What’s a convenient location in London to rent a flat for a few months?

25 Comments

1. jon l says:

   June 6, 2009 at 11:10 am

   I would try Southgate. It’s towards the northern end of the Picadilly line. I used to live there. It feels safe, you can get flats near the tube station for around 700-750 per month for a one bed flat.
2. Shining Star says:

   June 9, 2009 at 5:00 am

   Hi, I used to live in London. GBP 850 should do, you could get it cheaper than that. The East used to be a real bad place, with Eastenders it’s becoming more fashionable but I’d still watch out. Very safe: the west part of London, but also the most expensive.
3. puddy says:

   June 10, 2009 at 5:35 pm

   i think you should try somewhere like Sydenham, Dulwich, Greenwich, Forest Hill, Wimbledon, places like that. People new to London often ignore the South, however, there are good transport links,,, there is the new DLR to Lewisham and places in between and the overland trains (British Rail that was) is very fast and reliable. You will also find that its slightly cheaper than North or West. Brixton used to have a bad reputation for safety but seems to have been ‘gentrified’ however, I wouldnt choose it myself. If you go out further of London, to zone 3 or 4, you can still get to the centre in about 20 mins but you would be able to get a v nice 2 bed flat for 800 a month.
4. tefi says:

   June 13, 2009 at 1:47 am

   From a Londoner born and bred. 850 GBP should get you somewhere in a safe location. Thing is, in a city like this, the safe and not so safe areas live cheek by jowl. I’m not sure of current rental prices but my e-mail is and if you or your wife want to drop me a line, I’d be happy to look into it for you. I think you could actually get prety close to central with that money, and a “better” area too. Kensington and Chelsea (where I live), like all other boroughs, has mixed areas, but is mostly safe and very nice, and also rather central. Its more a case of how long you want to rent for and who will rent for a short period of time. I know my friend recently rented in Camden on a short-term basis, and knowing her, it would have to have been pretty reasonable. Generally, the more expensive houses to buy in an area, will indicate the level of safety. You’d need to stay away from housing estates. Anyway, a good estate agent should be able to get you what you want, but they will charge you a commission for it. There’s a good, cheap weekly paper called “loot” which will have private rentals in, if you find any and mail me, I can more or less know which ones are likely to be safe. Wimbledon and Putney are also nice, and have tube access. it depends on how busy an area you want to be in.
5. Ped says:

   June 15, 2009 at 12:13 pm

   Hi Richard. You need to think outside London itself and look at the rail links.Potters Bar is very convenient being some 20 minutes away from Kings Cross. It is a very safe environment by comparison nad the area is generally upmarket. You can rent what you need there easily within your budget and Potters Bar itself has an abundance of shops and restaurants.There are plenty of agents who will arrange rental of a property for you. Best of luck. Ped
6. mighty_ulysses says:

   June 18, 2009 at 8:32 pm

   I reckon you can live just on the edge of Zone 1 in something like a studio flat, where you can have the convenience of transport. If you live in Zone 1/2 it’s also cheaper to travel on the underground.

   In London no where is really that safe, you have to be a little street wise, while King’s Cross used to be riddled with problems it is now pretty safe there, since they have been building the Channel Tunnel link they have been cleaning the area up. And it has excellent transport links. You can jump on numerous trains and tubes and buses from there. You can walk to Oxford St in 20 mins, and get anywhere else on public transport with lots of ease. And there’s a large safeway there while in Angel there’s a Sainsburys, and in Camden there’s an even bigger Sainsbury’s.

   The only downside is there’s lots of tourists staying in hotels there.
7. kirsty s says:

   June 21, 2009 at 5:59 am

   try southfields its right next to wimlbedon tennis stadium prices there are not as high as central london and i lived there safely for 20 years southfiels is a very pleasent place for rental prices try these sites
   hotproperty.co.uk/renting/property OR primelocation.com/uk-property-to-rent/browse/all/uk/england/…/sw19
8. Suzita says:

   June 22, 2009 at 9:52 pm

   Yes, your requirements are reasonable. I agree with the answerer who suggested South London, or South East London. If you choose somewhere just outside of the city - on the outskirts, you have the best of both worlds, close enough to travel into the city for sights, theatres visits, etc, but more peaceful.

