Hey everyone,
I'm starting full-time this summer in London at an EB and rent is horrendous for studios.
Wanted to know if other incoming A1s in the city / mayfair are also still searching for a flatmate, if yes please DM me / reply here.
About myself:
I'm German, 21 and finishing my bachelor this year.
Ofc compatibility is important for flatmates, will reveal more about myself in private discussions if anyone's interested
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Based on the most helpful WSO content, flatsharing is a common and practical choice for incoming analysts in London, especially given the high cost of rent. Studios can be prohibitively expensive, often starting at £1.2k+ for subpar options, while flatshares typically range from £850 to £1k per month, depending on the area and number of flatmates.
For areas near Mayfair, consider neighborhoods like Clapham, Pimlico, Westminster, South Bank, Vauxhall, or Soho. These are popular among young professionals and analysts due to their proximity to central offices and vibrant social scenes. Platforms like SpareRoom or networking with other incoming analysts (as you're doing) are great ways to find compatible flatmates.
If you're open to East London, areas like Wapping, Limehouse, Shoreditch, or Canary Wharf offer better value for money and good transport links. The more flatmates you have, the lower your individual costs, so it depends on your preference for shared living dynamics.
Good luck with your search, and enjoy your time in London!
Sources: London Rent / Living Arrangements 2019, 2022 Analyst Housing London, Q&A: London REPE MF Associate, Q&A: London REPE MF Associate
Not A1 but I know an A1 who was in the process
Rightmove / Zoopla worked for them for London rentals.
How / When / Where are questions I can't answer as I wasn't with them but that's my 2c.
And this is why London is finished as a city.
Being forced to share a place when you earn +£70,000 on average is a crime and honestly banks should either increase salaries or offer bigger relocation bonus.
Mate no one is forcing him to flatshare he can drop 2k on a 4k net salary, he just doesn't want to.
I'm not ready to spend half of my paycheck roughly just to live alone. If I have to choose between adjusting my expectations or throwing money out the window Im choosing the former.
But still shit that we even are in the situation imo, if you go to Munich / FFM / Zurich you can easily get a nice flat to yourself with maybe 30% Net Income. I don't think you can argue against the housing market in London being shit
>implying NYC is any different
Interested - PM
Dm'd you
Hi I am in the same position please send me a PM message
Dm'd you
interested - in a similar boat - PM
Hey, lots of young bankers live in east village. Recommend looking for a spot there, I lived there last year. Look for rooms open there or find someone to get an apt with there. Generally most the people i've met there work in finance, and overall a very good place.
Wrong comment
Hey, German here as well - same situation. Feel free to reach out mate!
German as well - interested
One advice - don’t live in Canary Wharf
Why not? My friends and I are looking there now and it seems to have good amenities for cheaper. We all work in the City so commute is a tiny bit longer but not that bad surely?
outdated advice regurgitated on this website. It's not 2019, CW has good amenities and is livelier than it used to be, has cheaper rents.
No one wants to live in a dingy basement flat in St. Johns Wood for 2000/pm
Bump, looking for a place now as a An1, what’s a suitable price range and commute time?
I’m working in the city, hoping for a 15-20min walk or 25minute commute in a nice place where I can have a wfh setup. Is this possible to find for under £1600 pcm excluding bills if I’m living with others?
Is it also better to live in a studio etc since I assume there may be some keyboard mashing in the midnight? Don’t want to annoy the people I’m living with
you'd be lucky if you could get a studio for less than £2k in the city let alone £1.6k lol. But yes if you're willing to share with others then it's definitely possible
Is it worth the extra couple of hundred to spend on a nice apartment during analyst years? I’m thinking what really is the point is splashing cash on a place when I’m hardly going to be home rather than to sleep in
I mean, ideally if you're paying 1.6k, you're not living in a place where the walls are thin enough to hear your typing through....
Don’t most modern builds nowadays have much thinner walls? But I’m also worried that if I pay low for an older building it’ll just be some withered down place.
I would much rather live in something modern but I doubt it’s possible at such a price range.
What would be a sensible price range for AN1? Would spending £2000 including bills + council tax be silly if I live a walking distance away?
It sounds like you don't really understand London housing stock which is fair, because you're German.
London housing stock is in general, fairly old (doesn't mean bad, it's just been standing for a while - might be completely renovated inside). Renting a new build, no matter how much you're paying, is rare.
The vast majority of places are not expensive because they're new builds. They're expensive because of area, quality of build, and/or proximity to favourable public transport (like a well connected tube station).
Many such places are not new builds. They're just renovated, old (not super old but definitely not new) housing stock.
I have no idea whether new builds have thinner walls because tbh I've never lived in anything younger than a decade old. I've barely even been in buildings this young when visiting friends. I can name maybe 2 people I know who live in housing stock 10 years old.
If you're scared about older stock because some people on here come talking about horror stories of really poor quality or whatever - this only starts to become a problem when you try and rent in the most desirable places (like Mayfair, Marylebone, Angel etc) in London without the budget to back it up. I've personally never experience any of it living in central London with a budget lower than the one you're talking about (and sharing).
So I really wouldn't worry about how old a building is.
I'm a 2nd year associate. I share. I live in Zone 1. I've never paid up to £2k rent and bills and, really, I wouldn't want to. But I have high savings aspirations.
In my analyst years I paid maybe like £1.2k housing + bills but I did not live centrally and this was 4-5 years ago. Probably need like 50% premium on that to live centrally now.
Personally I think you should highly consider not living walking distance. It's overrated. You'll need good access to public transport for the weekends anyway (assuming you have any). And many places within walking distance of city are just significantly overpriced for what you get - i.e. very hard to find a place that has enough room to fit a desk so you can WFH while maintaining a reasonable budget, even if sharing.
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