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London Flat Hunting
Ponge
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I'm meant to be moving in with my friend, his fiancee and another of their friends in just over a week or so (their lease runs out before mine does, I don't have to move out until the 20th Sept) but I'm not currently in London to go flat hunting with them. They've been looking at places today and it's got me a bit concerned as they're really far out of my price range, and I wonder if I'm being naive or if these places seem expensive to anyone else.
Theyre looking at 3 double bedroom flats, the one they seem to like is near Seven Sisters/Arsenal and the agency is looking for £500pw. Apparently if we put in a holding deposit of a couple of hundred pounds we then enter into a negotiating stage where this price is generally reduced by £20-£50. But, assuming this price stays at £500 that works out as:
Couple sharing : £200
Me : £150
Other guy : £150
Apparently you have to multiply this weekly amount by 4.3 to get the actual monthly amount so that works out for me at £645per month, which is about £145 more than I was looking to spend. This is not including council tax or bills and I just get the feeling that this is mega expensive (especially that far out of town, where I would have to buy a monthly tube pass at £120).
I've had a look myself for people advertising spare rooms to let, and I can sometimes get a double bedroom is a similiar or better part of town for £600 including council tax and bills. What do you guys think, are these standard prices in London?
Theyre looking at 3 double bedroom flats, the one they seem to like is near Seven Sisters/Arsenal and the agency is looking for £500pw. Apparently if we put in a holding deposit of a couple of hundred pounds we then enter into a negotiating stage where this price is generally reduced by £20-£50. But, assuming this price stays at £500 that works out as:
Couple sharing : £200
Me : £150
Other guy : £150
Apparently you have to multiply this weekly amount by 4.3 to get the actual monthly amount so that works out for me at £645per month, which is about £145 more than I was looking to spend. This is not including council tax or bills and I just get the feeling that this is mega expensive (especially that far out of town, where I would have to buy a monthly tube pass at £120).
I've had a look myself for people advertising spare rooms to let, and I can sometimes get a double bedroom is a similiar or better part of town for £600 including council tax and bills. What do you guys think, are these standard prices in London?
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From my observations there are a few factors that will affect whether £500 for a 3 bed is reasonable. Is it a nice flat? Is it in a nice area? And is there a living room (or at worst, a large kitchen)?
The short answer is: it's probably reasonable if the answer to two of those three is a yes.
The long answer: I haven't really spent much time at Seven Sisters (except waiting for connecting trains), but it's probably not going to be the nicest of locations. That said, I've found London to be quite a mix of nice and not-so-nice areas, so it ultimately depends on the exact estate. I obviously can't comment on the flat. It's not uncommon to use a living room as an extra bedroom, but you tend to lose any communal space.
For context I saw a 3 bed flat on Theobald's Road for £500 two weeks ago. No living room, a small kitchen, unfurnished, but it was in a very good condition. (And beautiful! Unfortunately I couldn't take it for a number of reasons.)
Also I've had various estate agents tell me it's a bad time of the year, and a particularly bad year (!), to be looking for flats, as hardly anyone is moving (the recession?). Hence rents can go up.
I know someone who recently moved in hampstead into a 3 bedroom (with double room) ground floor flat that was a little under £400 per week (I forget exactly how much). They did a bit of hunting though, and its a little way from any tubes, on a main road etc.
If they are looking at places that are too expensive for you, you need to be the bad guy and tell them you can't afford it.
weekly rent * 52 / 12 = weekly rent * 4.3333 = monthly rent
If you are using online sites be dammed careful about fraud. There are so many scams out there, ranging from the obvious to quite tricky
Ah, gotcha. Yeah 645 for just a room seems quite high. As someone stated, you need to let them know your budget. Nothing good will come of it if you try to make up the difference elsewhere.
Something else, I would suggest the balance of rent is a little...off. I wouldn't say the couple should be paying double, but I would go with at least 1.5x the rent of the single folks. Just because they're using 1 room doesn't mean they're not using 2x the common area, kitchen etc.
Just food for thought.