   Greenwich is a lovely town, with historical interest, and a beautiful park, about 20 minutes by train to Charing Cross.

   I live in South East London, in the borough of Greenwich, but a bit further out in a place called Blackheath. I would recommend this area as there are a lot of parks and it is safe. I notice that a lot of young Australians stay in this area - and in other nearby places like Eltham (check on an A-Z of Greater London Area. Prices are moderate (well within your budget).

   You are right to check carefully about safety as London is such a mixture, from very exclusive indeed to seedy and unsafe within a street (or a block).

   I hope you and your wife find somewhere just right and that you enjoy your stay in UK.
9. wont_cook says:

   June 26, 2009 at 4:16 am

   i think the main problem you may have is the time span you wish to rent for, short term is regarded as 6 months. If you wish to rent for shorter the best way is to just sign the agreement for 6 months and dont mention your short stay, then give the 2 months notice to leave when you want to go.
10. Puhzoozoo! says:

    June 27, 2009 at 5:04 pm

    Whatever you do, dont GO ANYWHERE NEAR HACKNEY. If you wanna have everything stolen from you and be kept awake by druggies then head to the East End! Anywhere than there is nice!
11. mike b says:

    June 30, 2009 at 9:59 pm

    the answer is do not move to shitty london full of dirty tramps and imigrints the best thing in london is the road out of it
12. budding author says:

    July 1, 2009 at 8:13 pm

    If your ‘lodging budget’ means monthly rent, you would get a small but immaculate flat in Harrow for a bit less than that, monthly.
    I worked for about 6 months in that area, it’s safer than most places, nice and clean town, tube station straight into London City or anywhere else in London, and not very far from Heathrow airport.
    Parking! if your going to rent a car then parking may be a problem, check it out before you accept a place, Then I suggest you use the car as little as possible, it’s expensive travelling by car in to London. In fact try and manage without a car, you wont really need one. The tube will get you anywhere.
    Also use a taxi at night, the tube is full of ar******* at night. I’m not trying to put you off here, it really is a great place and I really enjoyed my stay there but I guess it’s really as ’safe’ or ‘unsafe’ as any other place in the world!!
    Good luck in your search.
13. tricky_vicky2u says:

    July 3, 2009 at 7:33 am

    i live in the East End but I wouldn’t say it is totally safe but where is!! bow is not bad or bethnal green or the I.O.D you should get a nice place for £850 aswell.
14. tonyintoronto@rogers.com says:

    July 4, 2009 at 7:11 am

    Chelsea.
    The area is clea, safe and people actually live there, so you can hang out at a coffee shop every morning and eventually become a familiar face. Then you begin to notice the same faces every morning and they tend to be people from Chelsea istself or long term visitores, mostly Aussies, Kiwis and Canadians.Many small restaurants. Some inexpensive and some 5 star. It’s a great mix . Many local markets, laundro-mats and great pubs. Chelsea has always been known as a place where young single people rent rooms as the get a start on life. Chelsea was hot in the 1960-70 but id now quite serene.The best intersection is Cromwell and Baron. The Tube is the Blue Line, the best and fastest and is 5 -6 stopd to Picadilly. Chelsea is above and beside North Kensington where Princess Dianna had her castle.Harods
    is a 20 minute walk south. The hotel I last stayed at was a full room , private bath and a window looking out onto the courtyard which was an English Rose Garden.You can bring your own wine and food into the court yard. The name of the hotel is OLIVERS, on Cromwell.It was 5 pounds a night cheaper than a hostle I looked into on Haymarket ST. which was crazy with mean staff. and they had to share everything and sleep in dorms. Not always are Hostels in Europe the cheapest way to travel. When you get to Heathrow or Gatwick, go right to COOKS TRAVEL and tell them what you want. It is a free service anf they will set you up with low rates on hotels or flats that suit your budget and are cheaper and so much more private and self contained than a hostel.
15. Benjamin D says:

