Hackney: Best Or Worst Place To Live? One Year On | 4Homes

Date Published:: 06/06/2008

Hackney Flyer. Hackney, One Year On: Best And Worst

In Best & Worst Places To Live 2006, Hackney claimed the bottom spot. Twelve months on, we visited this east London borough to see if our findings made a difference, and whether the area is on the up or still down in the dumps.

By Andrea Dean

Local Viewpoint & Housing

Lucy Wilson, who works in arts publicity, has lived in Hackney for the past three years - and has no intention of moving anywhere else.

She says, 'I bought a flat in a warehouse conversion with my partner and we chose the area because it was cheap and interesting,' she says. 'It's quite edgy with a good mix of nice bars, restaurants and independent shops - unlike in other, more expensive areas where you just find the same stores. The programme made me laugh as I've definitely seen changes for the better since I've been living here. There's a new lido, a farmer's market, and house prices have gone up a lot. I know it doesn't have the best schools but it's a great place for young people and I don't feel any less safe here than in any other part of London.'

Blue front door letterbox. Hackney: One Year On

Housing Matters

Coming bottom of the pile meant that the only way was up for Hackney - and Ben Gammon, sales manager at Stirling Ackroyd estate agency, has seen house prices rise substantially over the past year. He says, 'We deal in properties in the trendy Hoxton and Shoreditch areas, and the market is fantastic.'

He goes on to say, 'I don't think that the programme made any difference at all. I'd say that prices have gone up 15 per cent since this time last year and a one bedroom apartment starts at around £300,000... People love living here because it's close to their work in the City, and there are lots of bars and art galleries.'

Ben's office covers just one part of the borough, but his findings are backed up by figures from Hometrack, which show that average house prices rose by 12.8 per cent in Hackney from £261,900 in June 2006 to £295,400 in June 2007, while prices in London as a whole have risen by 11.6 per cent over the same period.