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Original poster

Does anyone live on a 3 floor house?

41 replies

theskyisopalite · 08/12/2025 12:58

One bedroom at the top (former attic conversion), two bedrooms on the second floor. The staircase to the attic comes off the main bedroom.

The main pros are:
GREAT school catchment for both primary and secondary
Nice community with an actual main street (library, shops, couple of restaurants)

I'm just not sure of the layout. However- the bulk of the houses in the school catchment are the same (large 60s development). When you look out of the attic window about 90% of houses have roof windows.

Expecting first baby and hoping for one more.

OP posts:
AlastheDaffodils · 08/12/2025 13:00

Do the stairs to the attic go through the main bedroom or next to it?

The stairs will keep you fit!

SoPunkontheInternet · 08/12/2025 13:01

We do, 4 if you count the ‘underground’
utility. We love it, and all of the extra space it brings BUT it is a nightmare when friends with younger children visit. We’re past the days of stair gates so close eyes are needed, though of course for the children are yours and live in the home then a few gates and you’re good to go.

My eldest loves having a ‘floor’
to himself.

Original poster
theskyisopalite · 08/12/2025 13:02

Through which is a pain.

DH thinks there's potential to build a false wall and a second corridor before the teenage years.

OP posts:
MagpiePi · 08/12/2025 13:02

I’d be wondering if the stairs could be moved or a corridor created so that the stairs weren’t in the bedroom.

ItstimmmmmmmmeeechristmasWOOP · 08/12/2025 13:03

We don’t anymore, but have done, ours was a diff layout but over three floors. We were there for 12 years, it did my head in when the kids were little , up and down the stairs constantly….. and in the summer the heat on the top floor was unbearable. SO hot!! We had fans and would still be sweating buckets… we are now in a “‘normal” house and the difference in our bedroom in the summer is not comparable.

Kitchenbattle · 08/12/2025 13:06

Yes I live in a three story house. But…it was build like that so not a conversion. All stairs are in the hallway.

SalmonOnFinnCrisp · 08/12/2025 13:06

Everyone is different.

We have a 3 storey house but the staircase runs up the centre of the house and we have a 3 and 1 yr old. We use the top floor as our bedroom and it's fine.
Kids are confident on stairs and no accidents -touch wood

so yes the stairs are absolutely fine

The staircase to the attic comes off the main bedroom.

This would be my issue and it would be a deal breaker so I wouldnt buy a house like this.

In a buoyant market i might buy it if all the other boxes were ticked but we are heading into uncertain times and even though you plan to stay long term... life may have other ideas.
a house like this will be difficult to shift in a poor market and we are heading into a decline.
I'd want assets i could offload easily if needed.

Iocanepowder · 08/12/2025 13:08

What is bathroom situation op?

I lived in a house once in the attic bedroom and it was a bit of a pain to have to go downstairs to the toilet in the middle of the night.

Also tbh i have 2 young children and I wouldn’t want either of them on a separate floor to me while i sleep. Or 2 floors separating them while i am in the living room.

Something that might be ok for when they are older but not while they are little

BowlyLarr · 08/12/2025 13:08

We’re on three floors with a loft conversion - it’s no bother except for the hoovering! I don’t like the sound of the stairs in your example though. Does it meet building regs etc or would it technically have to be counted a ‘storage space’ or something?

SalmonOnFinnCrisp · 08/12/2025 13:08

Everyone is different.

We have a 3 storey house but the staircase runs up the centre of the house.
The stairs are absolutely fine

The staircase to the attic comes off the main bedroom.

This would be my issue and it would be a deal breaker so I wouldnt buy a house like this.

In a buoyant market i might buy it if all the other boxes were ticked but we are heading into uncertain times and even though you plan to stay long term... life may have other ideas.
a house like this will be difficult to shift in a poor market and we are heading into a decline.
I'd want assets i could offload easily if needed.

daffodilandtulip · 08/12/2025 13:11

We do, but our stairs come into what was the box room. So I have this as my office and I have the attic. The kids then have a double each.

It works and I love it, but even just walking through my office to go to bed annoys me. I wouldn't do it through another bedroom. That's the only thing though, the actual three floors thing works. In fact, it was fab when we were at the teenage sleepover stage 🫣

Original poster
theskyisopalite · 08/12/2025 13:12

The main bathroom on the floor with the 2 bedrooms.

Also tbh i have 2 young children and I wouldn’t want either of them on a separate floor to me while i sleep.

This is a concern too.

OP posts:
Prelim · 08/12/2025 13:14

We used to live in a house like this. The issue was that it was meant as 2-bed house so the downstairs didn’t feel big enough. We moved after one child. The stairs weren’t an issue as nobody slept upstairs apart from guests. You could box it out or add a curtain. I wouldn’t properly close it off as you’d lose space and then have to go through building regs the conversion may not meet. Would be ok if you had another child of the same sex.

