The vast open spaces (272 hectares) of the one-time timber wharves of Surrey Docks have been lined with 2,000 new homes, which offer good value to singles and couples on the water's edge and even greater value to families who live in the middle of the peninsular.

There are apartment blocks and homes with gardens, linked by pedestrian and cycle routes and conserved areas of natural beauty. A major shopping mall, Surrey Quays, is being doubled in size with big name retailers queuing for sites. There's a new multi-screen cinema and other leisure.

The nicest and most upmarket scheme is Greenland Passage where Danish-built townhouses mix with condos at a prime spot on the River Thames. The street names today echo the former trading destinations in Scandinavia, North America and elsewhere. The vast Docks complex, once filled with whaling ships and timber with vast sheds lining the wharves became the biggest conflagration of World War Two when Hitler's bombers targeted the area.

Now the water is for recreation. South Dock Marina is the largest in London and is always filled with resident and visiting boats of all kinds. There are more well equipped condos in the nearby waterside village of Rotherhithe, where the local pub is licensed to sell postage stamps and has artefacts noting the fact the Pilgrim Father's Mayflower sailed from Its mooring alongside the ancient pub of the same name. The narrow streets of historic Rotherhithe ring warehouses and the 18th century church of St Mary's, one of 12 Listed buildings in the Conservation area.

Benchmarks - Office and retail rents from £5.00 to £20.00 per sq ft.
Apartments to buy £90,000 to £220,000. ïApartments rent £530 to
£2,000 per month. Highest price £350,000 for four-bedroom, three bath
apartment at King & Queen Wharf.
Must Do's - Walk to the top of Stave Hill and gaze across the
Thames to the City. The view is spectacular. Stroll the streets of the Pilgrim
Fathers in riverside Rotherhithe Village and buy a legal US Post Office stamp.
Investment Index - Read our special reports on property on this neighbourhood.