Property advice appreciated…to buy in Honor Oak or East Dulwich?

Hi there
At 33 i am on the cusp of (finally) buying my first home. However i am torn between two properties - one in east Dulwich and one in honor oak park- and I would love your thoughts/advice on buying in these two areas.

I used to rent in ED a couple of years ago and thought I’d always love to buy there…but being single and having limited budget I didn’t think I’d ever be in a position to do so! Somehow, I have found a purpose built one bed flat near goose green in budget. It is a great location, being close to the station and lordship lane.

Almost in tandem, I have found a period, one bed top floor flat (with potential to extend into the roof perhaps one day) on a quiet terraced street. Again this flat is very close to HOP station/ the high street. I don’t know HOP and have only been there once, to view this property. First impressions were that it is very nice and similar to Dulwich?!

In a perfect world I’d like the HOP property in the ED location, but im not made of money…C’est la vie!

In terms of significant swing factors, there aren’t any! The honor oak park flat is just £1,000 more than the ED flat. Flats are similar in size (not huge). The lease length, annual service charges are pretty much the same. Both need new kitchen, bathroom, flooring, decorating. Both have good transport links in to London bridge.

Thoughts on a postcard please

Thanks so much!

I were you I’d go for the flat I like better (i.e. HOP). Granted Lordship Lane has a lot more going on than HOP but you can just take a bus/ride a bike there whenever you want. We live in FH but go to ED every weekend to eat/shop etc. Best of both worlds.

Look at future resale value when you potentially move and which area would offer you more of an increase in value.

HOP has reasonable links to ED whenever you want, but HOP also has fantastic rail links to London and the Jubilee line/tube network - Overground access to Canada Water/West End /Canary Wharf, plus rail to London Bridge/Charing Cross.

I’ve lived around both areas and bought in HOP last year. Personally, I much prefer living in HOP to East Dulwich as it’s relaxed and I’ve found the locals to be friendly and less stuck up. Rail transport options are better from HOP than ED, particularly into East London and with easy options from Crofton Park too. If someone offered me the chance to take an identical home in ED, there’s no way I’d move there.

That being said, I’m married with a couple of small kids now so if I was still single, enjoying socialising and wanted a nice all round place for myself, given the choice of the two I’d definitely pitch for Goose Green - the wider choice of restaurants, pubs and shops within walking distance, and closer proximity to Peckham Rye Common and Peckham itself makes it far more attractive to me in that scenario.

Good luck!

Personally all things being equal I would go with ED if in your position - Lordship Lane is pretty unique in South London and offers so much from the Picturehouse, great pubs, good chain and independent restaurants. You’re also walkable to trendy Peckham and beautiful Dulwich Village. I’d say the only downside to ED is the transport link and you would need to be comfortable with your commute.

I think HOP is very nice and certainly has better transport options. But personally I think it’s sleepier and the choices of bars, restaurants, coffee shops (whilst there are good examples of each) is more limited. I think if you’re single you might find pace of life there a little slow. But maybe that’s what you prefer.

In my thirties I’ve found my lifestyle changing from a “Lordship Lane” lifestyle to something very different - spending more time at home, more time outside London, and lots of effort doing up the house and garden.

So I’m glad I chose to buy in HOP. At the time, HOP was on the rise due to the East London Line, although you now find yourself on the tail end of this rise unfortunately. But Dulwich had its gentrification a long time prior.

If you consider this house / flat to be a long-term investment (in property and area), I’d go for HOP. You can also get a lot for your money in Sydenham or Catford if you’re looking at the property as a long-term bet.

If it’s more of a short term move, there’s a lot going for Dulwich. But don’t underestimate the lifestyle options available in Forest Hill, Honor Oak and the various places (eg Islington, Crystal Palace) that are easily accessible from Honor Oak.

You may find that you get the hustle and bustle elsewhere, but you grow to enjoy the “village vibe” that’s particular to Honor Oak:

It’s a tough choice but you can’t go wrong either way.

