Differences between US and U.K. homes

[Youngatheart00]

Just a ponderous thread as it’s my day off and I’ve been thinking, mainly following the abundance of Netflix we’ve all watched over the past year, but also some of my travel experiences (not recently, obviously!)

Some of the differences I’ve noticed are;

• many more of the US homes seem to be fully open plan downstairs. Some don’t even seem to have doors between the rooms?

• the bathroom count / ratio to bedrooms is much higher! (Eg 3 bed / 3 bath or even 2 bed / 2.5 bath)

• heating systems, I don’t recall seeing radiators, instead vents in the floor, are these used to flip between hot and cold air depending on the time of year? How effective / efficient are they compared to our big radiator bars here?

• toilets - they seem smaller and the flushing mechanism is different

• baths - they also seem smaller, short and strangely blocky

• Space and size - all of the bathroom stuff is unusual when the overall size of homes, even cheaper ones, is so much larger. And some ‘back yards’ are absolutely huge! Obviously more land space in the US compared with the U.K. but still, notable but often not much privacy / fencing?

• waste disposal units - what ARE these?

• closets - I haven’t seen any free standing wardrobes. Are these just not used in the US?

Anyone got any others to add or any comments?

I was also excited to find out that rubbish shoots (where you drop your bin bags down) actually exist and it's not just in the movies - our letting agent thought it was hilarious that this was such a novelty to us 😂
These exist in most council estates in london, job I hated doing

Can i chime in with Canadian homes (we're very similar!) We have a mud room

Built in closets is a great idea , no need to keep buying wadrobes and the space you get in the room doesn't have to fit a large wardrobe, plus you always have somewhere to hide

Lived in New York for years in an apartment.

No central lights except for bathroom and kitchen. There was no light for the living room or bedrooms. We had to have lamps all over the place. I felt like I could never get enough light in the evenings.

Our apartment was brick built..I’d guess built in the 1930s or 40s and New York not really known for its earthquakes so I guess I never really thought about the brick thing.

Kettles..we had one of those boiling water taps instead in the kitchen but I never trusted it so one of the first things I did was buy an electric kettle from Bed Bath and Beyond....they definitely sell them and the voltage was never an issue...it was just “quirky Brits” like me that used them 😁

Baths...so shallow....

Laundry room in apartment basement. 360 apartments sharing 10 top loader washing machines and 10 tumble dryers...that was not fun.

Screens...yes if I could get them here I would. Loved them and their bug stopping properties!

I couldn’t control the heating in my apartment. It was centrally managed (although it never really seemed to be a problem...it was always warm enough).

Water pressure....phenomenal. The number one thing I miss most...

@Olga83

That style looks more like what people were fitting in the 80s in the UK, so 40 years out of date even though house only 20.

My guess is that is just what cabinets ‘look like’ to Americans. We had Amish people come in to build them when I was a kid and they’ve lasted a long time, folks back home still have them. I guess they’d look pretty dated though to British eyes.

Oh and also sending out dry cleaning was much more popular. I had loads of dry clean only clothes and just used to drop them off on my way out in with the concierge and picked them up next day.
I brought all my lovely clothes back to the UK and they pretty much sat in the wardrobe for 2 years because they needed dry cleaned and I couldn’t be bothered to drive to nearest dry cleaners. New York apartment living definitely designed for convenience.

Dirty washing gets put straight into the washing machine from my washing basket. It doesn’t touch any food surfaces. Surely, it’s no worse than walking into the kitchen with your outdoor shoes on?

I wouldn’t walk into a kitchen with my shoes on, in fairness.

Front-loading washing machines often have a buildup of mold over time, top-loaders rarely experience this (because gravity).

And the kitchen laundry machine is just odd to us, it’d be like having a dishwasher in the bathroom. Just doesn’t belong.

