Unreasonable to move into a flat?

You’re welcome 😀.

There a loads of different configurations you can get. The one in the picture has a desk on one side but you could have two storage units.

They save a huge amount of space by integrating the sofa (that you won’t be using when asleep) and means you can have a much better quality mattress for sleeping as it doesn’t need to be thin enough to fold back into a sofa.

Plus they take two minutes to set up/put away with all the bedding staying on the bed so you don’t have to worry storing that during the day.

Sure but the OP’s prospective flats are in a block if they’re newly built 2-bed/2-baths.

Not all flats are in a block you know. I'm in a flat which is the bottom half of a house.. Own front door, no communal areas, back garden and front driveway

I would hate it but it sounds like your sanity is at stake here so it would be the best thing for you.

Someone asked me what I like to do if there is sun outside and I want to have a coffee at least in the garden. I don't need to drink coffee in the garden but if I want to for whatever reason, I can. I have a garden the size of mansion grounds literally as it used to be one before they turned it into mansionettes as I call them

Do it. We live in a 2 bed maisonette which is like a flat I suppose. Just under a hill with woodland and a common next to, few nice houses and space to dry your clothes outside. As I am not British and for me a barbecue in a garden is a dead concept, I literally do not need a private garden, plus the communal gardens are massive and no one goes in there.

Having smaller mortgage allows us to save all my salary while my husband pays for everything else. I pay for holidays, repairs etc

I moved from a 3 bed flat above a shop to a 4 bed house with a huge garden. Hate it. Looking to move back to a flat above a shop!

I think it's best to do what is right for you at tje moment. You can always change again, meanwhile you will all the positives. Xx

Grant but you have more neighbours to piss of and complain in a block of flats rather than the house attached
also the coming and going in the communal areas can trigger barking

I think it would need to be a ground floor flat with a dog because otherwise you are likely to have (probably justified) constant noise complaints. However, as long as you dog wont be barking when the communal door or hallway is in use, I think your idea sounds fine.

Is your eldest likely to go to university or move out at 18 as it would only be a short time not having your own bedroom if so. I’d be inclined to have a wardrobe in the biggest bedroom so that your living space doesn’t look like a bedroom when you aren’t sleeping.

Try for a ground floor flat with a garden. Having to go downstairs and out every time the dog needs a wee gets very old very fast. (Can you leave the disabled dc while you do that?). And think through carefully how everything in the flat would work re disability access - work it out for every room. And where any bulky mobility equipment etc would go. The right flat exists but it might take you a while to find it - more than most people do.

I know this isn’t my thread but thank you! This could well be something I look at in the future :)

@CanterburyRoadBlockit sounds like a good plan to me.

Instead of a sofa bed you could look at a wall mounted Murphy bed with integrated sofa and storage for your clothes.

Something like this:

i don’t think it’s fair to have a dog in a flat.

Can I tell you op that moving to a flat has been one of the single best things I have ever done on my life. I LOVE it. No commute, no gardening, hardly any housework, a really strong sense of community. A place of your own. Do it.

My DH’s first home together we bought from a family that had raised a son and a daughter. Strictly speaking the flat was only a one bedroom! They had an internal box room that they used as a bedroom, the bedroom and the living room was a bedroom.

Their saving grace was the kitchen was absolutely huge. Easily the biggest room in the flat, and so it became their living, kitchen, dining room.

if you look for 2 bed flats with a roomy kitchen you can use that as your communal space.

or pop a Murphy bed in the living room.

I lived in my 1 bed flat for years with a dog, 2 cats and my boyfriend at the time! Loved it, it was my happiest home, I had lots of money to buy all M&S food, bought what I wanted and most importantly, felt safe & secure financially. My dog was/is fine, all he cared about was being with those he loves, he got all the walks and love he needed and all was good. I paid the mortgage off early too as it was cheap.

I only moved because I needed a drive and garden because I was pregnant but honestly, we’ve hardly used the garden, it’s just another job.

Go for it!🙂

Dog bloody barks constantly in the house next door to mes garden. It's not flats that makes them bark

A word of caution: I would advise you to look at the service charges of flats. DS bought a flat on the FTB Help to Buy scheme and the increase in the service charge he has to pay has been astronomical. Worse, when he actually needs the service company to do something, they shrug & say “Not our problem” & he ends up paying on top to have it done.

Dog’s inevitable bark that’s the problem with flats and dogs

I live in a flat with a dog and it's fine. Up and out first thing for a walk, round the block at lunchtime for a wee, evening walk and a nip outside for a wee before bed - all good.
The pros far outweigh the cons for you, so I'd absolutely go for it.

👌

Hi OP, this is my set up (though no dog). My living room is long and thin and I have a single bed st one end, behind a big wooden screen.

I don't miss having a garden at all, and am happy to lose one more thing to look after.

The biggest disadvantage is the lack of privacy, but my oldest has now gone to uni so for half the year I use her room. I did have to get very clever with storage for my clothes (managed to squeeze shelving into the cloakroom).

It has been absolutely worth it for the location, keeping my girls close to their schools and to public transport, shops etc.

Hmm a 3 year old living in a flat should know not to be jumping around too much either. My eldest lives In a flat and her kids have been taught that since becoming mobie.

Yes, a sofa bed. I thought it might be uncomfortable after a while, but it’s been fine. I bought a thick mattress topper and it’s cosy. My flat is above a shop which is very handy when we run out of teabags!