living in london

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chrisj99

Your defence of London is valiant, but sadly idealistic. I, by the way, will be going to London for university. I love the place, so I'm not trying to put it down at all (you seem to interpret people calling London "expensive" as the same as rubbishing it). But I'm under no illusions that it's going to cost me a lot more money than studying elsewhere.

I don't think you or anyone else is trying to rubbish London. I'm glad you'll be moving to London.

I'm just making the point that whilst it can be very expensive it doesn't have to be. I don't want people to be put off by living here due to hear an exagerated myth that they will be paying ridiculous amounts for everything. I've hear far too many people dismiss the idea of living in London as 'impossibly expensive' because they spent a weekend visiting the tourist traps.

Seen as everyone here will or wants to be living in central London you must have to accept rents are expensive and its the trade off for having everything on your doorstep bar a supermarket! In terms of value you are getting more for your money than any other city in the UK, arguably the world.

You can still come to London and 'make your fortune'. There are more oppurtunities here than anywhere else in the UK, you might have to live in the ropey end of town to start off with but you can end up amoungst the flashiest streets and sights, but not without hard work. One thing you'll notice, if you haven't already, is that London is a city of stark contrasts, super rich and the very poor living almost side by side. There's a place for everyone in London, no one cannot afford it. It might seem a romantic ideal but London is romantic.

And don't think central London is the be all and end all. Its a huge city and everywhere is unique.

Reply 41

kaytee.

screenager2004

Students with an offer for a london university get what is called "london weighting" - which means their maitenence loan is bigger to cope with the higher living costs in London.

You aren't better off than non-london students when the loan is bigger or the jobs pay more = they only pay an equal amount to the increased living costs. Everything is more expensive, travel, food, accomodation - so the extra money is only to compensate for this.

Which uni are you applying to btw?

i was thinking of applying to kings

Reply 42

Frieza

What will the bills be like?
Someone can answerd this? :frown:

Reply 43

minelli

Youngs

Travel is cheap.

I would like you to find any major city where buses are substantially cheaper than 90p a journey or £3 a day.

Supermarkets

This appears to be everyone's big problem. Do your shopping once a week and go to a cheap supermarket. You might have to travel out of central London but it's only once a week, a zone1 to 3 fare is about £2 for a student on Oyster. You'll save that easily rather than spending all your money on ready meals in Tesco Express. You don't even need to go that far.

Eating Out

I've not noticed these different price scales to be honest, I found Pizza Express etc to be exactly the same. There is definately no difference in the Scream Pubs and Wetherspoons etc.

You only find London expensive if you want to.

Living in Newcastle and London i can say that there is a difference in wetherspoon and other chain restaurant prices.....especially in central London. A corona in a Newcastle spoons will cost me 1.49, I've paid up 2 £2.50 in a London spoons.

Reply 44

francescarella

1013

The loans you get really don't make up for the added expense of the accommodation. Right now, I am looking at places which are going to cost me £125 p/w whereas my brothers are living on Oxford and Nottingham in similar places for £90 p/w and £60 p/w respectively.

where are you looking for flats? the flat (well, house) i just got (well, am in the middle of all the paperwork and fees and crap) costs me 150 a week :puppyeyes: