After six years of house shares across London, Rachel, a 31-year-old lawyer for the Government, has bought her first home at Pocket’s Forest Road development in Walthamstow, North East London.
Originally from North East England, Rachel relocated to London after university, drawn by the capital’s job prospects, but found herself frequently moving between rental properties with little stability.
“I lived in seven different homes over six years, moving from Kilburn to West Hampstead to Shepherd’s Bush and then further out around Blackheath in South London,” she explains. “I was lucky to always be living with friends but when one person decided to move, it had a knock-on effect on the rest of us.”
Like many first-time buyers, Rachel felt like solo homeownership in London would be out of reach and was planning to change her job earlier than planned in order to achieve it.
“Working in the public sector, I thought I’d have to get a new job to afford a home independently – I didn’t think it was possible to keep my current job and get on the property ladder in London.”
Rachel discovered Pocket – an innovative housing developer designed to support first-time buyers – through a friend who works as a teacher and had purchased a home at their Woodside Park development in Finchley, suggesting Rachel might qualify for a Pocket apartment too. All it took was one viewing and a few weeks later, Rachel was settling in to her first home.
“I hadn’t viewed any other properties because homeownership felt impossible until I’d found a new job,” she explains. “When I looked at Forest Road, I realised a new build property would give me more peace of mind, and the apartment was even more spacious than I expected.”
Rachel was drawn to Walthamstow’s blend of lively pubs and nature, with parks and wetlands on her doorstep at Forest Road. “Having grown up in the countryside near Yorkshire, access to green space in London was really important to me,” she says. The strong transport links ticked another box. “Being so close to the Victoria line is much more convenient than the trains I relied on around Blackheath, and the bike storage at the development has motivated me to start cycling to work.”
For Rachel, the shift from renting to owning a home has been transformational.
“Having complete control over my living situation has made a huge difference to my everyday life and stress levels – I finally feel secure here.”
The community atmosphere at Forest Road also helped Rachel settle in. “I was added to a huge group chat when I moved in and people came to say hello, and the communal roof terrace is a great space for inviting friends over.”
Reflecting on her experience, Rachel believes there is a clear need for more schemes that support first-time buyers and more openness when talking about personal finances.
“One of the biggest challenges is building up a deposit, which would have taken me even longer without Pocket’s contribution,” she says. “I think we can all be reluctant to talk about money, but I wouldn’t have known Pocket was a possibility without asking someone else about their homebuying journey.”
Rachel purchased her one bedroom home at Pocket’s Forest Road development in Walthamstow for £297,000 in August 2026.
To be eligible to purchase a Pocket home, the prospective buyer can’t already own another property, and must live or work in London. All buyers must earn under the Mayor of London’s income threshold for affordable housing (currently £90,000). When the homes are sold on, new purchasers must meet the original criteria including a household income below the Mayor of London’s affordable housing threshold.
Buyers own 100% of their property, which are sold at a 20% discount to the local market.
For more information or to register interest, prospective buyers can visit www.pocketliving.com or call 020 7291 3683.