To think new builds are too small

I had loads of storage in my new build. It’s the only thing I miss about it as my current house - built in the 60s - doesn’t have nearly as much.

I used to live in a really lovely spacious new build. Big rooms, built in wardrobe in every bedroom, decent sized kitchen and utility room, big lounge and separate dining room… when we wanted to move closer to the city centre we viewed one new build that felt really cramped in comparison. The master bedroom in particular was a joke. Space for a bed but not much else. Not sure where we would have put the rest of our furniture!! Obviously we didn’t buy it.

So, in summary, some new builds are too small. Some aren’t.

There are minimum design standards set by both National and Local Government. Most housebuilders design to the minimum and not beyond. Density is also set by Government.

The combination of density and minimum space standards is why houses are shoe horned into sites. Couple that with not using decent architects to get the best possible internal layouts, site planning and environmental considerations together with a dependency on wet trades and you get the shocking state of modern housing supply in this country.

The new build I’m in the process of buying is quite big compared to others I’ve looked at - with windows in toilet and bathrooms, a garden bigger than the house and ample parking as well as 3 good size storage areas upstairs and down. Guess I’m quite lucky with this one then!

Yeah I'm in an apartment and it's 75sqm so not particularly small but the lack of storage...
I have a ridiculous amount of kitchen cupboards so use that for most stuff (14 of them!)
Luckily it's a 2 bed so the spare bedroom is my gym/storage/wardrobe

I miss my 3 bed ex council house - storage cupboards in the porch, under stairs, airing cupboard, storage cupboard on the landing, loft... it was a tardis!

That doesnt make any sense on the floor plan, it shows 2 single beds in a line, that would be over 12 foot long?

But in any case, yes new builds arent just too small, they have a bedsit vibe to my mind, the ground floor is basically quite often a kitchen in a living room, just one big room. Hate that. I like separate rooms even if they are small

The lounge in ours is a bit small but has four good size double bedrooms no box room

Iirc isn't it only just under 10% land in uk developed?

And yes to pp. They can be smart design even on smaller building site

It’s the lack of storage that gets to me. Where does the hoover go? Or the Christmas decs? Or the camping gear? Madness.

I always mention this, but when we were looking at houses a few years back, there was a new build estate (Taylor Wimpey) with a 4 bed that had the same footprint as our, then, current 2000 built 3 bed - the 4 bed had a detached garage rather than the integral so there was more space downstairs, but upstairs they had squeezed in a 4th bedroom.

We are a small country with a growing population, housing will be denser/smaller unless you want to say goodbye to green space.

Accessible downstairs wcs are a building regulations requirement for new homes so that has to stay I'm afraid.

Yup😂🤦

And the floor plan is wrong as well. Wrong dimensions to wrong bedroom number.
Notwithstanding that they claim in that design you can fit 2 beds in with space inside....
Lies

That’s a terrible house design - the downstairs doesn’t flow at all, you’ll be banging into each other and doors all the time. Upstairs bedroom 2 is 4 foot 7 inches wide!

I understand that to house everyone in this country we need houses on smaller footprints than in the 40s. But houses can still be smartly designed for living well.

Not here. You get a lot less for your money if you want a new build here. We looked at lots before we settled on our ex council. Didn't see a single one with a window in bathrooms or toilets

Living in a generously proportioned well built well designed new build 2 bed bungalow. Delighted with it tbh.

I think 'neatly designed' is a euphemism for 'incredibly cramped'.

Housing is one of the areas which has undergone the most shrinkflation, but British people don't realise quite how bad it is because they don't often see the larger houses in other countries.

Even in a country that's even more densely populated than Britain - the Netherlands - the houses are 50% larger.

People in Britain put up with all sorts of crap they shouldn't, and the ridiculous small sizes and high prices of new build houses is one of the worst.

And yet all adverts for anything furniture related show rooms the size of Blenheim Palace! Our 4 bed has the largest bedroom just big enough for king sized bed, built in wardrobe and 2 sets of drawers. Which leaves about 2 feet each side. Bed adverts show a room the size of our entire top floor! And storage? Absolutely nothing. My sons 3 bed ex council house has more cupboards than our 4 bed and my dads 4 bed put together. Bloody ridiculous.

A lot of new builds near us are pretty bloody huge - they've got great floor plans too.

I'm not really sure a minimum size for housing (especially social!) would work particularly well in terms of costs and land space with how things currently are - they'd all be crazy expensive. I'm not too sure it's a great use of budget either in terms of social housing!

Meant to say I agree with you, there is always a thread like this going, there are lots of new builds in my town and they are massive, obviously you have to pay for size.

If you are looking to buy just avoid new builds if you think they are too small, I don’t get the angst.

DD has a 1920's ex council house semi (she didn't RTB). It is the tiniest thing I have ever been in. You can't swing a mouse let alone a cat in the lounge, barely fit a sofa in it. Kitchen is tiny, we all struggle to get in and out of the bathroom - only one toilet in the house which is in the bathroom. Back garden is at an angle to the house due to the way they were crammed in but is a good size. Bedrooms - no room for a wardrobe. The stairs are incredibly steep and the treads are very narrow, I have to come down sideways To this day I cannot work out how anyone brought a family up in this house.

Not another post slagging off new builds!

They’re not all tiny with tiny rooms and tiny gardens.

The council just gave my CF neighbour planning permission to convert a small two bedroomed bung, into two, three bedroom bungs. He has come just over the absolute minimum of living space in each of the rooms. A local architect wrote a long letter to the council stating it was inadequate housing, but their standard line is that three bedroom houses are in demand, therefore they automatically get permission. The gardens will be postage stamp, and there is no garaging. But there is a condition to provide bicycle storage! We live 8 miles from the local town. Developers play the game. It is truly awful.