The 'Peckham effect': how huge influx of hipsters is pushing up south-east London rents
Rents for buy-to-let properties in the SE postcodes rose by an average of five per cent to £1,560 a month in the year to the end of the first quarter, according to analysis by agents Ludlowthompson.
It said that the “Peckham effect” had helped improve the image of a quadrant of London that for many years suffered the least-glamorous reputation of any in the capital.
Until recently the area itself was best known as the home of Only Fools and Horses wheeler-dealer Del Boy Trotter and his brother Rodney, TV’s classic sitcom duo who boasted of running a global empire based in “New York, Paris, Peckham”.
However, the extraordinary wave of gentrification that has taken place over the past 10 years has seen Peckham turn into one of London’s most vibrant destinations, boasting venues such as The Four Quarters video game-themed bar, modern British bistro Pedler, Greek restaurant Peckham Bazaar, and Bar Story, a cocktail bar beneath a railway arch at Peckham Rye.
Last year Time Out named Peckham as the 11th-coolest neighbourhood on the planet, ahead of New York’s West Village and über-trendy Noord in Amsterdam.
Other parts of south-east London once seen as dreary but now enjoying increasing popularity include Sydenham, Crystal Palace, Lewisham and Deptford.
Ludlowthompson chairman, Stephen Ludlow, says: “The ‘hipsterfication’ of areas such as Peckham has seen the south east become London’s trendiest area.
New bars, cinemas and other changes mean that Peckham is now a ‘destination’ for people to live.
Landlords are likely to continue to see their buy-to-let investments outperform other areas of London as more young money moves into the south east.
“Our study shows that south-east London is quickly cementing itself as one of the best places for landlords to invest in across the capital.”
Across London as a whole rents rose by an average of three per cent to £1,770 in the year to the first quarter.
The weakest market was the City where rents stayed static followed by west, north and south-west London, where they went up by an average of just one per cent.