Flat hunting in west London: we did it.

The task of finding a flat that would accommodate us and Bilbo at a reasonable price has proved to be very, very difficult because of the area we will be living at, that’s why we called it searching for “El Dorado”. DH visited several agencies and saw so many flats and studio flats that he was about to give up until he found one that seemed to tick most of the requirements so he put an offer on it.

It’s not a fancy or spacious flat but is 5 minutes walking from his office, has the bedroom separated from the living room /kitchen and the would accept dogs on conditions, of course. 

I went to London in April to see my DH and check out the flat. DH was pretty much nervous because he thought I would dislike the flat and wouldn’t give it a chance, but, even to my surprise I didn’t completely dislike it. Yes, it is smaller than any place I’ve ever lived in before. Yes it is a third floor flat with no elevator. Yes the living area and kitchen are in the same room. Yes the bathroom is smaller than the cupboard below the stairs at our house in Spain. Yes to all of that. But... It is on a main road with bus stop in front, train station and Gym and sports centre across the street, tube station 5 minutes walking, 5 minutes walking to DH office, Kew bridge just 200m away, huge park for Bilbo and River Thames on the back. Really not bad to begin our London adventure. 

The flat doesn't look like anything special but it is a beginning (first picture make it look bigger than it actually is). With the right kind of furniture and some smart decor it can look homey and nice, just like this “Fresh Home” reader of has done with her apartment in Belgrade (http://freshome.com/2012/06/21/51sqm-readers-apartment-in-belgrade-how-do-you-find-it/). 

The layout of the living area of the flat is very similar to the one that our flat has but for the windows and is a very nice inspiration for when we get to decorate the flat. 

What do you think about it?

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Flat hunting in West London

When the whole London Project begun my DH was pretty confident we would find a flat soon enough but I wasn't so sure. DH moved to London a month ago planning to spend a week or at the most two in flat hunting and moving over to the new flat but that hasn't happened yet. He is still living in a hotel and we are still looking for a flat.

Our house in Spain is spacious and full of light with a beautiful garden and backyard. We knew that moving to London, at least for the first year or so would mean compromising to a different space and way of life. I'm so used to live in big houses that the actual thought of living in a flat not to mentions small flat hasn't been on my wish list for like ever. But life changes and now we are moving to exactly that: a small flat.

Views from our house in Spain

My DH workplace is located in West London near River Thames, to be more precise in Chiswick, and is in this area that we are looking to rent a flat. One thing that I learn in this quest is that any property located inside "The Ring" formed by the M25 is not cheap. At all.

Took the idea of the Venn Diagram from this blog about Flat hunting in Singapore .
You should definitely check it out!

In the beginning my DH was thinking about living in the outskirts of London in places like Windsor or Langley or Reading where properties could be more affordable than inside "The Ring" but that option would force us to buy a car immediately for me to use as the good houses are not precisely close by public transport and not so convenient for everyday life. Add to that the fact that all in all the sum of what you would spend in a year to travel back and forth to London is really high (a friend of ours that lives in Windsor spends roughly £4500/year in train and tube!).

After long conversations we reach the conclusion that we need to be living nearby my DH office in Chiswick for the following reason:

1. It is conveniently close to his work.
2. It is a beautiful and safe neighbourhood to live in.
3. It is close to parks and recreations (Gunnersbury Park, Richmond Park, Chiswick Park and Kew Gardens just to mention a few).
4. It is very well connected (public transportation wise) and provides an easy access to Central London.

Views from Richmond near the Main gates of Richmond Park

For those of us who know me well, I'm not a public transport type of person. I love driving my car and being able to go wherever I want whenever I want to BUT sometimes you can't have what you want and either way driving a car (on the wrong side of the road) and parking a car in the centre of London is not a easy and cheap feat. It’s been almost 12 years since the last time I actually used public transport as a mean to get to and from home in an everyday way and that’s one of my DH major concerns, but thanks to the Flying Spaghetti Monster there are some useful apps that can help you get from A to B in London in a fast and easy way. Apps like “London Transport” can help you plan a Journey or check the buses and  tube times from anywhere in London.

Screenshots of London Transport App for Android 

We began our search online but soon realised that all the interesting flat were gone before my DH had a chance to view them. My DH contacted several real estate agencies and booked some flats to see. Results so far are appalling.

Webpages like PrimeLocation, Zoopla and RightMove search estate agent listings (usually the same ones) and offer lots of pictures. Problem is, the agents themselves might not respond quickly enough to email requests, so it’s best to give them a call and make viewing appointments immediately. Places like Gumtree need to be approach with care as there are some scams and iffy people around.

To give you an idea a studio flat around this area could easily be around £900 to £1200. Anything below £1000 means you would be living in small room with your bed, your kitchen and sometimes even the shower occupying the same room! And I'm not joking. Try searching a rental for about that price in any area in West London and let me know what you find.

London Rents displays the average rent in London by postcode.

London Rental Map Postal Code W4

I'll keep you posted on our search for "El Dorado". Hasta la vista, baby!

Leti.-

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London project has officially started

It's been a week since I last posted in the blog but so many things have happened lately I didn't have the chance to do it. I've promised myself to do my best to post at least three times a week here. 

London project has officially started. For the past year we’ve been waiting to know if my DH would be finally going to London for work. After some negotiation he finally came on board into the new project the company he works for is starting in London soooooo… we will be moving there sometime soon.

Bye, bye to Spanish sunshine and countryside and hello to one of the most talked about and exciting cities in the world. This new adventure will be a challenge in so many ways; I can’t really grasp all its magnitude yet.

Sun and beach in September....

It is a bit ironic that when we were finally getting to finish the reforms on the house we bought in Spain, we are living. Options of renting our house in Spain has crossed our minds but for the time being we are not going to be doing that. We'll keep the house here so we can always a place to scape to on a weekend .

Source: dinscreations.co.uk

DH flew to London today. He needs to be completely focus on the new job that’s why we think it's going to be better for me to delay a bit my relocation to London. In the meanwhile we will be seen each other every other week, sometimes me going to see him, sometimes him coming to see me here. 

People say that long distance relationships don’t work but we already prove that theory wrong once and surely we can do it again. (Read: Long-distance relationships really can work and Long distance relationships benefits )

What do you think is the best and worst part of a long distance relationship?

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