5 underrated places to live in London right now

Published on Ideal Flatmate

“Up and coming.” If you’ve ever searched for a place to live in London on a more, er,  moderate budget, you’ll know the phrase well. But what does it mean? Is it ever true? And can estate agents and landlords ever be trusted?

Fake news is the enemy. That orange dude running the USA said so in a Tweet. So we’ve done the groundwork, and compiled our take on the real deal: whatever you’re after – be it art and culture, bustling markets, good food or great transport links – find it (and, most importantly, afford it) amongst these five underrated London neighbourhoods.

They’re gonna be yuuuuuge.

Fake news is the enemy; that diamond geezer running the US of A said so in a Tweet. So we’ve done the groundwork, and compiled our take on the real deal: whatever you’re after – be it art and culture, bustling markets, good food or great transport links – find it (and, most importantly, afford it) amongst these five underrated London neighbourhoods that really are garnering the makings for a great place to call home. They’re gonna be yuuuuuge.

Tottenham

Once one of the most deprived areas of London, the opening of the Bernie Grant Arts Centre in 2007 marked a gradual movement of change and investment in Tottenham that has been gaining momentum ever since. Following newly-gentrified areas like Shoreditch, Hoxton and Dalston, Tottenham’s Craving Coffee has your artisan caffeine fix covered; Beavertown Brewery on Lockwood Industrial Park pretty much owns the capital’s craft beer scene right now and Chicken Town, housed in an old Victorian fire station, steams ‘happy, herb-fed chickens’ in rapeseed oil for a healthy and hipster alternative to KFC.

A serious game-changer for the North London district, though, will be the Spurs’ new state-of-the-art football stadium. Set to go up in August 2018, the site will attract supporters from all over the country (and continent) to fill a 61,000 capacity: that’s a heck load of disposable income funnelling into Tottenham’s pubs, bars, cafes and food joints—not to mention the necessary investment in infrastructure to ferry fans around.

Homerton

Oooo I’m so creative, oooo I live in East London. That’s what all those types say, probably, and you can say it too if you live in Homerton—but you can say it better, because far less people outside of East London will have heard of Homerton, and that makes it cooler.

Homerton’s come a long way in recent years, now hosting a thriving independent café scene (check out Hatch on Mackintosh Lane), heaps of craft beer pubs and a massive green space in Hackney Marshes. Chatsworth Road on a Sunday offers gourmet organic market food and live music at The Dentist, with one resident we spoke to describing it as ‘a mini Portobello Road’.

Woolwich

Yeah, so it’s been on the ‘up-and-coming’ radar for a good decade, now, without ever reaching the point of having up and come—but the time is nigh. With the arrival of the Elizabeth Line in 2018, Woolwich will be one of only two stations south of the river linking to Canary Wharf in eight minutes and Bond Street in 22 minutes, plus great links to the City via Bank.

Woolwich’s farmers market brings the foodies in their hoards, and microbrewery Hop Stuff and sourdough pizzeria The Tap Room are just two of many indie businesses proving a hit. Young’s set up the Dial Arch pub in an old munitions factory (Young’s), which is pretty cool, and to boot there are trendy pop-ups a-plenty popping up all the time. Over the next couple of years, several landmark waterfront buildings will also be transformed into ‘sophisticated and elegant’ arts spaces, where Tower Hamlets-based performing arts company Dash Arts are set to co-curate a Cultural Quarter.

Acton

Relatively speaking, Acton is a particularly affordable option for London, plus it’s like a total wet dream if transport links turn you on. It’s on the Piccadilly and District Lines and has three central line stations plus great access to Overground. And if that’s not enough, as of 2018, it’s set to be included on the Cross Rail map.

Practicalities aside, though, Acton is equidistant to Shepherds Bush and Ealing on its west and east borders, and itself boasts a whole bunch of cool bars, niche cafes and a cosy pubs. Churchfield Road is home to dozens of independent businesses: antique stores, fishing shops, butchers. Shotgun Studios offers an ‘arts space for young creatives living in the area’, and Gunnersbury Park is perfect for all that running and sh*t that people seem to like. There’s also Acton Market, supposedly dating back to medieval times, where you probably can’t buy a sword anymore but you can get some cracking street food.

Brockley

Super well-located, Brockley is in between New Cross and Peckham, but has plenty going for itself too. Adorned with multiple green spaces, you can find great views of the city in in Hilly Fields Park or Telegraph Fields Park and the vibrant Brockley Market rivals some of the busiest and best food markets in London. Craft beer? Check. Quirky cafes? Check. Independent bars, restaurants and the likes? Cheeeck.

Transport is also very good with Overground connections into Canary Wharf and train services into London Bridge.