The highwayman's trail
Metro, 28th April 2011Starting at the dynamic sounding Tally Ho Corner, North Finchley stretches northwards along the A1000 towards Totteridge and Whetstone. It forms a trio of neighbourhoods including East Finchley and Finchley Central, falling within the N12 postcode. It also has the biggest variety of properties, appealing to all types of buyer, and you get a bit more for your money as it’s slightly further from the centre of London.
Originally called North End, there were few houses here until sprawling Finchley Common was enclosed in 1816. At its peak, Finchley Common covered more than 1,240 acres and was an infamous haunt for highwaymen, who would attack travellers as they ventured along the Great North Road at night.
North Finchley began to develop and, in the late 1820’s, Finchley Road was built, connecting Marylebone to the Great North Road at Tally Ho Corner. This took its name from the Tally Ho Coach Company, which kept 16 horses nearby in the 1920s and 1930s. The horses have long since been replaced by buses and today the site has a bus station and the artsdepot venue, with a development of luxury flats above it.
An extensive programme of house building took place in the mid-19th century and many of the properties still stand today. In 1872, Torrington Park station was opened, renamed Woodside Park in 1882. It retains much of its original Victorian architecture and is in Zone 4 on the Northern line, with Oxford Circus and Bank around half an hour away. A Zones 1-4 annual Travelcard costs £1,576.
Unlike some Tube stations, Woodside Park is in the middle of a residential area, which means that it’s within walking distance for many residents. But for those who prefer to drive, finding somewhere to park isn’t too difficult as car parks in North Finchley are abundant. According to estate agent Jeremy Leaf, of Jeremy Leaf and Co, ample parking is only one of the area’s long list of attractive features. ‘The schools are very good with strictly enforced catchment areas, so homes within them are popular,’ he says. ‘These include Woodridge Junior and Moss Hall Junior School and Finchley Catholic, a secondary school for boys. There are also lots of open spaces, including Friary Park and Dollis Brook. North Finchley is on the Dollis Valley Greenwalk, a scenic ten-mile riverside walk. It has a low crime rate and good shopping with lots of multiples – quite unusual for north London.’
Most of the shops line the high road and include three uspermarkets and branches of WHSmith, Waterstones, Boots, Superdrug and Tiger, which sells reasonably priced houseware, toys and gifts. And with no less than four car parks close to the high road, and most residential streets leading off it, you wont have to carry your purchases far.
‘Development followed the expansion of the Northern line and there’ s a mix of Victorian and Edwardian housing and homes built between the wars and more recently,’ says Jeremy Leaf. ‘There’s a good range of property to suit all budgets and lifestyles. A one-bedroom conversion will cost between £170,000 and £220,000, a two-bedroom flat from £220,000 to £300,000, and a three-bedroom house anything from £350,000 to £550,000.
Among the most desirable roads are intriguingly named Singleton Scarp and Folkington Corner, near Woodside Park, and Friern Watch Avenue, close to Friary Park, all with spacious four and five-bedroom detached and semi-detached houses.
Some older houses have been converted into flats but there are quite a few purpose-built blocks, mainly in the Woodside Park area. Wheston Lodge, in Holden Avenue, is a new development by the Thornsett Group in the former grounds of Marian House, a missionary church. It consist of 25 one, two and three-bedroom apartments which will soon go on sale from £275,000 through Jeremy Leaf & Co. And in nearby Holden Road, where comedian Spike Milligan once lived, a small scheme of eight flats will be completed later this year.
A great deal of investment is currently taking place in North Finchley and property prices have outperformed other parts of the borough. Yields are good for landlords, with one-bedroom flats – of which there is a shortage – renting for £180 to £200 per week, and two-beds being snapped up for £250 to £300.
When it comes to downtime, the area has lots of pubs, a few coffee shops – mainly chains – and a smattering of restaurants. The Safari Club is recommended for delicious Indian food and Chix Chox is a friendly, family-run Italian which provides huge portions at reasonable prices and has become something of a local institution. It’s relaxed, unpretentious and there’s something for everyone – just like North Finchley itself.