Living in St Albans – Hertfordshire’s Best Commuter Town

Are you thinking of living in St Albans?

This Hertfordshire town has seen a surge in popularity in recent years.

Living in St Albans is an outstanding choice for commuters.

The town has excellent commuter links to London.

The region also offers the luxury of more reasonably priced homes than many locations within the capital.

Moving to a new area is never an easy challenge.

This task is made harder when you do not know much about an area.

Before you start your move, it is important to gather as much information about an area as you can.

If you are considering living in Brentwood, this is the article for you!

We hope to produce all the best tips for those looking to move to the Hertfordshire area.

Covering everything from house prices to the best schools in the for those living in St Albans area.

We aim to provide you with a comprehensive home moving guide to the area.

If you are considering living in St Albans, here is our ultimate moving guide to life in in the thriving commuter town.

Price of Buying a Property

The historical heritage of St Albans lives on today in much of the architecture around the town, which adds to the array of property styles house hunters and prospective renters have to choose from.

Demand outweighs supply as the exodus from the capital continues to make commutable towns and villages such as St Albas ever more popular.

St Albans property prices may sound high to some at an average of £582,969 but, compared to London’s exorbitant values it is well worth the price and plenty of city professionals are willing to bear the cost.

The heart of the city is a designated conservation area and this where you will find several homes from the Georgian era alongside small, terraced cottages with plenty of curb appeal.

Victorian terraces are particularly abundant in St Albans and make perfect homes for both investors and young first-time buyers.

These can also be found dotted around the central neighbourhoods.

There are several areas which are in particular demand.

St Stephens lies close to some lovely green areas and conveniently close to the M1 ideal for connectivity.

You can expect to pay £500,00 for a two-bedroom contemporary apartment in this location.

For cheaper post-war two-to-four-bedroom family homes try nearby Cottonmill where prices start from £285,000.

New developments in St Albans are always appearing to accommodate the town’s growing popularity as a commuter town.

Further details can be viewed below:

Taylor Wimpy – Oaklands Grange

Charles Church – Kingsbury Gardens

McCarthy & Stone – Eleanor House Retirement Properties

Price of Renting a Property

As with purchasing a home, St Albans offers an array of potential homes for lease, both long and short terms are available in an assortment of style and size.

When it comes to cost, you can save as much as 33% when compared to what you would have to pay to live in London.

Rental prices in St Albans offer good value for anyone looking to relocate to the town temporarily or wanting to set-up their first home.

A good example of this can be found in one-bedroom flats that average just over £725pcm, which is significantly cheaper than renting a similar property in London (which averages at around £1,500 pcm).

Average cost for renting a two-bedroom property in St Albans, ranges between just over £946 pcm and £1,950pcm.

For larger properties you should expect to pay anywhere up to £2,000 pcm for a four-bedroom house and up to £2,900 pcm for a five-bedroom property.

Popular areas for tenants tend to be closer to the towns two railway stations, perfect for commuting.

St Albans City station is around half a mile to the east of the centre, and St Albans Abbey station is located just under a mile west. These areas are constantly in demand.

Schools

Among many of the reasons so many have chosen to start living in St Albans that the City is the areas renowned outstanding educational system.

Many local schools, both private and state, excel in their Ofsted reports.

With so many great schools to choose from getting your child into one of these schools is essentially an easy process.

That said, one of the most highly sought-after primaries is Maple School, a mainstream, state funded junior school.

It is in such high demand many eager parents attempt to secure a place here from all over the county, so competition is fierce.

Other well rated schools include St Alban & St Stephen Roman Catholic Infant school, Oakwood Primary, and Cunningham Infant School all “outstanding” according to Ofsted.

In terms of secondary schools, again, these are performing well with the majority being “good” or above.

Beaumont and Sandringham lead the way in St Albans and Loreto College, a Roman Catholic high school has been inspected and found to be “outstanding”.

With regard to students aged 16-18yrs, a number of students choose to attend the campus of Oaklands College, a further education college, located in Smallford in St Albans.

The campus is home to award winning facilities set within acres of wide-open countryside.

Its Discovery Centre and Sports Zone secured recognition from the Royal Institute of British Architects.

As well as offering a good assortment of FE courses, Oaklands also provides a selection of higher education courses as well.

Transport Links

No matter how you choose to travel, this is one area where St Albans truly outshines many other towns and cities in the region.

The city is incredibly well connected and is the top reason why so many people view it as prime commuter territory.

With two main trains stations, getting into London is a sinch.

Services into St Pancras are frequent at around a dozen or so an hour at peak times, a short journey of 19 minutes.

Luton and Bedford are also very easily accessible when living in St Albans.

Getting around by car, certainly anywhere near London has its difficulties.

On a clear run via the M25, 10 minutes from St Albans, you can get to the capital within an hour.

By air, the closest airport is Luton 11 miles away.

Living in St Albans mean you can get to the airport in around 45 minutes by car or 30 minutes by the Luton airport shuttle service.

Heathrow is just a little further away 27 miles south.

Ready to Start Living in St Albans?

Are you thinking of moving to St Albans?

Whether you want to make the most of the commuter links, make the most of St Albans excellent house prices or enjoy the excellent schools, living in St Albans offers something for all.

Offering a choice of top draw locations and an assortment of different property types, there is surely a home for you!

GoodMove will make your move to St Albans an easy and stress-free process.

We take great joy in ensuring everything runs smoothly and flawlessly, helping you to settle into your new home right away.

As well as our competitively priced removals package, we can also offer extra services such as temporary or long-term storage facilities should you need them.

GoodMove cover all areas of Suffolk, Norfolk and Essex and our friendly estimators can call round at a convenient time for you and strategically plan your move to perfection.

During these unique times, GoodMove are also offering a new video survey service.

Using our new technology, we can gather all the information required to assist with your move, from the comfort of your home!

Video surveys will help you save valuable time and preserve the best safety levels.

To find out more about how we could get your dream move to St Albans or any other location underway do not hesitate to call us on the number listed above.

Alternatively, fill out a quick quote form or click on our live bot in the bottom right and a member of our customer services team will be in touch shortly.