My MIL used to fold clothes on or around the kitchen table 😩 after, of course, being left on radiators because the UK is so rainy and nothing ever dried in timely fashion 😩😩 there’s a peculiar smell they get, I don’t think they noticed perhaps they were just used to it.

@Nancydrawn ooh I love that comparison game - thank you!!

Yes, aware that New York is very much the exception to the rule in terms of space. However, isn’t there still quite a lot that’s rent controlled?

I have to say I quite fancy a ‘mcmansion’ (good quality though...pool and no dated cabinets 😬) in a gated community when I retire.

@UsedUpUsername

Dirty washing gets put straight into the washing machine from my washing basket. It doesn’t touch any food surfaces. Surely, it’s no worse than walking into the kitchen with your outdoor shoes on?

I wouldn’t walk into a kitchen with my shoes on, in fairness.

Front-loading washing machines often have a buildup of mold over time, top-loaders rarely experience this (because gravity).

And the kitchen laundry machine is just odd to us, it’d be like having a dishwasher in the bathroom. Just doesn’t belong.

My MIL used to fold clothes on or around the kitchen table 😩 after, of course, being left on radiators because the UK is so rainy and nothing ever dried in timely fashion 😩😩 there’s a peculiar smell they get, I don’t think they noticed perhaps they were just used to it.

When I lived on the West Coast I hated top loaders because they were always mouldy inside and you had to use laundry bleach to stop your clothes smelling fusty, the worst was denim it made jeans smell rancid, I had to throw them away. They don’t spin as effectively either, so I would have to spin my washing 2-3 times before it was dry enough to remove from the machine. At first I thought it was our machine that was faulty, but when I moved the ones at our next place were the same.

Front loaders are also better at removing dirt etc. I personally have never had any mould issue or any dirt issue with a front loader.

It isn’t very rainy here, my washing is dry within a couple of hours at most, but mine doesn’t take any longer if it does rain.

Front loaders are also better at removing dirt etc. I personally have never had any mould issue or any dirt issue with a front loader

They have a really bad reputation in the States though. Class-action lawsuit bad for the mold issue.

I have to leave the machine door open (in my kitchen ... 🤢) and wipe it down after every use to prevent this issue and regularly clean the gasket and soap dish. It’s awful, hate front loaders so much.

They do clean better, yes I’ve noticed that. But it’s not worth the trouble to me.

Do the clothes in a walk in closet get dusty? On Wanted Down Under, where everyone seems to want a walk in wardrobe, my first thought is 'How much dusting will that need?'

Less overhead lights in the ceilings- much more lamp use.
Massive fridges.
Far fewer fences around gardens which I disliked with young kids.

@UsedUpUsername

Front loaders are also better at removing dirt etc. I personally have never had any mould issue or any dirt issue with a front loader

They have a really bad reputation in the States though. Class-action lawsuit bad for the mold issue.

I have to leave the machine door open (in my kitchen ... 🤢) and wipe it down after every use to prevent this issue and regularly clean the gasket and soap dish. It’s awful, hate front loaders so much.

They do clean better, yes I’ve noticed that. But it’s not worth the trouble to me.

Whats the gasket?

I have a miele, zero mould issues, never have to clean the drawer bit.

At least you can leave the door open, that doesn’t solve the mould on top loaders as you can access the wet area at the bottom and it holds so much water leaving it open wouldn’t be enough for the water to evaporate unless you live in an extremely hot and dry home. They smell like sewers.

@Gladimnotcampinginthisweather

Do the clothes in a walk in closet get dusty? On Wanted Down Under, where everyone seems to want a walk in wardrobe, my first thought is 'How much dusting will that need?'

Yes they do, they can also become damp/musty as most don’t have heating or a window/external ventillation. If they’re on an external wall mouldy clothes are a risk as well in the colder months.

Loving this thread!

This is such a great thread! I'm fascinated by interiors and property, (I'm such a Right Move addict!) and I'm also interested in cultures and comparisons to what we consider our norm.

