Is Southall Waterside the most irresistible location in London?
Crossrail is coming to Southall, but if you think the result is limited to faster services across London and to Heathrow you should think again. Crossrail has catalysed regeneration here. ‘Little India’ is being transformed, with some of the most ambitious and exciting developments in London.
The largest of Southall’s regeneration projects, Southall Waterside, will take more than two decades to deliver its planned 3,750 new homes. However, it looks set to deliver its incredible potential to property investors as each phase of the project is completed.
Southall’s Crossrail station is coming
Southall’s Crossrail station will soon be taking shape after a two-year delay. The platforms will be lengthened to take 200-metre-long trains. There will be a new glass and steel structure to welcome passengers. It’s going to be a new focal point in Southall, not least because of the speed with which people will be able to travel in and out of London once Crossrail services start running.
Southall is likely to become a commuter destination. Currently, in Zone 4, the journey to Liverpool Street station is long and complicated. You start at Southall and travel overline to Paddington. Then you walk for a few minutes through Paddington to the underground terminal. You take the eastbound Hammersmith & City line (underground) to Liverpool Street. If you’re lucky and your connections run well, you’ll be at Liverpool Street in 45 to 50 minutes.
Getting to Canary Wharf is even more complicated. You take the train from Southall to Ealing Broadway, where you must get off to change to the underground – the Central line toward Newbury Park. You leave the tube at Bank Station. Now, you must get on the DLR to Canary Wharf. Journey time is around 58 minutes.
Crossrail will transform these journeys:
- For Liverpool Street: at Southall, you take the Crossrail train to Liverpool Street. You arrive in 24 minutes. It’s that easy.
- For Canary Wharf: at Southall, you take the Crossrail train to Canary Wharf. You arrive in 31 minutes. It’s that easy.
Heathrow Airport will be only eight minutes by Crossrail – and, like Canary Wharf and the City, there are thousands of jobs there.
Crossrail – unlocking Southall’s potential
Crossrail is unlocking Southall’s potential to be a location of choice for commuters. It has prompted investment on a massive scale, with nearly half of planning applications within half a mile of the station in the London Borough of Ealing cited Crossrail as the justifying factor.
Ealing Council has responded by delivering on its promise to make brownfield land available for development. It needs to deliver the homes that will be required by a population expected to grow by around 13% by 2036. Southall is an area that it has earmarked to absorb much of this growth.
More than 6,000 new homes are planned here. These include 302 new homes at the West Works, 550 near Southall station, and more than 100 at Greenview Court. However, it is the Southall Waterside development by Berkeley that is the real game-changer.
Welcome to Southall Waterside
The old gasworks site – covering more than 80 acres – is being redeveloped by Berkeley Group. It is a project that will enhance the current brownfield site, providing thousands of homes, retail and leisure facilities.
Known as Southall Waterside, it is being developed in a unique phased approach. As each phase completes, it will become a fully delivered mini-neighbourhood, with little disturbance from the continuing development around it.
The first phase will deliver more than 600 new homes, almost 200 of which will be affordable homes. It is envisaged that the first properties will be completed next year to coincide with the start of Crossrail services to Southall. When the 25-year project is complete, it will provide 3,750 new homes. Enough for around 10,000 new residents.
More than half of the completed development will be laid out to open space. This includes landscaped public parkland, piazza and courtyards, and leisure and plays spaces. A kilometre of the Grand Union Canal will be revitalised, providing a relaxing canal-side walkway.
There will also be a network of cycle paths and walkways. No home on the development will be more than a five-minute cycle ride from a station. The development will connect to Minet Park to the west.
Up to 500,000 square feet of new commercial space will include retail, restaurants and cafés, as well as a new cinema. Community facilities will be provided, as well as a new primary school.
Should you invest in Southall property?
With a new Crossrail station and the fast journey times it will provide into London and out to Heathrow, Southall could take off as a residential location of choice for many. The potential for Southall Waterside to attract a new breed of rental tenants is clear. Young professionals and families will enjoy the convenience of fast transport while living in modern homes in a location near to great retail, restaurants and relaxation.
We would expect house prices here to close the gap to the average London house price. We’ve already seen this happening – the average sold price in Southall has increased by more than 50% since 2014, while London’s average house price has increased by just 14.1% in the same period. But there is still a large differential of more than 10%. Whether investing for capital gain or rental income, or both, Southall Waterside is damn near irresistible. Simply put, it ticks all the boxes.
For more information about off-plan opportunities at Southall Waterside property, contact the team Gladfish at today.
Live with passion
Brett Alegre-Wood
