Moving to Sydenham

[Dom Johnston]

Hi All,

I hope everyone is well?

My wife and I are looking to move to Sydenham and I was hoping that people could help shed some light on areas that are particularly nice or ones that should be avoided?

We have a budget of around £500k so the Thorpes are out... But any advice on places to avoid and ones to keep an eye out for would be amazing.

Thanks a million!

Dom

[Pally]

Roads off Kent House Rd are nice - turn right into Hillmore Grove and have a look. Also some nice flats conversions in Newlands Park. Byne Road and the other roads round there have nice houses too. Sorry but not sure about prices

[mikej]

Are you looking for a house? You won't find many in Sydenham for £500k unfortunately.
But there's a bit of a cluster in the streets off Sydenham road opposite Home Park - Larkbere, Highclere, Sunnydene, Holmshaw, Adamsrill.
Others would have to comment on what these streets are like as I don't know much about them.

[Dom Johnston]

Thank you for the info so far!

The Thorpes are way out of our price range. I might be able to buy someone's garden shed to live there!

We're looking at both flats and houses. We've viewed a couple around Larkbere/ Sunnydene/ Highclere way, but not sure about what it's like around there, so if anybody can shed some light, it would be awesome.

We do like Venner Road, but places don't seem to last so long on the market there.

I keep reading so much about the community spirit in Sydenham too. Is it really like that?

Thanks again,

Dom

[mosy]

Hi and welcome Don Johnston.

Some random thoughts:

A lot of people tend to buy a house or flat which is in the catchment area for a local school if they have or intend to have children and are expecting to stay here for a while.

You might want to look at places which have a car space allotted specifically to you, or at least check out what it's like for parking which can be a pain in some streets. Checking that is best outside work hours when everyone's home, although Sydenham rail and bus services are close almost wherever you are.

Another thing always worth considering if home during the day is which way a property faces (N-S or E-W) to know how much light comes in as the sun goes round. Most look flooded with sunshine in high summer, yet can be dismal in winter.

On community spirit, I don't know what others think is representative. For me it's partly that it has life during the day with a huge mix of folks most of whom are friendly, including shopkeepers, so you don't get a feeling that you don't belong; more that you do.

[Hissing Syd]

Hi Dom,

A pre-emptive welcome to Sydenham! We live on Larkbere Road, and so I thought I would take the time to write and respond to you. We moved to Sydenham eight years ago and we absolutely love it here. I have written at length on this forum about problems with the tyre shop at the end of the road and their littering and rubbish. That remains an ongoing concern, but one which will in time be sorted out. Crucially, people care enough to challenge the problems.

The houses in this street are wonderful Victorian terraces; we adore our home. In the last couple of years we’ve had a lot of new blood moving in and lovingly restoring the houses to their former glory, stripping off the grim render and bringing them back to their original brick-fronted look. You can still get a terrace house here for your budget. The dream for most people is to then do the loft and the side return extension; there are many loft conversions going up on Larkbere and no doubt more will follow.

Parking-wise it’s first come first serve. I can’t tell you more than that as neither myself or my partner drive. We’re well-served for transport links, being equidistant between Sydenham, Lower Sydenham and Penge East. Of all of these, Lower Syd has a great and reliable service that’s 20 mins direct to Charing Cross, whereas the trains from Sydenham station tend to be less of a given and more like trying to hitch a lift. The Overground is reliable though.

We’re also well-placed for shops: Sainsbury and B&Q are 5 mins away, with Lidl and Tesco 8 mins in the opposite direction up the high street. If you enjoy cooking then Billings should be your first port of call, for fresh fish and meat.

I'm not sure of anywhere I would avoid in Sydenham, but what I will say is that security was a big factor for me when buying here, as my previous flat had been in a rough part of London. I chose Larkbere as I feel safe walking back to it from the station late at night - a straight walk down a brightly lit high street, then just off it. As a security-conscious person, I would avoid anywhere where you have to head down backstreets to get home.