    July 6, 2009 at 7:51 pm

    I would avoid central London, expensive and limited for space. Why not ry Crystal Palace? Open spaces, wide choice of accomodation.
16. aucky says:

    July 8, 2009 at 9:13 am

    I lived in London back in the late eighties and I found the Wandsworth/Tooting area to be reasonable and safe, and also very close to tube and train stations.
17. TellMeWhy? says:

    July 8, 2009 at 10:47 pm

    Luton -
    Cheap accomodation
    On the main line to London, straight to Kings cross.
18. Fairy Rie says:

    July 9, 2009 at 6:40 am

    You can rent some places for less than 850 per month, you’ll probably be able to pay rent and some bills with that much.
    North Chingford is safe and only about 20 minutes away from Liverpool Street (overground train line.) Highams Park is the next station along and that’s OK too.
19. luvlykaz says:

    July 11, 2009 at 3:39 am

    id say in the east end.. like 4 stops past barking.. so towards elm park and upminster..

    relatively safe there, quite cheap, and a district line straight into london.

    from upminster to mile end im saying its about 15 stops at most, so roughly 25 mins by train.

    dont go to barking and dagenham whatever you do. not a safe area at all.

    inner london regions wil be more expensive.

    oh and another word of warning.. dont go near hackney.

    trust me.
20. paul says:

    July 13, 2009 at 11:57 am

    There’s a lot of good advice here, but the six months rule does not apply to holiday lets. In terms of safety, I’d say that the closer you are to central London the safer it is. Hampstead is a nice area but is targeted by muggers for that reason. You would certainly manage a studio in Kensington for your budget, and possibly a one bedroom. I can’t think of anywhere better to live.
21. schmushe says:

    July 15, 2009 at 7:48 am

    you could start looking down the line, a little way from London, rent would be cheaper and have around 30 mins train ride. We live near southend on sea, and you can rent a flat for around 350 prcm, house 500prcm, and have around 45 mins travel time into london. Only problem is that you would have to pay travelling expenses.
    The area is safe in most areas, with lots to do - we even have the sea front which most people love.
22. castle1 says:

    July 18, 2009 at 2:07 pm

    I would agree with avoiding parts of Hackney but Leyton and Leytonstone is cool Like somebody already said In London the good parts are right next door to the bad parts and you could venture there unknowingly, nowhere is safe you need to be vigilant where ever you live, I hope all goes well, I love East London!!
23. smart_littlebabe says:

    July 19, 2009 at 7:14 pm

    Hello Richard

    I live in North London and its fantastic. Easy transport links both bus and tube, easy to drive around. Zone 4, 20 mins to Kings Cross via tube, also overground links. Clean, lots of parks and greenary around aswell as the urban streets. Ive lived here 22 years, and altough every where you go there will be some kind of crime at some point, generally its great here. I agree with the person that mentioned Southgate its nice there but pricey, but literally 5 mins down the road it gets cheaper in Palmers Green. Enfield town and Enfield Island Village is loveely too. Convenient for shopping, restaurants, transport and lots of activities like swimming, cinema etc. Best place to be in my eyes. The village is quiet, clean, modern and lots of green great outdoors to explore….you wouldnt think you were in london half the time, unless you wanted to just go down the road 15 mins and be in the Town. Fantastic. My brother is an Estate Agent and rents houses all over london anyway, but he has alot in these areas i have mentioned. Email me for more info if you want me to help in some way. But stay away from south London and East London….not advisable, reknowned for high crime and West End is too expensive and too busy…North London all the way……
24. Life Rocks says:

    July 21, 2009 at 3:49 am

    I think East London is the best. You wont have to pay high rent.
25. pub_bore says:

    July 24, 2009 at 5:24 am

    You might even get something in Kensington for that money - nice, convenient. gumtree is the website to use - just post your requirements and you will get lots of answers