SoTo or Little London - Winkworth reveals where £500k can buy a family home

In the latest episode of Winkworth’s Property Exchange podcast, Winkworth agents say that N17 is London’s newest hotspot to buy  a family house for under £500,000 - where people moving into South Tottenham have dubbed it Soto.

Further afield in the historic spa town of Royal Leamington Spa, a period family house with garden or a large fourbedroom apartment in a Regency square could be snapped up. 

For those reluctant to leave London, a £500,000 budget could secure a small flat in the prime district of  Kensington and Chelsea.  Winkworth’s Charles Erwin told the podcast: “Winkworth’s research into  the areas offering  the best value at £500,000 has shown that we’re now seeing prices in prime London drop on one and two-bed flats to around £500,000-£550,000. If you want to move further afield, in Barking and Dagenham, around £360,000 can stretch to a three-bed family home. For a £500,000 budget in the north-east of England, that will get you roughly 2,000 sq ft of house with a big garden, driveway for many cars, and close to plenty of amenities , compared to under 900 sqft in London. In Manchester, the average price of a family home is £242,000, or in Newcastle, the average detached is £395,000.”

Jake Strubel, of Winkworth’s Harringay office, revealed that Tottenham has been the most popular area to buy a home over the past five years. He told the podcast:

“It's been a  key market for us. We actually sell more property in Tottenham than any other postcode we work in.

“We have achieved just over 200 sales for the year so far, and 140 of the sales have been in N15 and N17, the prominent Tottenham postcodes. It’s reminiscent of Stoke Newington and Dalston 10 to 15 years ago. Tottenham is a place where people can come together and start to build a community.

“There are parks, good transport, and great places to eat and drink. There's something for everyone. With property valuesstill at a level where most people can afford to get in, whether that is a one bedroom flat or a very nice five bedroom house extended every way, it’s a really good spot.”

Just one hour and 15 minutes by train, home hunters could be in  the Regency elegance of Royal Leamington Spa in Warwickshire – which has  been nicknamed Little London, according to  Nicky Martiny Roberts, of Winkworth’s Royal Leamington Spa office. He told the podcast: 

“Leamington is often referred to as Little London, and I think that's mainly by the Londoners who've moved here to keep themselves current. 

“We've got a lot of culture on our doorstep. We're famous for our botanical gardens and parks. There is the Regency side of Leamington Spa coupled with the historic, almost Tudor side of Warwick. The two towns are interconnected. It's an opportunity for families to move on up the ladder by coming to Leamington. We see a lot of young families, young professionals starting life here, with affluent but slightly older first-time buyers. Our average age for first-time buyers is around 32. Those who've been renting, unable to get on the ladder in London, and are taking advantage of the post-COVID, two days a week on Chiltern Railways into central London to find a home that they can stay in for the next sort of 10 to 15 years.”

Nick Martiny Roberts  says £500,000 is a healthy budget for Leamington Spa.

“In North Leamington Spa in areas like Milverton, close to good schools and bordering onto Warwick, you can buy an attractive three-bedroom Victorian terraced home with a decent garden, an easy walk into the centre of Leamington Spa. If you wanted to go right into the heart of town, youcould buy a lovely apartment, a three to four bedroom apartment in a Regency townhouse. Move up to Cubbington or Lillington, a little bit further out from central Leamington, but still a 20-minute walk or so, you could buy a four-bedroom, semi-detached home. On the new build developments towards the M40 down towards Heathcote, you'll get yourself a four-bedroom detached house while up-and-coming areas such as Whitnash, you will have a wide choice.”