Help me choose between 3 houses

[Flamingoose]

We're renting. Can't afford to buy.
Not in UK (not sure if that makes a difference)

House 1:
Main advantage: We already live in it. We're comfortable. It's big enough for all our stuff. Kids activities are all nearby.
Disadvantages: Old, cold, damp, dark, shit school zone, dangerous electrics (already caused one fire), 2 bedrooms downstairs kids refuse to sleep in them, no storage.

House 2:
Advantages: Great location, on a good bus route, walk to the shops, good school zone, walk to high school next year for eldest, bedrooms all upstairs, no garden to maintain.
Disadvantages: at the bottom of a hill, dark and closed in by big damp trees, damp, driveway so insanely steep I don't know how we'd take the bins out, no garden to play in.

House 3:

Advantages: Warm and dry, light, 4 big bedrooms, nice garden, masses of storage, good school zone.
Disadvantages: marooned in suburbia, a drive to everything.

House 4...? Keep looking...?

Definitely not house 1 unless you can afford private school. Personally I’d say house 3 and deal with the driving or keep looking.

Keep looking but definitely not 1 or 2.

House 3. Absolutely definitely.

House 3 or keep looking

Maybe you're right. But doesn't the saying go, location, location, location?

location applies more to housing you're buying as the location will affect the resale value, and you aren't affected by that.

I'd move out of House 1 for sure. It sounds like it's a death trap.

What ages are your kids? How much do they need a garden? I'm sure you'll cope with the bins as presumably the current residents do.

House 3 sounds OK. A bit meh.

House 3.

House 3 and keep looking is my advice. Maybe don’t unpack everything so it encourages you to keep looking! (Ie books, summer clothes and shoes etc)

3! Without a doubt

House 3 or keep looking.

3

Kids are aged between 6 and 13.

Don't think they need a garden really. There's a deck area big enough for a bbq and the climbing frame in House 2.

But the garden is lovely in house 3. Really usable space. The whole of the house opens onto a big covered deck with shallow steps down to a fenced lawn. House 3 also has a pretty cool workshop under the house which husband and kids are quite keen on. And masses of space for camping kit, kayaks, bikes, scooters etc etc.

House 2 is on a really busy road (hard to turn right onto), but set far enough back that it won't be noisy, or dangerous for the cat (see really long, steep drive). I think if we needed to drive anywhere in the morning we'd have to take the car out and park it on the road the night before, rather than hope to turn right in the morning.

House 3 is in a small cul-de-sac off a quiet residential road, and close to a small park.

House 3

House 3

House 3

House 3

House 3 sounds so so much nicer than the others. And as you’re renting if the location becomes an issue then you can move relatively easily. (But with children the ages of yours there is a lot to be said for suburbia...). FWIW I can’t imagine going for a house without a garden with DC.

Not 1 or 2. House 3 or keep looking.

Pretty unanimous from you lot. Thanks to all who replied.

Husband likes House 3 too. So do the kids. I do see the advantages, I guess I'm just a bit nervous of adding more driving to my day. I work full time and we have no friends or family in the area, and I feel like I'm utterly wrung out, breaking my neck to commute home from the city to pick up 3 kids and ferry them around to all their various activities. Eldest is swimming 8 times a week now, and 10yo is playing tennis 3 times a week, and youngest has just joined brownies, and then there's football, guides, gymnastics, school team sports, track practice... it's a lot. Husband does what he can, but I'm a teacher so I finish earlier than him because I can theoretically lesson plan and mark in the evenings and I just feel like... I'm trying to fit too much into the waking day. Even an extra 15 minutes onto my commute will make things harder than they already are. But we honestly can't afford everything we need in a house, in an area with a good school AND convenient area. Something has to give.

I guess if we do move to the suburbs we'll just find a way to make it workable. As people do.

3 for sure

It sounds like the kids after school activities are excessive, can they cut down at all?

You're not kidding Lola! But cutting down is easier said than done. The older ones have a lot of training because they've worked so hard and put in the hours to reach the level they're at. I really don't want to reward their commitment by telling them they have to drop out of the team because I don't want to drive them to practice!! I'm proud of the effort they put in. And the younger one is only getting the same opportunities the older ones had...

Are you in the us?

House 3
And I agree that sounds like an insane amount of activities. Swimming 8 times a week for one child???

Out of those choices 3 without a doubt