The phrase ‘up-and–coming’ and Pimlico are often coupled – and have been for forty years. To date it has yet to arrive. On paper it looks good – next door to Belgravia and Chelsea (it used to be part of the Grosvenor Estate), close to the City, good transport and Victoria station in its heart. Like Bayswater (also up and coming for the same period) it is a station (Paddington in Bayswater’s case) which is its problem as with it comes cheap tourist hotels and the detritus that accompanies them such as tacky tourist shops and cafes selling limp hamburgers.

There are exceptions to this such as the area that is known as ‘The Grid’, a good descriptive of stucco houses on wide streets, and Warwick and Eccleston Squares both of which are similar to their grander cousins in Belgravia. Yet prices are well below those achieved only half a mile away and the reason becomes apparent when you go inside. For the most part the buildings are slightly narrower than in Belgravia or Chelsea and two foot makes a huge difference particularly with flat conversions where the common parts get mean and the room proportions feel tight. Also the houses are built much closer back-to-back than in Kensington which restricts light and privacy.

Dolphin Square, near the river is huge impersonal block of flats that are popular as pied-a-terres for politicians and between this and the rest of Pimlico is a huge housing estate - the Tachbrook Estate - that sits like a cuckoo rather uneasily in the middle.

The transport is excellent with Victoria and Pimlico Tubes to choose from and the Jubilee line at Westminster not too far away for journeys to Canary Wharf.

The Embankment, for those that prefer the road, is ideal for the same journey.

For all its flaws, Pimlico has its fans – for value and convenience it is hard to beat.

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