What it's like to live in Edgware

Housing in Barnet leans heavily towards owner-occupation and private renting. Across the borough, 52.7% of homes are owned and 32.7% privately rented, while just 13.5% are socially rented, split evenly between council and housing association. That is below the England figure of 17.1%, so social homes here are in demand and swaps are a sensible route in.

Average weekly social rents in Barnet for 2024/25 were about £120 for a one bed, £139 for two and £157 for three. Your own rent will depend on your landlord and the property.

The largest social landlord is the London Borough of Barnet with 9,115 homes, followed by Notting Hill Genesis at 2,854, Peabody Trust at 1,718, Metropolitan Housing Trust at 1,001 and London & Quadrant at 791. Barnet's council housing register held 3,485 households at the end of March 2025, and 925 social homes were let through the council in 2024-25. The borough's age profile is a touch younger than average, with 30.6% aged 25 to 44.

Families have plenty of choice nearby. Primary options within a mile and a half include Edgware Jewish Girls - Beis Chinuch and Beit Shvidler Primary School right in the centre, Holland House School and Tashbar of Edgware a short walk out, and Deansbrook Junior School about half a mile away. Several reflect the area's Jewish community, so it is worth looking at each one's intake and admissions before you commit to a swap.

For older children there is Menorah Grammar School under a mile off, London Academy and North London Collegiate School close by, with Canons High School and Mill Hill County High School both around 1.4 miles. That is a wide spread of types within a manageable journey.

Outside school, Edgware Library is in the middle of town and there are five parks within a mile and a half, including Chandos Recreation Ground and Watling Park, for playing out and weekend kickabouts. Edgware Community Hospital and a good run of pharmacies make the everyday health side easier. Barnet's population skews slightly younger than England as a whole, with 20.4% under 16.

Edgware station is about a quarter of a mile from the centre and is the northern terminus of the Northern line, so you normally get a seat heading into town. Burnt Oak is a mile away on the same line, Canons Park and Stanmore about a mile on the Jubilee line, and Mill Hill Broadway, just over a mile off, gives you a mainline train option as well.

Buses are a real strength. Edgware Bus Station sits beside the Tube station, which makes changing between the two easy and gives you routes across north London and out into the suburbs. If you do not drive, this is the kind of place where you can manage perfectly well.

For drivers, the A5 runs straight through Edgware, north towards the motorway network and south into London. Expect slow traffic at peak times on the main roads.

On foot, the centre is compact. Shops, the library, pharmacies, the bus station and the Tube are all within a few minutes of each other, and the nearer parks are well under a mile. Some outer streets mean a longer walk to the shops.

Green space is the easy win here. Stonegrove Park is the closest at under half a mile, with Stoneyfields Park, Edgwarebury Park, Chandos Recreation Ground and Watling Park all within a mile or so. Between them you get space for dog walks, playgrounds and room to run about without needing a car.

For exercise indoors, Xcelerate Gym is the nearest, with F45, Anytime Fitness and a personal training studio within walking or short bus distance.

Shopping and eating centre on the town. The Broadwalk Shopping Centre covers the chains, while the international and kosher food shops are good for picking up something different. Pub life is low-key rather than lively: The Three Wishes and the Railway Tavern are the handiest, with the Bridge Tavern and Upper Lounge Bar a bit further out. Edgware Library is there for free indoor time, and community venues like SEED, Lubavitch of Edgware and Edgware Friends Meeting House run their own activities. For bigger nights out, the Northern line takes you into central London directly.

Figures for the wider Barnet council area show a reasonably strong jobs picture. Around 60.2% of adults are in work, a little above the England average of 57.4%. Unemployment sits at 4.4%, slightly higher than the 3.5% England figure, and benefit claimants among 16 to 64 year olds were about 5% in August 2026 against 4% nationally.

In practice, many people living in Edgware work elsewhere. The Northern line gives a direct run into the West End and the City, the Jubilee line from Stanmore and Canons Park opens up another set of destinations, and Mill Hill Broadway adds mainline options. That matters if your work is shift-based or spread across London.

Locally, the town centre shops, the shopping centre, schools and Edgware Community Hospital are all employers in their own right, and the A5 puts commercial estates along the corridor within reach. Barnet is a large borough of nearly 390,000 people, so job opportunities are not concentrated in one spot.