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Property/DIY

Big house/tiny garden

29 replies

Wanttomovehouse · 07/03/2011 17:44

We have been vaguely looking to move house for a couple of years. We are now on the market with lots of viewings and positive feedback but no offers as yet. We have seen a new build on a small development which ticks every box regarding rooms and sizes that we have been looking for but has a very small garden. They are offering part exchange on the house.

DH thinks garden is not so important to us as DC's are beyond needing the garden so much and there is a large common one minute away. We intend to stay there until we retire/downsize. My concern is that this is a very expensive 5 bed detached house and once the lovely shiny newness has worn off and we finally need to move away it will be very difficult to sell.
Would you consider it or is the tiny garden a real deal breaker

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pooka · 07/03/2011 17:45

How small is very small?

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Beamur · 07/03/2011 17:48

I think big houses with small gardens are a bit of a problem - generally it's going to appeal to families, who may want to have outdoor space. I'd weight it up against what is the 'norm' where you are.
Where I live gardens are a bit of a precious commodity, but few people have large ones, so even small ones are valued.
If this house suits you, then when the time comes to sell it, as long as you price it appropriately, I daresay someone will want it - it may suit their circumstances as it suits yours.

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Wanttomovehouse · 07/03/2011 17:49

The width of the house and garage plus a bit - approx 80 foot wide. Wedge shaped so the length varies between approx 15 feet min to 30 feet max

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Fiddledee · 07/03/2011 17:56

Sorry that garden does sound very small, is the house 2000sq ft+? We looked at alot of 4/5 bed houses all those with small gardens were rejected even if near common land. It will take longer to sell thats for sure and rise in value less.

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Wanttomovehouse · 07/03/2011 18:05

The house is 3000 sq ft +.
Where I live there are number of roads with large 1920's onwards houses with large gardens. Even if we could afford one, these houses very rarely come up for sale. The rest are predominantly Victorian terraces with no off road parking and small square gardens mixed in with 1960's and 70's.

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lalalonglegs · 07/03/2011 19:10

It's hard to tell from your post if that is normal for houses in your area (Edwardian houses aside) or not - certainly around here, some very expensive houses only have about 15-20ft long "garden" and that's the compromise you make to live in these streets. If it's the norm, you have nothing much to lose, otherwise I would avoid it.

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Wanttomovehouse · 07/03/2011 19:33

Oh sorry. Live in a small town so most of the more expensive houses have large gardens although due the desirability of the area and an extreme shortage of land many of these gardens are now being sold off for small development such as this one.

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goldenpeach · 07/03/2011 19:42

No. We ruled out small gardens and we won't have buy a house with a tiny one, we had 60ft in our London semi! This means we have been looking for ages, but fingers crossed, we might have found something now! We are paying more than expected but the huge garden and garage make up for it!

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smashingtime · 07/03/2011 20:11

We have a good sized detached house and a small garden (approx 60ft wide and 30ft long). It will be the reason I move from here ultimately - I want some space around me! As you say, it might be impossible to get both the house and garden depending on your location and the general size of gardens in your town. Most of the houses in our village have small gardens - even some of the huge houses so is the norm for where I live!

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tyler80 · 07/03/2011 21:15

Generally I think tiny gardens would put me off. The exception might be a small garden but not overlooked. Modern estates with 10m gardens all round - no way, older houses with smaller gardens that all back onto a woodland - not so much of a problem.

We've looked round some of the modern estates and it's the lack of space around them that puts me off, and it's way smaller than other properties in this area, e.g. we went and looked at a 2 bed semi, well below average price, with a 80m garden. Of course, if you live in an area where smaller gardens are the norm it might not be so much of a hindrance.

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SingingTunelessly · 07/03/2011 21:45

Agree with other posters - large house/tiny garden is a no no. The majority of buyers looking for a large family home want the garden to match.

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CointreauVersial · 08/03/2011 00:29

I don't think that sounds too small, more like the norm on new-builds.

You are thinking of buying it, so why wouldn't someone else?

As long as you negotiate a "discount" to compensate for the lowering in value that you attach to it, then you can pass that on when you eventually sell.