DrPrunesqualer · 08/12/2025 13:15

We used to live in a four storey town house
LGround ( at the rear, at the front it was half underground ) was the kitchen diner and a bathroom
Upper Ground living room and toilet
First fl Two bedrooms
Second fl 2 bedrooms and a shower room ( not a roof conversion )

The hassle was not having a living space on the same floor as the kitchen
We could put a living with the kitchen but would lose the dining space
The stairs drove me mad with 3 small boys and we decided we’d stick with a 2 storey in future. We moved

LondonLady1980 · 08/12/2025 13:38

I live in a 3 storey house and our layout is as such:

Ground floor: Double bedroom, downstairs toilet and kitchen.

First floor: Living room and double bedroom with en-suite.

Second floor: Double bedroom, single bedroom and main bathroom.

There are pros and cons to the layout but overall it’s great!

The main pros are:

  1. When I’m chilling out in the living room I can ignore the messy kitchen on the floor below. Out of sight, out of mind 🤣

  2. The children have the full upstairs floor to themselves and I love it that they sleep on a different floor to the house as me and DH. It feels like we have some space/time away just for ourselves.

whirlyhead · 08/12/2025 13:46

We lived across 4 floors for 20 years (including a basement) and the staircase to the loft was originally carved out of the main bedroom and a wall put between them. We later moved the stairs to above the lower staircase which worked well, but the original location of the staircase wasn't a bother at all.

I loved living over so many floors. Yes, the stairs are a pain but your other half can be in the living room with the TV on very loud and you're in the loft and can't hear it at all!!

IHateTheElf · 08/12/2025 13:49

We did but it was built as a three storey house (Victorian). The stairs to another bedroom in one bedroom would put me off

honeylulu · 08/12/2025 13:50

Our house has an attic conversion with a large bedroom and extra (separate) bathroom. The other bedrooms and main bathroom are in the first floor.

Overall it's worked out well. Our eldest who is at uni has the top bedroom so it's more private for him (and us) and sometimes guests use it when he's not here as its bigger/nicer than our actual guest room. I will say that it gets really cold in the winter and boiling in the summer.

Wowsersbrowsers · 08/12/2025 13:51

We did for a bit with one child. It wasn't ideal but you get what you can and everything else sounds great.

mondaytosunday · 08/12/2025 13:52

That stairs is a non starter. Any way of moving it? I would not buy a house where you have to walk through a bedroom to get to another.
My DD is in the converted loft with en suite. I’m in the slightly larger of the two bedrooms on the first floor. The stairs to the loft are above the stairs from the ground floor so in the hallway.

SeaAndStars · 08/12/2025 14:13

I lived in a three story house with the main bedroom at the top. The only time it was a problem was when I broke my leg and had to go up and down stairs on my bum.

Other than that I liked it. Lovely views from the top.

Check the insulation is done well on the roof as if not it will be very hot and very cold.

Northerndoglover · 08/12/2025 14:18

We lived in 4 storey and at the beginning we loved it. It was unbearably hot in the summer in our bedroom (top floor) though and our neighbours who had knee and hip replacements really struggled.

We had stairs up to our front door though which made it extra challenging.

Checknotmymate · 08/12/2025 14:22

We did pre DC but once we had dc1 it got small and we realised it wasn't a great house for families because either parents go upstairs leaving DC on the first floor burglars get to, or you banish one DC upstairs which feels unsafe in a fire situation.

The top was also an extension and it always felt like the bottom of the house wasn't big enough for the top.

NewCushions · 08/12/2025 14:30

We pretty much have this. Downstairs we have a main lounge, then an open plan kitchen diner. 1st floor is 2 bedrooms and a bathroom and what used to be a small thired bedroom but is now a small box room/utility room. Then we have the loft conversion which is a large room with an en suite bathroomm.

The stairs in the main bedroom are the main issue for you I think. Becuase it means you dont' really have three private bedrooms. So I'd be figuring out how to fix that.

We did the conversion when our second was about a year old. I think I would have kept her with us until she was around that age but sound travels so we always heard her when she woke up. Bit of a hassle going up and down stairs, but not a major one. I do feel that this is not a house we could live in when we're old unless we moved back down into the original main bedroom. Which I'd hate becuase our bedroom is absolutely amazing and I love it.

Agree with a PP - the bigger issue is that the house itself is small. I'd kill for 20% more space downstairs - a slightly bigger kitchen, dining area and lounge. And a toilet on the ground floor which we don't have and don't have any space to add.

schoolfriend · 08/12/2025 14:35

Also tbh i have 2 young children and I wouldn’t want either of them on a separate floor to me while i sleep.

I'd love to be on different floors, or even just a different bed would be nice but no chance in our house 😂