Which house should I buy?

[Deerforest]

Both houses have equally nice gardens.

House A is very old. Three rooms have low ceilings with beams that dh will have to stoop under (he says he doesn’t care), small windows so it’s quite dark. Loads of character though and location is perfect.

House B not as old, really beautiful, lots of light and space. But built right on the edge of a straight road (it’s a 30 mph limit with speed bumps but people go a lot faster) bigger garden, better parking, asking price is a bit lower.

@daytriptovulcan yes the heating is a really good point. I think it would take a lot to heat it.

I don’t know the exact age, but I’d guess 1700s.

Other than the location, house A has nothing else. If it wasn't an old listed property, you could make it into your ideal home. location is important but you also don't want to be stuck in a dark, claustrophobic house. Picture how you would feel in the winter.

I’d not buy anything on a main road, I did it once, and I’d never done it again. So for me it would be a or keep looking.

My heart would say A because I love old houses, but in practical terms I'd go for B which has so much more going for it.

Also, your DH will soon get fed up of having to stoop, he really will.

House B because it’s light, and not listed.

Which direction do the back gardens face?

Possibly with the increase in numbers of electric cars, road noise will reduce in the future.

Doesn't sound like either house is right for you - for different reasons for each. Can you keep looking for a bit to see if a better house C appears on the market?

If location really is perfect, I'd say A. That's the one thing you can't change afterwards. Maybe reevaluate the road situation?

I also agree with other posters than when you have to post an 'either or', it tends to be because neither house is quite right.

@CrystalMaisie what a brilliant point about car noise!

A’s garden faces NW, but because of its size sunlight is available all day.

B’s garden faces SW.

B

We moved from a sleepy quiet town to a busy city and bought a house on a B road. It has a 20mph limit with speed bumps but most cars do 30+. I was quite worried but it was the right house so we took the risk.
Honestly it's nothing! The traffic only peaks for about a hour in the morning and evenings. Not much sound, no brakes. At night it's rather silent with almost no traffic. However if a car were to come down it sounds louder because there are no other sounds to counter it. So far the biggest problem has been that I can't sleep with a window open in the bedrooms facing the road. Bedrooms facing the other way are utterly peaceful night and day.
Dust is another challenge though as even with shut windows the traffic dust does tend to come through.

Overall we realised we were worrying over nothing. It's turned out to be a safe place to live and my DD can walk down the street herself to go to school as it's a busy road with ok traffic and people.

Go for B if the location is convenient.

I think in 20yrs A could be a money pit and would be harder to sell on.

More drip feed that I’ve just remembered, B is next to a stream so I need to look at flood risks.

B.

He'll get fed up of banging his head eventually. 😂

I've lived in a beautiful low ceilinged very old house. Gorgeous. However. After you've bumped your head for the millionth time the novelty wears off. Getting furniture to fit is a nightmare. And the heating. THE HEATING!! We had a wood burner, radiators and it was still freezing in the winter. My menooausal mum would keep her coat on indoors! And there were lots of wee gaps for mice.

I live in a really ugly from the outside 1940’s house now. But it is beautifully warm and really light indoors and so much more practical. Go for B!!

B..... parking, light, garden

@TeenTitan007 that’s great, thanks for your experience and really pleased it’s worked out for you.

@dangermouseisace I was worried about getting furniture in. I was also worried that they have extra fires everywhere, draught excluders on all doors and had the heating on when we viewed it even though it was 20C outside.

B

ducking in a house?! no way!

I've rented a listed house and listening to what the landlord has to deal with to stop it falling apart has put me off ever owning one. So that would put my off A. Also my husband has to duck for some beams and I'm worried he's done himself permanent damage. The crack when he accidentally smacks his head is awful!

I wouldn't be keen to live that close to the road but B sounds perfect otherwise. Could it be soundproofed or have better windows installed on the wall next to the road? I'm sure you'd get used to any car noise quite quickly.

Be warned if there are speed bumps it will be noisy, especially when empty large lorries go over, they make quite a noise, as will acceleration as you say

I would go A because I like older houses, but then again would not want a listed one as everything needs permission

Depends if you can live with noise

I would be trying to find somewhere else

It doesn't sound like either are ideal really.

A - dark and having to stoop your head, plus concerns over future maintenance would make me cross this one off. Plus you haven't fallen in love with it - and if you don't love it, then being dark and having low ceilings will really start to piss you off.

B - sounds lovely in many ways but you said you don't want to live near a road again, and this is slap bang on the road. If you had never lived near a road I might have been tempted to say you'll get used to it, but that's not what you've said. Constant road noise while I'm sat in the garden has been enough for me to turn houses down - I don't mind a distant rumbling but with them right outside my front door, I'm not sure how keen I would be.

What's the chances of finding a house similar to B away from a main road? Will you kick yourself for buying near a road when you had previously been sure this was something you didn't want?

Also I just remembered the potential flooding for B..... Do you live in an area that is prone to flooding? We are currently buying and it's an absolute bastard having to check the flood risk - my area is prone to flooding as there are lots of brooks, streams etc coming off the two big rivers nearby. If there is even a small chance of it flooding, I would definitely look again. The house I'm in now is next to a river and when I bought it I was told it was a 1-in-100 years flood risk. The road flooded within three months of me buying it! We've had a couple of other very close shaves - it really is no fun at all, so don't risk it.

Thanks @SpidersAreShitheads lots of good points to consider.

Thanks again everyone. I’ve talked to DH, he’s disappointed about A, but agrees it’s not the right house for us. I’ve offered to put a plank of wood over the staircase here so he can bash his head a few times and realise it’ll get annoying.

Can you wait for option C to come along?

Not A. House B sounds good other than traffic, or keep searching.

I'd never buy B - couldn't stand the noisy traffic with speed bumps.
Are you at work all day because coming home to he olde cottage could be comforting but being in a dark cottage all day if you don't work not so good. I would go for A.

I visit lots of old houses. They are beautiful to visit but are always cold! Even in the height of summer.

They are expensive to maintain. It's a problem getting builders at all at the moment. Getting a builder who can work with heritage materials is nearly impossible and will get even harder.

They are difficult to get insurance for. Even harder if it's thatched.

I also rent a listed property. It's freezing in the winter. Dreading this year with the cost of everything rising!