Flats to Rent in Redbridge

Renting in Redbridge

Redbridge is an outer north-east London borough that runs from Wanstead and South Woodford, on the edge of Epping Forest, east through Ilford, Gants Hill and Barkingside to Seven Kings, Goodmayes and Hainault on the Essex border. On the ONS measure in the table above, its average rent is below the London average. Council tax is above it: Band D is £2,294.58 in 2026/27, against a London average of £2,068 (MHCLG).

Redbridge also runs selective licensing across 17 wards: one scheme covering Ilford Town and Valentines since 1 November 2023, and another covering 15 further wards from 8 April 2024 to 7 April 2029. Private landlords in those wards need a council licence, and the council's website lists the wards covered.

The neighbourhoods

Wanstead

Wanstead has a leafy High Street of independent shops, cafés and pubs, Christ Church on George Green, and two parts of Epping Forest on its doorstep: Wanstead Park, the landscaped grounds of the demolished Wanstead House, with ornamental lakes, and Bush Wood. Wanstead and Snaresbrook stations are on the Central line. Homes are mostly Victorian and Edwardian houses, many split into flats, and it is usually the most expensive part of the borough.

South Woodford and Woodford

South Woodford's George Lane has shops, restaurants and a cinema around the Central line station. Woodford and Woodford Green, to the north, back onto Epping Forest, with larger inter-war and Edwardian houses on quieter roads. Woodford and South Woodford stations are on the Central line, and Roding Valley station serves the streets by the river. These are family areas, with fewer flats than Ilford.

Ilford

Ilford is the borough's main town, with the Exchange shopping centre, a busy High Road and Ilford Lane's South Asian shops and restaurants. Valentines Park, with its lakes and Valentines Mansion, is to the north. Ilford station has the Elizabeth line, which since 2022 has run through central London to the West End and beyond. Much of the borough's newer rental stock is in blocks of flats near the station, with Victorian and Edwardian terraces on the side streets.

Gants Hill, Newbury Park and Barkingside

Gants Hill is known for its Central line station, designed by Charles Holden with a long vaulted concourse. Around it, and around Newbury Park and Barkingside to the north-east, the streets are mainly 1930s semis and terraces. Barkingside has a High Street and is home to the children's charity Barnardo's headquarters. Fairlop Waters Country Park, with its lakes, is just to the north. All three are on the Central line's loop through Hainault.

Seven Kings and Goodmayes

Seven Kings and Goodmayes, east of Ilford, are streets of Edwardian and inter-war terraces around small high streets, with Elizabeth line stations at both. Chadwell Heath station, the next stop east, is on the boundary with Barking and Dagenham. These areas are usually where Redbridge's rents are lowest, and they have large South Asian communities.

Hainault and Clayhall

The north of the borough is the most suburban: estates and 1930s houses with larger gardens, near Hainault Forest Country Park on the Essex border. Hainault station, and Grange Hill just over the Essex border, are at the far end of the Central line's loop, so journeys into central London are longer than from Ilford. Most homes here are houses.

Getting around

Redbridge has two main routes into central London. The Elizabeth line from Ilford, Seven Kings and Goodmayes runs through Stratford and Whitechapel to Liverpool Street, the West End and Paddington, with trains to Canary Wharf changing at Whitechapel. The Central line serves the west and north of the borough, from Snaresbrook, South Woodford and Woodford on the Epping branch, and round the Hainault loop through Wanstead, Redbridge, Gants Hill, Newbury Park, Barkingside, Fairlop and Hainault, to Stratford, the City and the West End. The A12 and the North Circular run through the south and west of the borough, and the M11 starts at its edge. Check a specific commute on the TfL Journey Planner before you sign.

Schools

Redbridge has two state grammar schools, Ilford County High School (boys) and Woodford County High School (girls), which admit by entrance test. Other state secondaries include Wanstead High School, Woodbridge High School, Trinity Catholic High School, Beal High School, Seven Kings School and Valentines High School. Bancroft's School in Woodford Green is independent. Grammar, faith and independent schools set their own admissions rules, and popular primaries can have small distance catchments, so read each school's admissions criteria and its latest Ofsted report before choosing a street for a school.

Parks and open space

The west of the borough borders Epping Forest, which the City of London Corporation manages, with Wanstead Park and the woods around Woodford giving direct access to it. Valentines Park is Ilford's main park, and Fairlop Waters and Hainault Forest Country Park are the large open spaces in the north. The River Roding runs down the west side of the borough through a string of parks.

Safety

Crime concentrates in Ilford town centre and around the busiest stations and main roads; residential streets across the borough are generally quieter. For a specific street, the police's crime map at police.uk shows reported crime month by month.

Who it suits

Redbridge suits Elizabeth line commuters who want lower rents near Ilford, Seven Kings or Goodmayes; Central line commuters and families who want houses, schools and the forest around Wanstead and Woodford; and people who want Ilford's large South Asian community close by. It suits people less well if they want inner London nightlife on the doorstep, or live at the northern end of the Central line and need to be in central London every day.

Useful links

Redbridge Council: redbridge.gov.uk (council tax, selective licensing, school admissions)
Epping Forest: cityoflondon.gov.uk/epping-forest
Crime by street: police.uk
Journeys: tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey

The listings above are homes and rooms advertised by their landlords in Redbridge now. Check whether each one is near the Elizabeth line or the Central line, and whether it is in a selective licensing ward.