Hope nobody minds me co-opting this thread, but I'm also considering a move to Forest Hill soon. It's actually a big move for me - all the way from the East Midlands. The area has been recommended to me by several people and from what I can gather it looks very nice. Hopefully I'll get to check it out in person tomorrow evening.

However one thing I was wondering is where's generally regarded as the centre of the area? I'll be commuting into the city so in that respect being closer to Honor Oak station would be slightly more convenient. What would be the down sides of being further North, if any? Would somewhere between Forest Hill and Honor Oak stations perhaps be best? With London being a continuous sprawl it's difficult for country rube like myself to know where good areas end and bad ones start.