AREAS of London that lack Tube stations are often overlooked by househunters. Earlsfield, in SW18, which is surrounded by much more expensive neighbourhoods, is one such location. It has no Underground station, although there is an overground link with Waterloo, and as a result house prices in the area are not quite as eyewatering as those in nearby Wandsworth, Putney and Clapham.

“You get incredibly good value here,” says Rebecca May, manager of Kinleigh Folkard Hayward in Earlsfield. “The price differential has narrowed slightly as prices have risen over the past couple of years, but relative to the areas around here, Earlsfield is still very good value.” At Clapham Common, one-bedroom flats will set you back at least £275,000; it is still possible to find a one-bed in Earlsfield for £200,000 or a two-bedroom flat from £275,000.

“Earlsfield is just that little bit farther out, so traditionally it has been cheaper,” says Joel Baseley, of Douglas & Gordon. But, he says, it is becoming increasingly fashionable, so prospective buyers need to move quickly. “Over the past five to six years you have seen the whole demographic change. We’ve got more wine bars and more smart shops. The area is now quite well-established as a good alternative to Battersea or Putney.”

Wandsworth Council funded the clean-up of the River Wandle, which flows through – and under – Earlsfield, and which is now one of the cleanest stretches of water in London, according to the Wandle Trust. A great deal more money is due to be spent on the area by developers. The largest development will centre on the former Young’s brewery (see panel, right), in the centre of Wandsworth, which was bought last year by the property developer Minerva for £69 million. Minerva plans to transform the Ram Brewery into a mixed-use development of 700 flats and two residential towers of 29 and 39 storeys, plus 180,000 sq ft of restaurants, shops and a microbrewery. Minerva says it intends to create a residential and retail destination to rival that of Marylebone High Street.

Certainly, the Underground station aside, Earlsfield has what it takes to attract wealthy buyers. It has great transport links to the City: trains run every three minutes at peak time, and you can be in Waterloo in 15 minutes. There are a number of very good schools in the borough – “the kind of schools people move to an area for”, May says. Wandsworth Common and Wimbledon Park are within walking distance, and the Southside shopping centre in Wandsworth Town has a 14-screen cinema and a Virgin Active gym. Moreover, Wandsworth is one of the better regarded borough councils. “Wandsworth is well run,” Baseley says, “and it has the second-lowest council tax in the country.”

Good schools and a low council tax will appeal to families, but it is the prices that will appeal to first-time buyers. Kinleigh Folkard Hayward is currently selling a one-bedroom flat on Garratt Lane, in the heart of Earlsfield, for £219,000; although, at just 358 sq ft, this is not a flat for those who need their space. KFH also has a two-bedroom property on Earlsfield Road for just under £290,000 – this runs to a more generous 456 sq ft.

Young families can buy two and three-bedroom maisonettes with gardens for between £400,000 and £500,000, while three and four-bedroom houses go for £600,000 to £800,000. For those looking for something really spacious, KFH is selling a five double-bedroom home with separate annexe – a total of 2,225 sq ft – for £1.1 million.

Furthermore, while the Ram Brewery development is still in its infancy, there are opportunities for buy-to-let investors. With 60 per cent of local residents aged between 20 and 49, the area has a plentiful supply of tenants. Landlords can achieve decent rents, with one-beds renting for up to £275 a week and two-bedroom flats for £300 to £450.

Young Group is currently selling 26 one, two and three-bedroom apartments in The Retreat, a gated development just off Garratt Lane, for between £272,500 and £565,000. The apartments, all of which have floor-to-ceiling windows, oak floors and access to either a balcony, terrace or garden, will be completed in summer 2008. “This area offers great value,” says Neil Young, chief executive of the Young Group. “But we believe that is set to change. As with Balham, Tooting and Wandsworth, the ripple effect will help to transform Earlsfield into southwest London’s newest ‘cool’ place to live.”

KFH: www.kfh.co.uk 020-8944 6464 Young Group: 0845 3561000 Minerva: 020-7535 1000

What do you think about the scheme for the Ram Brewery site? Have your say at: timesonline.co.uk/property

STORMBREWING

THE £69 million plan to redevelop the Ram Brewery, ending more than 400 years of brewing on the site, has caused bitter controversy. Brewing began there in 1581, during the reign of Elizabeth I, making it the oldest plot in the UK where beer has been made continuously.

The local MP, Martin Linton, is concerned at the proposed height of the two blocks, one of 29 storeys and the other of 39. “It will tower over the entire borough, and my instinctive reaction is that they are too tall,” he says. “If you’re going to have tall buildings anywhere, then a town centre is the best place, but I don’t want to spoil the fine Georgian proportions of Wandsworth High Street with two massive fingers pointing to the sky.”

Young’s bought the site from the Tritton family in 1831. The firm delivered beer by dray until last year, when it merged its brewing operations with Charles Wells in Bedford. The move leaves Fuller’s in Chiswick as the only large-scale London brewer of real ale. ANDREW RILEY

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