With New Malden's wide array of restaurants, shops and activities on offer, as well as close proximity to Wimbledon and Kingston, it isn’t hard to see why people love New Malden.
The opening of New Malden Station in 1846 has accelerated this town’s development over the past 170 years and now we are hearing more and more about the area. So what’s it like living in New Malden?
We speak to our sales manager Steven McGuire to get an insight into the New Malden area.
What makes New Malden so desirable?
Steven: New Malden Station provides direct transport links to Clapham Junction Station in only 14 minutes and London Waterloo in 24 minutes, presenting an attractive setting for people working in central London or the City, who want to get better value for their money. A range of fantastic schools in the area have also captured the interest of families, such as Coombe Hill Junior and Infants Schools, Burlington Junior and Infants Schools, as well as Coombe Girls’ School and Holy Cross Girls’ School, all of which are rated Outstanding by Ofsted.
The most sought-after areas are those that are in the catchment areas of the aforementioned schools, including Coombeside and ‘The Groves of New Malden’ that comprises a number of roads with names that end with ‘Grove’. Thetford Road and Westbury Road are also popular, offering larger family houses and plots of land, so you can essentially get more for your money.
New Malden also has some appeal with the footballers! Some Premier League footballers have chosen to reside close to neighbouring Coombe and the players at Fulham FC actually train in nearby Motspur Park.
What are the properties and property prices like in New Malden?
Steven: The property portfolio in New Malden mainly consists of large family houses, with the majority of properties selling in the last year being terraced properties with an average price of £474,000, while semi-detached houses sold for an average of £599,000 and flats were approximately £276,000. Compared to surrounding areas, you can see the appeal, with some Zone 4 areas now reaching average house prices of above £750,000. This is why the market is now thriving here, with buyers moving to New Malden from more central areas to upsize. Most of the buyers in New Malden are families, but investors are also attracted to the area, as there are plenty of tenants looking for easy access into central London, which provides a good return on a buy-to-let investment.
What is New Malden famous for?
Steven: New Malden has a strong South Korean community, in fact, it is said to have one of the largest expatriate communities of South Koreans in the whole of Europe. This has had a fantastic influence on the amenities in New Malden, prompting a range of Korean restaurants and cafes in the area, such as the Korean restaurant Palace, which received a four star review from Timeout and is set right opposite our office, as well as the Sorabol restaurant next door to us. Elsewhere in the vicinity, there’s The Place, which is also Korean run and provides great coffee and cakes in a friendly environment.
The High Street itself has a fair few national chains. But a lot of the businesses are locally run, including Tudor Williams department store, which first opened in1913 and continues to be a family business. The Fountain Roundabout presents a further point of interest, which is a bit of a landmark in the local area and received its name due to having a fountain that was originally for horses to drink from. There’s also the option of trying out Jurassic Encounter Mini Golf, which consists of 18 holes of pure unadulterated dinosaur golf, where you can play the game surrounded by large moving and roaring dinosaur models. It’s a great day out for the family. My son was three on our first visit and it took him ages to understand that they aren’t real!
Check out our New Malden Area Guide for more information on what’s on offer in this area, or browse through our properties for sale and to rent in New Malden.