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SarahD1973 · 25/02/2013 15:57

Just picked up on this link whilst looking into big houses with small gardens. I realise this feed is a bit out of date now but I wanted to try and find out if Wanttomovehouse came to a conclusion about whether to buy or not?!!

We're looking for a new home, we've found one we like, in a prestigious road in a great location. The house is big but the garden is relatively small in comparison to the house size. It's not really a problem for me as such but thinking ahead, if we sell, could it be problematic? It's west facing which is plus. What to do....we're thinking of going in with an offer which we consider a good one bearing in mind the lack of garden v size of house.

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kitsmummy · 25/02/2013 16:07

too small. If it was all 30-40ft long then it would be ok, but some of it only 15ft long? just way too small.

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BackforGood · 25/02/2013 16:16

It would put me - and quite a lot of other buyers - off, but ultimately, there's a buyer for every house out there. You probably would lose out a bit financially on resale (as I think you do with all sales of 'brand spanking new houses') but, if you think of that money being spread over the 20 years or so you will be living there, and factor in the real "plus" point of the hassle of selling being removed by part exchanging now, then if you don't need the garden, I think I could justify it to myself in your shoes. There will be another family like yourselves just looking for similar when you come to sell.

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ohforfoxsake · 25/02/2013 16:23

We compromised on the garden, and it's OK. I'd rather have a garden big enough to play footy in, but we figured kids need less out door space and the indoor space matters as they get older.

The older ones can now take themselves to the park, have their own rooms and a rumpus room and the garden is big enough for a trampoline and a playhouse for the younger DCs.

The house is an Edwardian semi and it is lovely so I think it was the right decision or us.

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ogredownstairs · 25/02/2013 18:09

We did too, but I think the difference is that in our bit of London all the gardens are titchy. So a 36 foot garden with a 2000 square ft house is pretty normal, even generous, round here. Agree about dcs growing out of needing big gardens - but the resale factor totally depends on area...not helpful I know! The thing that would concern me more is anything 'funny shaped.' PiL's newbuild detached house is oddly wedge shaped on a triangular plot and I know it's going to be more difficult for them to sell when the time comes.

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Rhubarbgarden · 25/02/2013 20:21

A small garden would always be a deal breaker for me personally.

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Levantine · 25/02/2013 21:11

When we were househunting we looked at a lovely big house with a tiny corner garden and the garden was a deal breaker.

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mrssmooth · 26/02/2013 09:47

Also have a lovely (or will be when the decorating's finished!) big Edwardian house with a fairly small garden at the back, but with a weird access type area to the side with a little courtyard bit. Initially we wanted to have a house with a decent sized garden but as our dds are a little bit older now, we decided to concentrate on the space inside the house for the moment. (It helps that we are literally 3 minutes walk away from the beach though!) It's funny the things you change on your "absolutely must have" tick list when you start househunting when you find "the" house!

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HormonalHousewife · 26/02/2013 10:19

For me, a small garden would and has been a deal breaker. But a lot depends on the price, at 200k a small garden would be expected but at 1m I would anticipate a substantial plot. Also it depends on what is the norm in your area.

I wouldnt have a problem with no garden if I were 3m minutes walk from the beach. Looking at you MrsSmooth Envy

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jaynebxl · 26/02/2013 14:46

Is the garden really that small if it is 80ft wide? It's certainly more than a pocket handkerchief!

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notcitrus · 26/02/2013 15:44

Small garden fine by me - provides space for small children to play and adults to enjoy, no lawn to mow, and nearby park when they are bigger.

And mine is about 20 feet by 15 with a 6 bed house - but not much smaller than average for London. Reflected in the price - some will be put off but others will be rejoicing they can afford more house for their money.

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LittleFrieda · 26/02/2013 16:23

I think a garden should be at least as long as it is wide. Narrow town houses are fine with a shallow garden, but a big detached house on a wide shallow strip is a bit peculiar.

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jaynebxl · 26/02/2013 18:07

I certainly wouldn't pass up on a lovely house that ticked all my boxes just cos it had a small garden. We have a big garden now but are moving to a lovely house with a smaller garden. For 5 months a year we only go in the garden to feed the hens. For the rest of the year we are out at the park as often as we use the garden, and as my children get bigger I figure they need the space less. However we use the space in our house all year round.

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