A Guide to Living in Croydon

There are two great reasons to live in Croydon, these go hand in hand to make it a compelling choice; its relatively cheap property prices and its excellent transport links into Central London. On top of that, numerous initiatives are transforming Croydon and helping make its once dowdy image a thing of the past. Read on to discover developments that are the best places to live in Croydon. In addition, read reviews from residents who own or rent in Croydon.

The town is one of the first six Creative Enterprise Zones (CEZs) announced by the Mayor of London in 2018. Which has brought artists and creatives to the CR0 area to move into new studio spaces that have been opened here. Local leaders hope the borough’s practical support and investment in the arts will see it established as a music city. One of the most exciting commercial developments starting soon is the replacement of the Whitgift Centre – itself once the largest covered shopping venue in the UK – and the neighbouring Centrale mall with Westfield Croydon.

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Best places to live in Croydon

HomeViews Top Rated Development ranking takes into account the Star Rating and HomeViews Transparency Rating of every development in the area

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Where is Croydon?

The CR0 postcode area is less than 10 miles south of Central London, well inside the M25. Croydon sits half way along the major rail and road corridor between London and the south coast.

Development in Croydon

Croydon’s commercial and leisure developments have been matched in recent years by the creation of a range of residential schemes to suit all pockets.

Among the most impressive of these is Berkeley Homes‘ typically high-end Saffron Square tower. Its 43-storeys dominate the Croydon skyline and provide incredible views for miles around. From both the windows and the landscaped roof gardens.

The apartments feature high-end, contemporary designs looks such as glass staircases, and full-height windows flooding rooms with light. Residents are also well-served by the 24-hour concierge service. The building is just 12 minutes’ walk from East Croydon railway station. This development is rated as one of the best places to live in Croydon

“Great facilities – concierge, gym and roof terrace… Out of hours contact provided for building issues – heating, leaks etc.” – verified resident at Saffron Square who is renting in croydon

For those on a tighter budget, Green Dragon House is a more affordable option for first-timers. By providing communal spaces including a shared lounge with a snooker table and cinema corner, and also a roof terrace, these ‘micro flats’ are designed to appeal to young first-timers who also appreciate opportunities to socialise with their neighbours. Only launched in 2017, Inspired Homes has created a building set up for today’s lifestyle, with hyperoptic broadband and lobby boxes to accept online shopping deliveries.

“This is a great building to live in. We are a couple living in a one-bedroom flat and while it is small there is two great common areas. A common room with sofas and tables and a pool table and a rooftop terrace. The building is very secure.” – verified resident at Green Dragon House

Even more developments…

The flats in Fairview New Homes’ City House also benefit from ultrafast ‘Fibre-to-the-Building’ broadband but the technological innovations in this repurposed office-to-commercial space don’t end there. Wind turbines on the roof of the block provide electricity to the communal areas, helping to keep bills down and reduce residents’ carbon footprint. City House is another central development, about 10 minutes’ walk from East Croydon station.

“New building and the facilities are of good quality. The security is good because they always do the walk around and you can call them 24h if you have any issues. It is safe overall. Maintenance is good and there are no delays in fixing things.” – Tolu, verified resident at City House who rents in Croydon

“Security of the building is great with the cctv. I feel very safe living here. This was my first complaint when I moved in; there was no hot water. Only the shower, other faucets are good. The community is good and people are good.” – Mehvish S, verified resident at City House

Another Fairview New Homes development that comes highly recommended is Queens Gate, a listed conversion with apartments that range from one to four bedrooms.

“This is a nice place for kids. There is a playground and lots of grassy areas.” – Grassy, verified resident at Queens Gate

“Very happy with the price and the community is like a family and we get along. The community hall does activities for the mums and children. The facilities are great and it’s a great value for money. Maintenance is great.” – Hedwig, verified resident at Queens Gate

Trainline with new flats in the background

Transport

Croydon has three railway stations – East Croydon, South Croydon and West Croydon. The first two of these are on the same line. East Croydon is a major hub with frequent, fast trains to London Bridge (just 13 minutes away) and St Pancras (30 minutes) as well as stopping services to Victoria (16 minutes). Those heading south can get to Brighton in 35 minutes for work or for an easy day. Or even afternoon – out at the beach. And if you’re heading further afield, services to Gatwick Airport leave every eight minutes and take only 16 minutes to get there. There’s also the fast London Overground connection to Canada Water from West Croydon.

Getting around Croydon is easy, too, thanks to the three-line Tramlink network which even stops at Ikea. Further council plans to make the town greener include an electric bicycles hire scheme. Croydon road traffic can be congested and parking is in short supply; but drivers don’t have far to go to reach major roads such as the A23.

