[euston]

Hello!

I will be moving to London very soon. I found a job in banking paid £35,000 a year. I dont want to go on a flatshare and i was wondering if i can afford a one bedroom flat in zone 1 or 2 with this salary?

I saw a few ads for one bedroom flats between £200 and £300 per week... do u think it's too much compared to what i will be earning?
I know it also depends on how u spend ur money but is it reasonable?

Thanx for ur help.

[Bluey]

Your net salary will be approximately £2100.

A 1 bed flat will cost you between £866 or £1300 pcm (at a weekly rate of £200-300).

Then you will have additional estimated costs to consider, such as

council tax: £70-100
utilities: £50
telephone/broadband: £30
water: £30
tv licence: £10

So it just depends whether the peace and privacy you desire are worth between half to almost two thirds your net income vanishing on basic rent and bills.

You will need to estimate other costs, such as your travel, food, social, clothing, holiday and so on to see if you can break even or save anything.

[euston]

Wow thank you very much Bluey!

Seems to me that i wont be able to get my own flat if i dont get at least £45,000 a year...

[Ellie]

[Bluey]

I'd agree with Ellie on that. People assume that if you go outside Zone 2 or south of the River, it makes travelling to work a real hassle whereas it has nothing to do with actual geographical distance and everything to do with the reliability of the local tube or train service.

Fulham, for example, is a lovely place but it's a complete bitch to get to work in the city - unreliable tube line and massive overcrowding.

For example, you can get to London Bridge or Victoria in 15 mins by train from East Croydon which is in Zone 5 where properties are much cheaper. Walthamstow is in Zone 3 and has good tube links to town and train links to the city. (I am not actually recommending either place, just saying that with a bit of careful research, you can find a nice flat in an okay area for up to half the costs and very little increase in travel time).

I imagine that there are good places out in the zone 3-6 area with good travel links into the closest tube or train station where you work.

Use the transport for london journey planner to check travel times and estate agent sites to get an idea of 1 bed flat prices and guides to the area. Or consider a studio flat which will be a bit cheaper.


http://journeyplanner.tfl.gov.uk/user/XSLT_TRIP_REQUEST2?language=en
http://www.findaproperty.com/