I would also recommend posing this question on the East Dulwich Forum and see how the responses and attitudes differ…

My other half, the estate agent, says Honor Oak Park for the development opportunities so what do I know

I can see that the OP has already asked the same question on EDF, I lived in Honor Oak Park for 6 years (Ebsworth) and wanted to buy in the area, than a flat in Forest Hill came along and moved there, It worked out great since I can walk to so many different Pubs and Restaurants, Parks rather than go on the train for one stop from HOP to Forest Hill.
As some posters already said it depends what you are looking for, I absolutely loved living in Honor Oak Park but by comparison it is quiet with limited options saying that, if you not looking for nightlife but nice and friendly neighbourhood cafes and a couple of restaurants it is perfect. In case you like the buzz and be within walking distance to a variety of shops then choose East Dulwich.
I would also add that if you don’t have outside space and therefore spend less time at home on sunny days then East Dulwich is a better option if you can cope with less transport options.

Bottom line just think which off the two flats you would be more upset if they were withdrawn from the market and their is your answer

Ah yes, I missed it:

http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?20,1949761,1949801#msg-1949801

I can’t give you advice on which area socially you’d enjoy more as that’s personal (as are which drinking establishments you prefer if that’s a big part of your lifestyle).

The transport in HOP is better. More trains, more options. East London and Canary Wharf are a lot easier to get to.

Overall you’d probably be happy in either area.

The question I would ask is do you think that two identical flats in ED and HOP should be priced the same?

Generally I expect prices to be higher in SE22 than in SE23. If they aren’t then either the property market has changed and the introduction of M&S has lowered the prices in ED, or the place in HOP is over-priced. I would aim for a 5% discount on the HOP property, and then I would be very happy living there. Otherwise I would certainly be tempted by the bright lights of East Dulwich (except knowing myself I wouldn’t really leave Forest Hill. I’ll be here until I win the lottery).

Having bought in Sydenham/Forest hill a couple of years ago, also single at that time the lower side of 30 the only advice I got from parents is to be able to visit my friends easily. For that transport links were good for me with both busses and train options from Forest Hill. Also good to have back up when things go wrong on commute which invariably they do. Love the area and do go to local cafes/pubs/restaurants but also like having useful DIY shops (essential as home owner need different shops than when renting) or charity shops and library & swimming pool nearby. As most friends live in other areas I often socialise in other parts of London as all travel and meet in the middle. So as much as people say go to where there is a buzz you do also have to consider who will enjoy the buzz with. I bought in the area on gut on the back of a good carrot cake and someone playing scrabble in a pub where having a drink. I bought my flat on gut feeling as I immediately felt at home in my living room /kitchen with nice views and still enjoy coming home.

Personally I would prefer HOP because there are more alternative forms of transport. Overground and mainline trains. If the mainline is is not working the Overground is usually available.

We have just been through a similar decision process and originally decided that ED would be for us.

However, once we started seriously looking at properties we soon realised that the difference in quality between ED and FH was significant. With FH/HO the flats are either bigger and better or cheaper and better. Plus I’d have had to get the bus back to FH for a better commute to work.

Not sure what your budget is but I’d be questioning both flats as the ED must have something wrong with it or the HO one is over priced. There’s room for development across FH and the property prices will reap the benefits of that. I’d grab yourself a bargain now (a London bargain anyway) and make an investment.

Personally, if I was young free and single and the properties were the same price, I’d go for ED. Unless Hop presented a much quicker commute to work - that might swing it. But there is no such thing in this market as 2 properties being the same value. It’s all about the haggle. Whilst out of touch with property prices, i agree with a previous post that the hop properryvsounds over valued. I’d expect a 2 bedroom hop flat for closer to the price of the 1 bed ed flat. A haggle might make he decision easier. Properties are only worth what people are willing to pay, and it may just be becoming a buyers market. Good luck!

Purpose built flats will usually be much cheaper than period ones. That’s why they are the same price despite ED being more desirable.

If I were you, I’d go for a period flat (so long as it looks well maintained), as the old housing stock is one of the reasons why I think these parts of london are so popular. You’d be at a disadvantage if in a purpose built one when it comes time to sell.

Also, there is nothing to stop a developer throwing up another 500 flats just like yours in the general area, which would devalue your property, whereas they will never build the old Victorian style properties again.

Whilst it’s quite interesting to see everyone’s opinions on this you’re all probably wasting your time because it looks like CC2018’s left the building!