Additionally this is a very, very friendly road – we know our neighbours and are on nodding terms with most people. And being a street of terraced houses, any unusual behaviour is pretty obvious at once.

At the end of Larkbere, next to the infamous tyre shop is Barakah… we’re spoilt for curry houses in Sydenham, but in our house Barakah rules supreme! Their Bombay Squid is amazing. We also now have three fantastic local pubs in the Dolphin, the Greyhound and the Golden Lion, a renowned and celebrated Italian restaurant, Trattoria Raffaele, and a short way away in Penge is our personal favourite place to eat: a French bistro named Creperie Ches Yves. Plus the wonderful Poodle Club is a comedy venue on the high street and makes for a great night out. To run off the calories from all that good food and booze we head to Crystal Palace Park, which is half an hour away on foot and very beautiful in summer and winter.

In short, yes, there most certainly is a wonderful community spirit here and with all the new developments it’s an exciting time to buy in Sydenham. If you decide to do so then I hope you will be as happy here as we are.

Best,

HS

[Dom Johnston]

Thank you all so much for the input.

HS I did notice the tyre place on the corner but it's great to hear that people are tackling the problem and if we do find somewhere on Larkbere, I'd be happy to throw my weight behind the issue too! That's great help with the timings to get to places and good info on the pubs and restaurants. We do like to go for a pint on a friday evening and I know the Greyhound is a lovely pub. Wasn't aware of the others.

Thanks again. Looking forward to joining the community.

[Emc]

Another thumbs up for Larkbere road here! I moved here five years ago and am so happy to be on this side of Sydenham Road (close to Mayow Park!). It's directly between Lower Sydenham and Sydenham so you're never stuck when lines are down.

We're a 3 minute stroll from the beautiful Mayow Park with it's truly amazing cafe, running groups and tennis courts etc.

Right at the end of the road on Champion Crescent are community halls with dance classes and badminton etc.

We're a short walk from the huge Sainsbury's, pet store and B&Q etc, which is so useful. Also really close to great Indian takeaways and nice restaurants a but further up the road.

Neighbours for the most part are very friendly and most will stop for a quick chat and seem very nice.

I've recently moved back after being away for a while and am so happy to be back here.

I also feel very safe walking to and from the station (more Sydenham than lower sydenham) at night.

Have to say the tyre shop is annoying but really hoping it can clean up its act. I live on the top end though so dont often pass it.

[Emc]

PS I also posted for advice on this forum before buying here several years ago and moved here partly because of that friendly advice and thumbs up from Sydenhamites. I think it was a good choice!

[Dom Johnston]

Thanks for coming back to me.

It seems we will soon be neighbours then. We have just had an offer accepted on Larkbere Road.

Very excited to join the community and see what Sydenham has to offer us in the coming years!!

[The Clown]

A warm welcome - it is an amazing place to live. Affordable and accessible with loads of green pockets to enjoy and the ability to scoot out of town and the country as well with ease

[alywin]

We do like Venner Road, but places don't seem to last so long on the market there.

A bit late to be of use to you, assuming your sale doesn't fall through, but I might as well post it in case it's of use to anyone else:

I understand that a recent 2-bed flat which went on sale on Venner Road garnered several offers within a matter of days. Reasons why it's at a premium:
- a different station/railway line at each end, so very convenient for commuting;
- nice Victorian (Edwardian?) houses/flat conversions;
- I don't know about the houses, but quite a few of the flats are housing association or privately rented, so flats don't tend to come up for sale that often;
- very quiet, due to being blocked off at the Sydenham end.

I'd say the Penge end is probably better than the Sydenham end.

[Hissing Syd]

Congratulations, on having the offer accepted, Dom - hope you'll be very happy!

[Dom Johnston]

Thanks guys! Much appreciated.

We've finally got all of the paperwork sorted. Japanese knotweed issue dealt with. Just a touch of damp and then we're all good!

We are hoping to exchange this week and have a completion date of the 24th October! Super excited and very much looking to be part of the community!

[Jollylolly]

Good luck with everything and welcome