You can find out more about living in the Croydon by reading reviews from residents. Click on the developments below to find out more about residents’ experiences and discover the best places to live and rent in Croydon. Moreover, If there’s a Croydon property that you can’t see on HomeViews, you can add a new listing and leave your review here

Featured developments in Croydon

Reviews in Croydon

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Work, rest and play in the heart of Croydon

Verified Resident

Review Date May 2022

Croydon is a vibrant area with shops, restaurants, green spaces and bars right on your doorstep, and it’s a perfect location for commuting to Victoria or London Bridge. Leon House is in the restaurant quarter of Croydon where you will find every type of cuisine you can think of, as well as upmarket cocktail bars and restaurants. Things can get a bit rowdy at the weekends but unless you’re on the lower floors it’s not particularly noisy. The only problem with the area is there are opportunists tailgating people into the building and car park, so despite the assumed security of the building, this is enabling them easy access.

Please review your development:

Leon House is beautiful and it feels like living in a hotel. The reception area is plush and well kept and enables hot desking as well as just chilling out. The roof garden is spacious and relaxing. There is also a meeting room you can book so the building is very much a work, rest and play development. The concierges are always really helpful and give the building a personal touch, and it’s really convenient to have parcels delivered downstairs so you don’t have to worry about being in. The one disappointment in the development is the carpets in the communal corridots. They are a pale grey which was a poor choice, and they are extremely damaged due to continuous building works going on, with lots of ladder marks. Unfortunately some residents / guests have also vomited in communal areas, including at the roof garden entance, and these stains will never come off. What was not acceptable was an extremely steep charge for carpet cleaning which was carried out with sub-standard machinery and made absolutely no difference. The carpets need to be replaced with darker hard’-wearing material and builders should be told to put sheets down before working in communal areas. The building management and property management has been the most disappointing aspect and it can take weeks to receive a response, or no response at all.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

Unfortunately I moved from my previous location because of anti-social neighbours. Even in a new build in expensive houses with a more affluent demographic, some neighbours show no regard for others and expect people to clean up after them. I also wish I had known that the Westfield development would be shelved, as it is worrying to see the high street going downhill.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

I have had very little response and it feels like they treat the residents as entitled and an inconvenience. I do not even really know who I am supposed to contact as there are so many parties involved.

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An Insight into Leon House

Verified Resident

Review Date May 2022

Living in our street is not the best thing. The neighbours are problematic. They do what they complain about. It is not safe. Parking space is not available unless you pay for it. Bins are generally full. Traffic noise and the noise coming from the people outside can be unbearable.

Please review your development:

I wish the developers had given as much importance to the quality of the products they used in the flat as the design. In the end, you don’t know until you start living in the building. Most things are of bad quality. Even the ceiling is cracked. Property managers are there for ‘help’ if they want to.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

Definitely the quality of the materials used while building these flat. They’re abysmal.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

Whatever raised as an issue by us is not an issue for them. We stopped raising issues at some point.

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Lovely really

Review Date May 2022

Bad: loud. So so so loud. We can hear the cars, the people chatting on the streets, the fights, the 300 ambulances. It gets a bit better when the windows are completely shut but not much better at night. No parking available from the end of 2022 and no other suggestions. Not many recycling bins.
Good: really beautiful, staff is the most lovely and helpful at all times, lift always available and quite clean.

Please review your development:

Beautiful lovely place, the roof is nice but there’s literally no personality which is a shame since they could get locals to do some wall art upstairs. It’s a nice place to live tho. The Coworking space is a nice initiative but there are no standing desks and no signs to avoid people being extremely loud and shouting in calls (which it always happens).

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

That they would cancel parking completely and we wouldn’t have options. Price of Council tax.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

We didn’t have electricity until the day of the moving but they managed to work it all out right before we got the keys and gave us a voucher to apologise

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A good property in a good location.

Verified Resident

Review Date May 2022

Easy access to shops, restaurants and open spaces. Transport link is good too! This property is in the high street so a bit noisy.

Please review your development:

I would say overall it’s a good property in a good location. Property management could have given a bit more emphasis on the details like proper bin management as they put bins outside and during summer smell can be felt. Maintaining the windows is another point. They should clean it every year. Parking should be allowed free of charge for the home owners. They already charge huge service fee a year so parking should be included in that.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

Read the contract carefully as there are small things like 4 percent raise in rent every year which could be unaffordable.

How has the building management responded to any problems or issues you have raised:

This is a issue as property managers who is managed by Optivo are awful. They never answers to your queries and are very rude. They should remove Optivo as their service provider as seek alternative.

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