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We moved to Hitchin (previously renting in Herne Hill, Brixton before that). We've been delighted.
Pros:
- Trains are very very good, far better than the St. Albans line in terms of reliability/seating, and they run until 1:30 at night (or two if you want to cab from Letchworth). Takes me 1 hour door-to-door to get to my office in Fleet St.
- Town is lovely and new, decent places are beginning to spring up. There's two good indie coffee places and a great tapas place. Only downside is the relatively few good non-chains pubs, although there are a couple I like.
- Access to countryside for riding, village pubs is great.
- Loads of lovely old Victorian housing stock.
Cons:
- Roughly £3700 for a season ticket, (train only)
- Just got rated #9 in fastest selling houses outside London
- Prices are going up.
- It is between Stevenage and Luton. These places are shit holes. You have to pass through them a lot.
- Trains are very very good, far better than the St. Albans line in terms of reliability/seating, and they run until 1:30 at night (or two if you want to cab from Letchworth). Takes me 1 hour door-to-door to get to my office in Fleet St.
beseku-
Hitchin, famed locally for the drug dealing grannies (about 15 years ago at least)...
Apparently their 'goods' were stashed in their shopping trolleys, with other things on top of them to hide them.
Also, the local 'dialect' tends to drop 'H' sounds, leading to the saying "Go to 'itchin, come back scratchin'".
A lovely little market town otherwise.
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Thanks I really appreciate that.
I've lived in zone 1/2 most of my life I'm irrationality struggling with the idea. There is long list of pros and every con I can think of can be easily countered.
It's totally irrational and I feel like such a middle class guardian reading prick for being OK living in a rubbish bit of zone 3/4 because I can rationalise it as being "vibrant", "diverse" or see "potential", but yet I get anxious about lots of sensibly built housing.
It's good to hear about other areas in that part of the world. Borehamwood is the only place that seems to balance price, space and a short commute/drive back into London. But I guess because the area hasn't grabbed me I'm now wondering if there are similarly practical places in that part of the world that I would like.
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oi whats wrong with stevenage thats where i'm from.
people are slowly realising that there is a fast train straight into kings cross from stevenage which takes 20mins. if you work centrally you can get to work door to door in under an hour. agreed its not the most scenic of towns but once you see past that there are nice areas to buy. people are just too short sighted.
i was riding through london from the wharf and got chatting to a bloke who was cycle commuting from kings cross to the wharf and lives in hitchin....why can't you do that as well then? the train had loads of bromptons on it when i did the commute.
i had the option of moving out but didn't want to commute at all. riding my bike to work is too important. plus i like living in london, have to be at my desk early blah blah....so chose walthamstow as the best option for me.
have the best commute into the wharf (i reckon), has decent housing stock, great community where i live, great transport links and all the essentials for shops, pubs, cinema etc. just lacking in the good schools department. i think it will be better in years to come but i don't have to worry about that for at least 5 years. by that point i'm sure things would have improved.
MrDrem
hugo7
AirTime
Considering the move out of London and wanted opinions from people who've done it. Looking North - Borehamwood and Mill Hill at the moment.
Does anyone know how easy it is to get out to nice rides from that part of the world? Borehamwood says Hertfordshire on the label which sounds like the country.
Any other ideas for places that are an easy train commute into LDN? (can't be South)
Also looking at East and bits of North (albeit very few) as a way to stay in London. Other than Walthamstow, Leyton, Forest Gate are there any other places where you can still get +2 real bedrooms and a garden and still feel like london?
Oh and for people who've moved to places like Forest Gate do you have kids/plan to, in which case what do you do about schools? Do the rankings give a fair reflection? Do you go/plan to go private, or are your kids at an age where you figure they'll improve before it becomes an issue and you move somewhere else if they don't?
Sorry for all the Qs, but I don't actually know anyone who has lived in London and then moved out to the 'burbs - just friends who've gone full scale country.