Sydenham

Local knowledge is particulary important in Sydenham where the houses and flats are very varied in price and character and where the market is split between sale and rental.

Less than 200 years ago Sydenham was a sleepy hamlet in the Kent countryside. The building of the railway and Crystal Palace transformed Sydenham into a fashionable Victorian town for Londoners to visit.

Inevitably both grew and merged to now make Sydenham an integral multi-ethnic part of Southeast London .

The FA Cup was played here, Colour TV was invented here, the first pneumatic railway ran through Sydenham and many famous & notorious people have made it their home.

All of that has made Sydenham what it is today with its copious pubs and restaurants and its vast array of Nursery, Primary and Secondary schools offering you the choice of both free and fee paying.

Without a doubt the most important thing Sydenham has to offer are its amazing transport links for wherever you need to go. Whether it be by Train (Sydenham Mainline Station 15 mins form to London Bridge , Lower Sydenham Station 19 mins to London Bridge and Sydenham Hill Station 13 mins to London Victoria ). You also have an excellent London Bus Service with no fewer than 9 different routes available to you.

Finally but arguably the most important addition to Sydenhams transport system is the proposed extension of the East London Line into Sydenham due to be in place by 2010, this will bring the Tube to Sydenham and that will really put Sydenham on the London Transport map as well as having a dramatic effect on prices in the local area.

With all of this and more to offer it's plain to see why Sydenham is fast becoming the most popular area in Southeast London

Penge and Anerley

Both Penge and Anerley flourished as suburbs in the days when Crystal Palace was one of the wonders of London , and today still retain a large degree of their Victorian housing.

Penge braces the junction between the busy Croydon and Beckenham Roads with its high street - a bustling mixture of independent shops, convenience stores and larger supermarkets. The area is well served by train stations with Penge East, Penge West and Kent House all providing regular services into London, in addition to the new Tramlink terminal at Beckenham Road. Housing is mainly Victorian with terraces and semis of varying sizes, mixed with blocks of more modern flats and apartments dating from the 1960's onwards. The largest Victorian semis can be found in the unmade roads off Beckenham Road heading south to Clock House.

Anerley, to the west of Penge, fringes the junction of the main Croydon and Anerley Roads, both of which are lined with small parades of convenience shops and fast food outlets. Neat roads of Victorian semis can be found to the south of the Croydon Road whilst large Victorian villas, now converted into flats, dominate the area as you travel up the hill towards Crystal Palace.

Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace sits on the borders of Croydon and Bromley boroughs and has become one of South London 's most popular housing areas.

With a wide range of properties from Georgian and Victorian through to modern developments Crystal palace offers something for everyone. Whether you are looking for an impressive detached house, a cosy terrace, a period conversion or a purpose built flat there is an enormous variety to choose from. Popular areas include Gipsy Hill to the north (which lead in to Dulwich), Harold Road to the west, Beulah Hill to the South and the conservation area of Fox Hill to the east. Wherever you are you can be sure that you are just around the corner from some of the best views of central London .

The central area of Crystal Palace is the Triangle which has an abundance or restaurants and bars along Westow Hill and Westow Street . Here you can take your pick from Indian, Chinese, Italian, Portuguese, French, Greek, Mexican, Thai, English and more.

Catford

Catford was named after a ford across the river Ravensbourne, where there were wild cats and until the 18th century, was a small village surrounded by fields.

The area started changing with the coming of the mid Kent railway and building of Catford Bridge station in 1857.

Catford had evolved by the beginning of the 19th century to become a London suburb, which is how it remains today.

The first Lewisham Town Hall was built in Catford in 1875 and enlarged in 1901. The Town Hall was extended in 1932 when the Broadway Theatre was added. In 1968 the Civic suite replaced the old Town Hall with Laurence House, built in 1992.

The Broadway Theatre is a well known venue that host's a variety of shows and nationally known entertainers, groups and singers. Vibrant, varied and rich in history, Lewisham's boundaries stretch from the River Thames in the north, through inner city landscapes to leafy southern suburbs.

Within the Borough of Lewisham, there are lively centres of culture, entertainment and shopping adjacent to quiet, tree-lined residential streets; vast open parkland and being a popular and convenient commuter area.

The improved transport links of the past several years means Lewisham is 20 minutes from Canary Wharf by DLR, 15 minutes from the City by BR and ½ hour from the West End via the Jubilee Line.

The A2, A20 and A21 provide links to the Channel Tunnel and beyond.

Attractions in the Lewisham and Bromley Boroughs

Parkland

There are more than 40 parks and many other open spaces covering in excess of 1150 acres in the Lewisham area. Amongst the most notable are Blackheath, an area of open high ground between Lewisham and Greenwich popular with kite flyers and home to the Blackheath donkeys, Greenwich Royal park with its formal gardens, tennis courts, panoramic views and home to the Royal Observatory and Maritime Museum and The Horniman Museum in Forest Hill which has 16 acres of formal gardens, amazing views and an animal enclosure!

The area includes the famous 200 acre Crystal Palace park. The park itself is home to the national sports centre with a huge range of activities for all. Days in the park can be spent visiting the farm, the dinosaur park or relaxing with a picnic in the Crystal Palace Park Bowl which hosts several open air music festivals over the summer months.

Eating and Drinking

The diversity of Lewisham and Bromley Boroughs stretches to its restaurants, bars and cafes with Indian, Carribean, Spanish, Malaysian, Turkish, Chinese, Italian, Greek, and English eateries to name a few. With over 100 pubs and bars from children friendly pubs especially good for a traditional Sunday lunch to more cosmopolitan wine bars, there is somewhere for everyone.

The central area of Crystal Palace is the Triangle which has an abundance or restaurants and bars along Westow Hill and Westow Street . Here you can take your pick from Indian, Chinese, Italian, Portuguese, French, Greek, Mexican, Thai, English and more.

Entertainment

Whatever you're looking for you are bound to find something you'll enjoy at one of Lewisham's and Bromley's many entertainment venues. Contemporary plays, musicals, fringe theatre, comedy and children's shows are just a hint of what you can expect to see in Lewisham's and Bromley's theatres. The Brockley Jack in Brockley is one of the most popular small scale theatres in London . Blackheath Concert Halls are considered South East London's premier music venues with performances of classical, rock, pop, folk, blues and jazz.