leafy and nearer the Thames. Richmond and Bushey parks have deer and can be a bit of liability whereas Molesey has riverside parks that don’t.

Yes that’s correct rents in Kingston proper are higher than surrounding areas, perhaps skewed by student population. If I were living there I would aim for somewhere a bit more residential, strawberry hill, teddington, Hampton wick, where you have good access to Bushey park and riverside walks, without the deer and ticks.

If you live in above areas you can cycle across the footbridge at teddington lock, maybe adding 5 mins to the norbiton cycle route to central London.

Also look at ham if you don’t need a train station, but avoid the council areas. Ham is lovely but there are some awful parts, it’s obvious when you visit.

I’ve lived and worked in Kingston for 13 years, and I live a similar distance to the two stations as the place you’ve looked at.

I love it here – the park and river are great, its easy to ride or drive out to the hills and can get into town easily, which ticks all my boxes really.

This seems appropriate https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmpONxJ7JSw

This seems appropriate https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmpONxJ7JSw

Damn too slow…if I were you I’d move to Finland!!

I grew up in Surbiton, moved away because it was too expensive. My BiL (he’s the successful side of the family…) bought a house in Kingston about 10 years ago. That cost him £1.2m and they only moved to Kingston because with that budget they couldn’t afford anywhere in Wimbledon ! So it’s an expensive area, but you’ve probably figured that out already.

Kingston town centre, meh, I can take it or leave it, always seems a bit rough in the evenings. But if the park is the main draw then the location is great, fairly easy cycle into town if you’re commuting by bike and the train is OK too although (obviously) very busy.

After 6 months of living the bachelor life in Brixton, my girlfriend has found a job in London and is moving over here (from Finland).

So you’re thinking of moving to Kingston? Sounds like you want her to go home again…

Lived in Norbiton for a few years and loved it there, but kingston itself is pretty and by the river, but full of chain pubs/restaurants and not a nice place at night.

trains are crap and take ages. Surbiton line much better. Moved to walton on thames where its cheaper but it seemed like it was a place for the filthy, or filthy rich, nowt much in between.

commutin by bike from kingston is great tho, the park, putney, kings road and pretty much in london… took me on avg 40 mins, quicker than the train/tube

live in Italy now though!!

Access to Richmond Park is great for my gf and the dog. The gf will want a bit of peace and quiet after moving from Finland. It seems like the best compromise and i reckon it’ll be like the central park in Helsinki. Ticks and deer shouldn’t be any more of an issue than in Finland. She does chase, but has improved massively as she’s grown out of the puppy phase.

I don’t live there anymore but own flats there, rents only ever go up and I think are very expensive, 2 bedder c 1400 pcm, council tax 200 pcm, starts getting expensive.

This is the concern. But we can get a terraced house in Kingston/ Surbiton/ Norbiton for the cost of a basement flat in Balham/ Wandsworth. Realistically, where can i rent a place with a garden that is close to a park for less than £1300?

There’s rough parts of Kingston (and Surbiton)

Ooo, any postcodes or estates to avoid?

live in Italy now though!!

Lucky so and so! That’s the dream 😀

Still running your Marin Quake mate?I have always fancied one.Proper mtb.

May be selling it soon. Haven’t ridden it in 6 months after having the suspension tuned. It’s a nice ride, but heavy.

The rental market in Kingston is not as buoyant as the agents would say it is. It’s mid Nov so is slowing down for Christmas. Trawl rightmove find an empty house, due too refurb not because it is tired or next to the council estate, and try a low offer for immediate occupation.

Re council avoid the Cambridge estate end of norbiton, sorry it’s a war zone whatever people say. My ex tenants took a rental there, the posh flats by the strip bar and were assaulted. Fat boys cafe is nice if a little unhealthy.

If you want I will have a look for you this afternoon, I know all the roads there as have been a landlord and lived there for years.

The 2 bed terrace on Elton Rd at 1400 pcm is empty and looks really nice, gardens front and back. You may have a problem with the dog though as landlords may not like them. You could try a higher damage deposit if they do not, and offer say 1300 for immediate occupation. It looks unfurnished but you could furnish a house on Gumtree for 1k easily, really nice stuff too.

Elton Rd is the right end of kt2, just near fratellis deli on park Rd.

Good luck

I used to live in nearby-ish Raynes Park.

Richmond park was great, though I avoided it at the weekends for cycling. Much quieter on a mid-week evening. Lots of mixed road/bridelway/cyclepath riding to get out to the North Downs if you fancy some doorstep riding.

I used to cycle in to The City every day and it was around 1hr all in. My favoured route was up through Richmond Park, then following the south bank of The Thames then along the Embankment Mamil commuter cyclepath/racetrack.

I could never face the train + tube commute. Just too crowded and claustrophobic.

This is the concern. But we can get a terraced house in Kingston/ Surbiton/ Norbiton for the cost of a basement flat in Balham/ Wandsworth. Realistically, where can i rent a place with a garden that is close to a park for less than £1300?

Somewhere around Brockwell Park? Herne Hill, Dulwich way..?

Poolman – thanks for the good advice. If you see/ here of anything, would you let me know? I think i know which is the Elton Road house. Nice garden IIRC.

Unfurnished is ideal

Any thoughts on Haygreen Close in Kingston?

Haygreen backs onto kingsnympton estate, it’s a shame as it adjoins the park and even has a pedestrian gate for access. The yoofs hang around the shops on crescent Rd. You may be ok but yr gf would not be happy walking round there even with the big dog.

So avoid kingsnympton and Cambridge Rd estates and adjoins areas. Aside from that you won’t go far wrong.

Just take a cycle round the area, the mid victorian terraces in kt2 are going for 800k now, they were being repossessed in the early 90s and being sold on for sub 100k. Elton Rd is nice.

Rental market is not brilliant I refurbed a 2 bed flat back in Feb and it took 5 viewings to let, in 10 years of ownership I bet I have not had 5 viewings in total. Confidence among the higher earning tenants is a bit low and so translates into cheeky offers.