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London flat rental: the more I research, the more frustrating it becomes

London flat rental: the more I research, the more frustrating it becomes

Old Oct 21st, 2017, 09:04 AM
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London flat rental: the more I research, the more frustrating it becomes

Party of 3 to London for 10 days next September. As the trip planner, I am feeling stressed about accommodations for our guest (DH has no choice but to put up with what I plan)

We need 2 bedroom 2 bath, in a safe neighborhood, near a tube station, hopefully with grocery stores, pubs, etc close by.

Would like to pay $300-350/day but that could be flexible for the right place.

Our last time in London (our first time, too) we rented close the the West Kensington station. Would like to be a little further east this time.

Please look at my choices, comment on the location, etc. And please PLEASE mention any other flats that you have personally used.

https://www.ivylettings.com/london-v...vacation-home/

https://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p1072201

https://www.homeaway.com/vacation-rental/p1623283

https://www.ivylettings.com/london-v...ion-apartment/

As you can see, two flats are offered by Ivy Lettings. I have found both good and not so good reviews. Any comments?
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 09:23 AM
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I used Ivy Lettings for renting 4 apartments this past June for 16 of us (students/parents/teacher-chaperones in the Chelsea area, and they were so great to work with, I just used them again for an apartment in Kensington for just DH and me in June 2018. So while I didn't rent either of the apartments you are looking at, I did have a great relationship with Ivy Lettings (despite a couple financial minor glitches, which were about credit card not going through--some hiccup on their end--and reimbursement of security deposit, not about wrong or unknown charges, and it all worked out perfect in the end).
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 10:26 AM
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Just re the locations:

#1 is in Winchester Street in Pimlico. I really love Pimlico but that street is a bit of a hike to a tube station - depending on which end of the street Pimlico, Victoria and Sloane Sq and Victoria are all about equidistant.

#2 is .5 mile+ to either the South Kens or Gloucester Rd tube station

#3 for some reason I can't get the map to open but scanning the reviews one mentions Earls Court being the nearest station. That would be too far west for me if I wanted to be central.

#4 is in Onslow Square - which is a terrific location.
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 10:29 AM
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I am a bit curious -- except for the Pimlico property, all are pretty far west. Did you look in more central neighborhoods and just not find anything?
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 10:45 AM
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I'm always happy to look at London apartments but where are you seeing reviews on these links? Do you have to sign in to see them?
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 10:47 AM
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Oh, and I meant for the Ivy Lettings. I do see the HomeAway ones.
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 11:01 AM
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I used Ivy Lettings for a rental this past May. They were very easy to deal with. They responded promptly to any questions or changes. Everything was fine with the apt and check in went smoothly. As far as my experience I would rate them as a very good company.
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 11:10 AM
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Do the barred windows and doors on ground level flats bother anyone? Is it a sign that it is in a not so safe neighborhood? Don't know the answer, could be nothing to worry about
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 11:12 AM
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Janisj, I really respect your advise on all things European. I wanted to be near Kensington High Street. As I said, I am overwhelmed doing research. Do you have any specific recommendations?
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 03:15 PM
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There are so many available central London rentals on FlipKey.com for next September. Many in your price range - even 3 bdr 2 ba flats. Take a look. Here's the first one that caught my eye - but there are pages and pages. https://www.flipkey.com/properties/597548/

I really like FlipKey - have used them twice in London, Madrid, and in Prague, as well as in the United States.

FlipKey is run by Trip Advisor, and you will be in touch with the owner of the flat, but all the payments go through FlipKey, as well as the security deposit, which is refunded in a very timely manner. They have a great selection of flats, and many have been reviewed on Trip Advisor.


(In past years we rented with VRBO and HOmeaway, until they added a surcharge for renters. Homeaway and VRBO are the same company.)
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 03:18 PM
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forgot to add - I put in a random 11-night stay in Sept 2018 for that FlipKey listing.
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 06:02 PM
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>>Do the barred windows and doors on ground level flats bother anyone? > I wanted to be near Kensington High Street
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Old Oct 21st, 2017, 10:29 PM
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Barred windows at the front on lower ground floor or ground floor flats is pretty common, in all areas of London.
Haven't looked at all the links but agree that Onslow Square is a great area; upmarket, close to South Kensington Tube, lots of restaurants.
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Old Oct 22nd, 2017, 08:51 AM
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Barred windows/doors on the ground floor of apts/homes is very common even in the safe areas of the city where I live, also. No city has a neighborhood where burglary cannot occur. I personally wouldn't even feel comfortable with a unit opening directly to the street/ground without security measures like that. So it would bother me a lot if they didn't have that.

I didn't have any trouble opening no. 3 map, it is several blocks north of Earls Court tube station about intersection of Marloes Rd and Lexham Gardens. It's about one-third mile from the tube station. I also didn't have any trouble reading reviews on ivy, I suspect you just didn't notice them. They are directly below the map, you don't even have to go to a special section.

Two of those are pretty far west (2, 3) for someone who didn't want to be so far west, although I guess they are just a bit east of West Kensington station, but I'm sure cheryl as seen where they are on a map. I would not want to stay a half mile from a tube station.
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