Would you buy an ex council house ?

[LovelyYellowLabrador]

They seem good value for money and often big gardens

I grew up in an ex council house and would definitely have bought one. I currently own an ex miner house although a lot of them are now council houses so I guess it's the same thing. Large bedrooms and living space. The garden is huge. Even though we are mid terrace there is good access to the garden. Both my current home and childhood home are very solidly built

We love Our ex council house. It’s solidly built and has a big garden- there are few ‘interesting’ neighbours but mostly it’s fine and I can’t see us moving.

We got our 1st mortgage on a council house (we'd been tenants for a few years so got a discount)

Pros -
solid built.

big garden
decent-sized rooms

cons -
some of the neighbours were very undesirable, the type who'd never worked/took drugs, etc.

It gave us a very good start on the property ladder, but after 6 years of that mortgage, we sold up, made a good profit and moved to a private estate

I'm in one now. 3 streets and they're all ex council now bar 2.

Massive rooms, massive gardens and a massive garage. What I'd never buy is a new build

To be fair though most ex council houses are neither huge or massive, which seems to be the ones people own on here. And I say that as someone who grew up in one and whose parents still live in one, and who over the years have viewed some. Although I guess it depends on the definition of huge or massive.

they were built to standard sizes under legislation and generally were between six hundred and 1000 square foot from the 20s to the 70s based on decade built. These are small to average houses. Which is what you’d expect from a council house. I understand there is some anomalies and some folks are living in huge massive ones, but they will be very rare indeed.

Yep. But it depends on the area, like any house.
I’m in an ex council house on an estate of 1930s bay fronted semis. Most people wouldn’t know it was ex council. We didn’t until we were half way through buying it. Solid as a rock!

Yes we did and it was fine
but was in a good area in london

Yes, my first house was ex council. In a lovely village, had four massive cupboards just in the hallway alone. Oh how I miss all that storage. It was really well built, and when we came to sell, it was snapped up immediately (houses in the budget was rare in that village). Sold the first weekend we put it on the market.

Does depend on where you live though

I live in an ex council house. Got it at a verrrry good price. In a very nice area. Worth every penny.

No, on principle. None of them should have been sold off. The profits people have made from buying their homes at a massive discount (having had years of the benefit of low rent) and then gleefully selling them on to make money makes me very uneasy (putting it mildly).

I had no idea our house was ex council before we bought it until I noticed it on some paperwork from the solicitors.
Then all the huge cupboards and massive garden made sense!

I did. It was great. Much bigger bedrooms than the other houses on offer.

Ex Council house (built to 1960s 'Parker Morris' space and quality Standards ) v 2010 Barratt, Persimmon, etc. rabbit hutch. Mmmm ?

They are good value where I live. My house is ex council. The majority of houses on our estate are now privately owned.

Yes, have an ex-Council 1930s semi. DM 10 minutes walk away has a 1930s private build, better location but worse build. Single layer of bricks so can't have cavity wall insulation. Mine had cavity wall insulation and double glazing when I bought, have put in Central heating, rewired and replastered, but price reflected nothing had been done for 40 years.

Love the house, so well built. Near centre of town (posh end of the estate, plus a large semi instead of standard terrace). Good sized rooms, even 3rd bedroom is generous. Gorgeous original floorboards. Huge loft that can be converted if I ever have the money.

Mine is…. It was by far the best out of what I could afford. Alternatives were tiny terraced homes with a bedroom less than I needed and no garden.

I have a small home still but it is enough. It’s a semi, so less noise through the walls and we have a nice little garden. It’s built so well and is super warm. Much better space than the new builds that sell for 2.5 more 😫 Been here 7 years and only issue was blown windows which we replaced.

I did and I regret it. Our NDN is a nasty, nasty cow and yet the council refuse to evict her - despite her owning another house outright.

They're currently building a MASSIVE extension and I fear we'll never be able to sell ours.

I would definitely consider an ex-council house because they are usually solidly built with decent sized rooms and a good sized garden. The decor may be dated and the kitchen & bathroom might need updating but on the whole I'd say an ex council property represents good value for money.

Just check out the area that your proposed purchase is in very thoroughly before you sign on the dotted line to buy.

Mine is and I love it 😁

We have one. Had been in private ownership for a while. It’s lovely and in a gorgeous village.

I also live amongst mainly council owned properties and also love my neighbours. Lived in a million pound house before I got divorced and I massively prefer this house and street . Mine is 1930s 2 bed semi and it's so solid and lovely and decent garden.

Our first house was ex council, 1930’s, solid, big room sizes. The area wasn’t great though but we were mid 20s and it was fab for commuting into London and the lifestyle we wanted. We bought at a great time and 6 years later we sold it for a massive profit. We did fit a new kitchen and bathroom which helped.

Yes, they tend to be well built and have been maintained by council employed tradesmen for most of there history, so your less likely to find dodgy DIY jobs.

How daft. Mine was purchased for the first time in the 80s and had been sold loads since.

My current house is an ex council house and we're looking to move in the next 5 years or so. It's making moving really difficult because I've been spoilt by large rooms and good storage. I see that a previous poster is saying that massive council houses are rare. I don't think people mean massive like a mansion, but massive for the type of house. Ours is bigger than other 3 bed semis available.

Mine has a large living room, a kitchen diner with a table which can seat 6-8, a pantry, a utility area and 3 bedrooms which can fit double beds. You can walk around in the huge loft and could fit a couple of bedrooms up there if you wanted. The living room and kitchen both have large sliding doors leading onto the sunny garden. It's a fifties house with high ceilings and walls so solid I struggle to drill into them! I read another poster talking about possibly needing to do the kitchen and bathroom, but that entirely depends on whether the current owner has recently renovated, just like any other house. We have solid wood cupboards and quartz tops in ours.

When I see what else is available, it's depressing! I don't mind a renovation job but the kitchens don't even look old, just cheap and flimsy. The rooms are almost always smaller or look dingy and the gardens aren't up to much. I think we're in for a real shock once we start properly house hunting.