To think this house IS big enough

I don't think @EatTheGnome meant inherit, I think they meant benefit from living a comfortable life without being squashed and overcrowded.

Only on Mumsnet would a 4 bedroom house not be big enough for 3 children. 🥴

This thread is nuts. The house is about as big as mine, ok I only have 2 kids (and a dog) but they are large teenagers and we gave masses of space. Both DH and I wfh and we often have DH’s mum to stay for weeks at a time. Some people must have serious amounts of shit to store.

@BooneyBeautiful Like this?
looks great! I’d never heard of them before.

Is there a reason you can't convert the loft other than damp possibility? That could be sorted in the conversion and cheaper than moving house.

This. One of my neighbours has just had a lovely lean-to added to the back of their house. No planning permission required, fully insulated, and was erected in just one day. It's basically a garden office, but is attached to the house.

If it's any consolation we are planning on having TWO children in a tiny 65sqm two-bed flat, at least for the first few years. Obviously it's tantamount to abuse but what can you do

Wtf are people on? Do they realise there are plenty of families with 4 kids in a 3 bed house? Some, God forbid, have even more than that.
How anyone can say a 4 bed house is small for 3 people is beyond me? Do they genuinely think everyone has 2 spare rooms and a house is too small if you don’t?
Although two of the rooms are singles, they’re both much bigger than the room I had for my entire childhood and I coped and am not too emotionally scarred as a result

It looks like a really nice house, people are just being dramatic in an attempt to let everyone know what vast houses they want to pretend to have.

It looks fine for 3 children

If it was me and I had no budget to make another room, I would put two kids in the double, one kid in the single and last single guest bed/bedsettee and work desk. Absolutely nothing wrong with little kids sharing rooms. And 10 years down the line you may be in the position to move to something bigger. I have always wanted to move for more space, but it is just too expensive. If only we could all live in big houses. 😉 PS don't get a conservatory, don't recommend them.

I know. I grew up in a house so big you could get lost in it but I still think op's house is perfectly fine for 3 children. In fact my sister and I shared for years even though we could have had our pick of loads of bedrooms!

Mumsnet is absolutely a parallel universe at times. OP will have three children all with their own bedrooms. 🤷‍♀️, the office can go somewhere else. It’s only today that we think we ‘need’ a home office. I’ve got one as my house is too big for us now, but for years I existed working from a laptop and my work bag in the dining room.

I haven’t RTWT but you agree with everyone that it’s small for three and there are already four living there.

Is moving to a cheaper area where you would get more space for the money a possibility? If not, a garden office (or converting the garage to one, which is maybe the best option as you say the garden is small) seems like the easiest and most cost effective solution. I take it there’s no attic you can convert or other space you haven’t mentioned?

Too small you will outgrow it within 5 years. Before buying any property you need to know the upgrade potential- either loft (done properly can add two double beds and a shower) or extension (L or 1/2 storey). The garage conversion is also good. Plus shed office/ summer house.
Otherwise good luck affording a move up the ladder

rude?! Merely speaking from experience. Yes, subjective but also looking ahead and how things are likely to cjange

How rude.

Feels claustrophobic- such small rooms. When kids grow up they will need more private space for homework and friends.

Your house is totally fine for five, with two generous spaces on the ground floor, four good-sized bedrooms and ample bathrooms / WCs. Don't change any of them.

A garage is usually a large space, long and narrowish, if single - which you could easily convert it into two rooms / offices or one room plus shower room / wc / laundry - which could serve for overnight stay.
Or convert part of it to make one study, if you wish to keep part for storage.

If you do convert the garage, you can always get a shed for storage - cheap to buy and put up and loads of choice and styles, with windows etc. Have a look at B & Q or similar for ideas of sizes and prices. Problem solved. Everything will work just fine, with plenty of scope for the growing family.

When you move in years to come, you may want to go for a house with downstairs bedroom and walk-in shower or wetroom and WC and laundry space, which comes in useful as people get older.

Total American thinking here: we rely on basements for living space. If you have one it could house living space, bedroom, office, another bathroom and some storage.

We really miss our downstairs full bathroom now we have moved. We have a en-suite now but I’d much prefer a second bath/shower room somewhere where people don’t have to go through my bedroom to use it. 3 loos is plenty for 5 people.
That semi detached has an ideal downstairs gym room with shower room that means no one upstairs needs to be disturbed.
I think that house has a really good amount of space and I’d love to be able to find something like that near me. Going from detached to semi is a compromise I’d be willing to make.
But I also think your current house could be big enough if you can fit in a garden room and still have enough garden space (in our new build garden we couldn’t but the plots on our estate seem especially small)

I really can’t believe many of the comments on this thread! The house is fine for 5, the kids would all have their own room with space for a bed, desk and wardrobe so can get privacy there.

So the question is where to put the office and there are many options:
1). The storage space off the living room. Pro is that it would be (almost) free to do, con is no window and no privacy.
2) remove a bathroom. Personally I wouldn’t, it’ll devalue the house and sharing one bathroom between 5 will be hell as the kids get older.
3). Convert half the garage. Can be done very cheaply, especially if there’s already a window or door at the back of the garage.
4) Garden office. The most pricey, but likely to add value and also gives the kids an extra living room / games room when not being used. My brother recently put one in a relatively small garden for a similar reason and it works really well for them

So I’d go for 4 if you can, or 3 if you really can’t afford the garden room