Gardens Vs. Ladder

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Permalink Reply by Hugh on August 31, 2011 at 0:05

Hi Nick & Lizzy. Am I guessing right from your tag that you've already seen the sort of similar conversations on the site?

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Permalink Reply by Germana on August 31, 2011 at 10:15

Hi Nick and Lizzy, we were in a similar situation just one year ago and now live on the Gardens. We looked at houses on both ladder and Gardens and in the end we realised you get much better value in the Gardens - by far. The difference in price is pretty shocking actually given the fact they are so close. The main problem with the Gardens when we were looking is that there were not many houses on sale, and some needed a lot of work (this is probably still the case). 

I think the main reason for the price difference as far as I understand it is that the Ladder is possibly more in demand and has been so for a longer time (there are also so really big houses there), and also perceived as "posher", i.e. more West than East, and basically it's closer to Stroud Green/Crouch End - although it really depends how close you are to the crossing points over the railway, and some parts of the gardens may be as close in terms of walking distance, in reality. (I am not saying these perceptions are a reflection of reality - that's just my understanding of the housing market). 

As for primary schools, the catchment areas for South Harringay and Chestnuts are very small (check discussions on this too) and if you buy on the Gardens and want to have a chance to get into Chestnuts try to be as close as possible to it.

Good luck with the house hunt!

Oh - and we really like living here now! 

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Permalink Reply by GillianM on August 31, 2011 at 10:30

Well we love being on the ladder and have some lovely neighbours but I wouldn't base a decision on ladder v gardens as much as other things - like schools as Germana said, and of course finding the right house for you! Another variable is where on Green Lanes you are - south of the Salisbury (St Ann's Road) is more "bustling" - ie shops and restaurants on both sides of the road - than north of it. One clear thing however is that ladder roads have a lot more traffic than the gardens due to the latter not being a through route. Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by Germana on August 31, 2011 at 11:13

The Gardens also also has a lovely community garden - which you should visit - and a very active residents association... 

The ladder has a recently refurbished playground in Fairland Park. I could go on.

Both options are really good and similar in many ways, basically, so the best option is to chose according to which house you like best (bearing in mind we had to get into several bidding wars because there were not enough houses on the market given the number of families hoping to buy houses here, and it took some time before we were successful - not sure whether the same is happening now in a worse economic climate - so there was a degree of chance too in what we finally managed to buy). 

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Permalink Reply by Inkjetpack on August 31, 2011 at 18:44

I bought on the "wrong" side of Green Lanes (the Gardens side) in N15 as it was approx £40k cheaper for similar houses, I use the same shops, stations, etc and didn't think it was worth the extra for the N8/N4 postcode!

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Permalink Reply by NIck and Lizzy on September 1, 2011 at 13:05

Thanks everyone for the thoughtful responses!

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Permalink Reply by JulieB on September 1, 2011 at 19:09

We live on the other side of St Annes Road from the gardens. Our postcode is N15, the houses here do tend to be a bit smaller, so generally cheaper. But I know lots of families who have had great loft extentions giving them another 2 rooms and en suite. And they've done side return extensions for wonderful kitchens.

I wasn't sure of the area when we moved her 8 years ago, but I love the sense of community here especially if you have children. There are loads of play groups and other children and I rarely go out without bumping into someone I know.

Bear in mind the catchment areas for Chestnuts this year was 0.2 miles, and a similar figure for South Harringey (if these are the schools you were thinking of). Catchment distances do vary each year but have been getting smaller and smaller because both these schools have improved ofsted reports and both are great schools (I'm biased because we go to Chestnuts and I'm co-Chair of the PSA). Also a boom in birth rates starting 4 or 5 yrs ago mean the amount of children needing primary placements has really increased. I don't think anyone on the ladder got into Chestnuts this year, unless they had a sibling already attending, and I know people in some Gardens roads didn't get in either.

Good luck with your search for a home.

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Permalink Reply by John McMullan on September 1, 2011 at 20:01

Although the schools have been improving, the baby boom starting in 2005 is almost entirely to blame for the shrinking catchment zones. Shame nobody saw that one coming...

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Permalink Reply by Old-Age-Emporium(OAE) on September 6, 2011 at 14:19

Doesn't LCSP have a duty to petition Thames Water to include an effective contraceptive in Ladder & Gardens water?  Or has that been devolved to the Food Festival wing of the GLSG ?

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Permalink Reply by Gina O on September 3, 2011 at 0:45

I don't know if the catchments are going to get even smaller or stay about the same for the next few years, but based on my knowledge of someone who was at the very top of the waiting list for Chestnuts you wouldn't get a place there unless you lived right at the very end of Warwick Gardens, Chesterfield Gardens or Cleveland Gardens. Also, I understand that 7 families failed to get their children in despite having siblings there because they applied late. That's unlikely to happen again now that people know just how tight places are so you could end up with a situation where almost all places go to siblings and only a very small handful of people who live practically on the doorstep of the school will get a place. 

 

In all other respects I'd say you get more for your money on the Gardens, but in terms of the schools, on the ladder you at least have a chance of getting in to South Harringay. Also North Harringay is on the up, so I hear and not so difficult to get into (at the moment) if you live on the ladder.

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Permalink Reply by tigha on September 6, 2011 at 12:34

i live very close to school in mattison road-not sure if thats south haringay or north haringay but my neighbours child goes there and loves it-seems like a really good school

 

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Permalink Reply by Old-Age-Emporium(OAE) on September 6, 2011 at 14:22

Karen, watch out for where the sun rises or sets. Then rotate about 90 degrees right or left.

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