London’s housing market has earned a certain notoriety over the years. People are well aware of the fact that property prices in the capital far outstretch those paid elsewhere in the country, with people paying a premium if they want to live in London.

The market has spawned numerous horror stories, with people paying big money to rent tiny rooms that are barely big enough to squeeze a bed into.

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The Government has even tried to make allowances this by offering extra support to those looking to get on the housing ladder in the capital. It has introduced the London Help to Buy scheme, for example, which sees the Government offer a 40 per cent equity loan to help people purchase a property. Elsewhere in the country this is capped at 20 per cent.

Yet all is not lost. Yes, London is expensive and you cannot hide from that. But there are places within Greater London that offer better value – and have houses on the market well below the £500,000-plus average paid in the capital.

By travelling a little further out you can also stumble upon parts of the capital where there is more land available and, therefore, a greater chance of benefitting from a new build development.

Land Registry figures released earlier this year show where the most affordable parts of the capital are.

Bexley

Top of the list is Bexley, where the average house price is about £320,000. This is popular among young families who cannot afford more central locations and is on the south-eastern tip of Greater London. It’s well connected to the rest of the south east of the country, being close to Dartford and the popular Bluewater Shopping Centre.

Barking & Dagenham

Not far behind Bexley is Barking and Dagenham which, along with nearby Newham, make for an affordable place to purchase a property in East London. Now is a good time to buy too, with the area set to enjoy growth thanks to the Mayor approving the Barking Riverside project. This plan, featuring 10,000 homes, wildlife reserves and marina is the largest regeneration site in London.

Croydon

Barking Riverside might be the biggest project of its kind, but it’s far from the only part of London that is set to benefit from investment. Croydon is set to undergo a major transformation in the next few years, with billions of pounds’ worth of work to boost housing and leisure in the South London borough. For now, homes here are more than £150,000 below the London average (£530,000).

Enfield

To the north of London sits Enfield, another borough in which property prices sit below the London average. This has good connections to the north of the country, being close to the M25, as well as Central London on the Piccadilly Line. Not that you have to venture too far, though, with plenty of shops and attractions within the borough including a nearby Ikea, which will come in handy for kitting out your home on a budget.

Prices are, as with many of the more affordable areas, rising fast though.

For each of the above four areas, buyers will be able to find properties on the market that are well below the average for London as a whole. With assistance – from schemes such as Help to Buy – and some smart saving, choosing areas such as these is the key to buying a property on a budget in London.