Cheapest places to live in and around south London

For a lot of Londoners, buying a first time home can be a long-winded and costly process, with many people opting to rent rather than buying a home.

But new data has revealed that some locations in and spend London are more affordable than others for those looking to buy their first home.

According to data from reallymoving, eight neighbourhoods including Gravesend, Dartford, Croydon, Thornton Heath and Sidcup are among some of London’s top 20 most affordable to live.

Gravesend in Kent was ranked as the second most affordable place to live following Purfleet in Essex, with 97 per cent of 2-beds within a budget of £420,000 and 98 per cent of 1-beds within a budget of £315,000, followed by South Ockenden in Essex, Barking in East London and Dartford in Kent.

Ranking in position four, Dartford - one of Gravesend’s neighbouring areas - was also ranked as an affordable place to live, having good links to London via Dartford station and the Dartford Crossing, with 96 per cent of one beds in budget and 92 percent of two beds in budget.

The map below highlights London’s most affordable areas for first time buyers, with the most affordable locations in green indicating that more than 90 per cent of properties are available within budget for first time buyers.

Here are all the south London areas that name the list:

Gravesend, Kent (DA11 postcode):

• 2nd most affordable.
• 98 per cent of 1-bed properties are available with a budget of £315,000.
• 97 per cent of 2-bed properties are available with a budget of £420,000.

Dartford, Kent (DA1 postcode):

• 4th most affordable.
• 96 per cent of 1-bed properties are available with a budget of £315,000.
• 92 per cent of 2-bed properties are available with a budget of £420,000.

Thornton Heath, Croydon (CR7 postcode):

• 7th most affordable.
• 93 per cent of 1-bed properties are available with a budget of £315,000.
• 91 per cent of 2-bed properties are available with a budget of £420,000.

Belvedere, Bexley (DA17 postcode):

• 10th most affordable.
• 95 per cent of 1-bed properties are available with a budget of £315,000.
• 90 per cent of 2-bed properties are available with a budget of £420,000.

Swanley, Sevenoaks, Kent (BR8 postcode):

• 12th most affordable.
• 95 per cent of 1-bed properties are available with a budget of £315,000.
• 88 per cent of 2-bed properties are available with a budget of £420,000.

Croydon, South London (CR0 postcode):

• 16th most affordable.
• 90 per cent of 1-bed properties are available with a budget of £315,000.
• 87 per cent of 2-bed properties are available with a budget of £420,000.

Mitcham, Merton (CR4 postcode):

• 17th most affordable.
• 88 per cent of 1-bed properties are available with a budget of £315,000.
• 85 per cent of 2-bed properties are available with a budget of £420,000.

Sidcup, Kent (DA14 postcode):

• 20th most affordable.
• 89 per cent of 1-bed properties are available with a budget of £315,000.
• 82 per cent of 2-bed properties are available with a budget of £420,000.

reallymoving CEO Rob Houghton said: “If First Time Buyers focus only on average house prices, the dream of owning a home may seem like an impossible task, but those numbers don’t tell the full story. 

“First Time Buyers will find the greatest choice of properties by looking east towards East London, Essex and Kent, with affordability hotspots such as Purfleet, Gravesend and Watford all commutable by train into central London within 30 minutes.

“But there are also locations in north, south and west London in the top 20 list, where First Time Buyers with an average budget can access huge swathes of the market.”