There are so many things about US properties that make sense, such as the big open plan spaces and the built-in closets and dedicated laundry rooms, but I'm not sure if I could tolerate the lack of back garden privacy and the dark wood kitchens. Also I find the bonkers attitudes of not walking anywhere due to lack of pavements really perplexing. Also these ridiculous laws about not hanging out washing in a mainly sunny climate (how on earth are we going to save the planet at this rate?!)

That aside I have of course done my research and found a pretty perfect-looking home in a lovely-sounding neighbourhood, which is about a million times the size of our house in the UK and of a similar value. Now, how do I get a green card again? 🤔

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/3416-17th-St-S-Arlington-VA-22204/12094481_zpid/

I love US houses. I should have a 2nd home there!

I love the sound of an American style house. We had a walk in closet in our last house, and I loved it. The (huge) bedroom was a sympathetic extension to a 200 year old house, and the closet took up half of a section of the extension, and the extra bathroom (not en suite, but right next door) took up the other half. I used to leave the closet door open for part of the day when I had the bedroom window open to make sure it was aired, and our clothes never smelled musty.

I would love a laundry room with one of those ceiling clothes dryers. I do use my tumble dryer in winter and wet weather, but line dry in summer and dry weather. My 18 year old front loading washer doesn't have mould problems because I use bio powder, the odd very hot wash and always remove the powder drawer to clean it and wipe it dry after every wash.

I would also love a bootroom or equivalent where we can take off and store muddy boots. It has been exceptionally muddy this winter where I live.

DH and I both WFH, so we need separate rooms. He has the office downstairs, and I have turned one of the spare bedrooms into an office for me.

That’s a gorgeous house. It’s quite stuffed full of fabrics and drapes And things like that. The outside space feels so cluttered!

@Atalune if you're referring to the house in the link I posted, I see what you mean! It seems quite cosy for a US house, and I think because I live in an old and quite quirky house in the UK this is why I'm more drawn to it. The garden (as you say) and the kitchen are quite compact - but still bigger than most in the UK!

And ps I'm looking beyond the drapes and frills!

@Lanique we lived for many years in Arlington — I know exactly the area of the property you’ve posted. We live about 45 minutes from there now. Arlington was built up mostly with returning GIs after WWII and the homes were small family homes. In the past 20 years as traffic in the region has worsened and everything has gotten more crowded more and more people have bought up those small houses and rebuilt them, just about every single one in the modified craftsman style of the house you posted. Many are McMansion style 4000+ sq ft giants.

Arlington in general is quite expensive, the house you’ve chosen is a bit more affordable bc it isn’t in the most desirable neighborhood and because it has no usable backyard. On a nice street ten minutes north it would be 50% more. But Arlington in general is one of the best places I’ve lived. In an area with tons of suburban sprawl and traffic it is the closest-in Virginia suburb to DC and very accessible via the metro. As a small city itself Arlington has great restaurants, music, playgrounds, libraries, rec centers, mostly great public (state) schools, and strong community spirit.

So yes you should move there immediately!

Ah - I just thought! House tax - how does that work?

Ha ha @WoohooBeautiful interesting... I don't really know the States at all but I read that it was one of the nicest places to live so I thought I'd start there. I really like the more characterful houses with the white fences outside! I'd better check out the other neighbourhoods before I put in an offer then

In most of the US you don’t have to apply for places at public (state) schools. Anyone who moves into catchment is enrolled at the local school. It can get crowded when areas develop quickly but the class sizes are maintained as they just add more teachers and occasionally bring in modular external classrooms until more space can be built. They do redraw the catchments to accommodate population changes but it’s not very frequent and you are often grandfathered in if your kids started at a particular school. This system does create extremely expensive real estate in catchments of highly regarded schools but at least you know exactly what you are getting. In some places you have the option to apply for specialist schools with language immersion or STEM focus or a certain educational philosophy but most children go to their neighborhood schools.