Buying a home in Zone 1: two key central London areas loved for their community feel and boutique shops

Covering well over 600 square miles, London has 32 boroughs, 270 Tube stations and there are some 60,000 streets within a six-mile radius of Charing Cross alone.

The capital is so huge that even the most devoted Londoner can’t genuinely be expected to know every pocket and corner.

This can make selecting the perfect location for your house hunt a bit of a lucky dip, particularly for buyers on a budget.

But a new study reveals the key locations for those looking for a good-value home in the thick of the London action.

In the first of a three-part series, estate agent Hamptons International analyses price per square foot of every postcode in travel Zones 1, 2 and 3 to find top value for buyers keen to live in the heart of the capital.

This week we select the most affordable areas in Zone 1.

Average price: £796 per sq ft

Homes in the triangle between Vauxhall, Kennington and Elephant & Castle range from Georgian townhouses in tucked-away garden squares to Victorian flats and new-build apartments. There are also plenty of ex-council flats, helping to keep average prices down.

Johnny Male, sales director at estate agents Daniel Cobb, says prices of homes in SE11 are almost half those of similar homes across the river in Westminster. He feels that snobbery plays a part in this north/south divide.

Even so, one of the fine Georgian townhouses in Kennington Road or in “exquisite” Cleaver Square, close to Kennington station, would cost about £1.3 million, on average.

Another photogenic option would be one of the two-bedroom cottages built by the Duchy of Cornwall around Cardigan Street and Courtenay Square at the turn of the last century. These “tiny but adorable” homes cost about £900,000.

For more affordable options, a two-bedroom period conversion flat would be about £600,000, with a one-bedroom ex-council flat from about £300,000.

“SE11 has an amazing community,” says Male, who lives locally. “I adore it there. We all support our local shops, which are mostly around Kennington Cross, and there are some very good cafés.”

The postcode is just clear of the frenzied housebuilding going on at neighbouring Elephant & Castle and Nine Elms, but that doesn’t mean there are no new homes.

The frontrunner is Oval Village, off Kennington Lane. As the name suggests, it’s close to the cricket ground.

The flats went on sale at the start of last year and residents will move in from the beginning of 2023. By 2027 there will be 1,309 flats on site.

Prices start at £648,999 for a one-bedroom flat and £883,000 for a two-bedroom flat. Residents get a gym and pool, roof terraces and gardens.

The nearest Tube station is Oval, just into Zone 2 on the Northern line. Elephant & Castle Tube, on the Northern and Bakerloo lines in Zone 1, is a 10-minute walk away.

Average price: £1,058/£1,059 per sq ft

Ideal for buyers who work in the City and also want to be able to walk to the West End, Islington, and Shoreditch, the emerging golden triangle between Angel, Old Street, and Farringdon takes in a swathe of Clerkenwell.

It is a land of warehouse flats, Georgian townhouses, period conversions, shiny new high rises and more dated purpose-built flats.

Prices here vary wildly. The alpha address is Myddelton Square, featured in period drama films such as Suffragette and Howards End.

One of its lovely tall, slender townhouses would cost about £3 million.

A similar-sized townhouse nearby — but not on a square — would cost £2 million to £2.5 million, says Dominic Fletcher, sales manager at Winkworth.

You should expect to pay £1.2 million for a fancy two-bedroom warehouse flat. A one-bedroom purpose-built flat that’s somewhat more tired would be about £450,000.

One of the reasons for the area’s value is that it’s on the edge of Zone 1, just inside the inner ring road. It’s popular with buyers priced out of Bloomsbury who realise they can get similar homes for less money a 10-minute walk away.

“It has got quite a villagey feel,” says Fletcher. “Amwell Street has lots of little boutiques and cafés and some lovely pubs. And there are a few small parks. It has got a lot of period buildings and a lot of charm.”

It does not, however, have a lot of building sites.

But right on the edge of EC1V is a new landmark: a 36-storey tower designed by Norman Foster, featuring a hotel, almost two acres of gardens, a screening room, pool, gym and residents lounges.

Apartments at this scheme, 250 City Road, are priced from £880,000 for a one-bedroom home and £1.25 million for a two-bedroom flat.

The area’s transport links are already good but will be improved next summer, when Crossrail services are due to begin from Farringdon station.