to ask what you would not choose again if moving house

[chaletdays]

Just been reading the open plan thread. When I move again I would definitely not choose an open plan layout, or to buy a place right beside a green or any other communal area where children and teenagers will gather 24/7.

What would be your no nos if moving again?

Or if you're a lazy fucker like me and don't want to run up and down the stairs just for the loo

I like a downstairs loo. It's great when we have visitors like my MIL ( think Hyacinth from keeping up appearances)- she is a bit of a snooper, but wouldn't dare go upstairs unless there was a reason to.

This is our 3rd bought property and we got nearly everything right apart from the upstairs is too open to down.
Galleried hall way so the bedroom doors are off the hall upstairs and right in line with the front door . Anyone coming to the door or leaving late early etc disturbs everyone. I'd love a more separated idea.
We managed the detached, garage, last house in a cup de sac, 3 réceptions etc.
Oh and I wish the garden were south facing

I won't ever buy a terraced house again. I hate both of my noisy neighbours
And in my next kitchen, I want a specific place for the bin

interesting how incredibly urban this thread is ....

I have friends with an utterly wonderful house but their car cannot get within 50 feet of it
there is no TV signal
no Mobile signal
no mains gas
no mains sewers
intermittent electricity
and can be cut off by snow for weeks on end in winter
(in Wales BTW)

Now you mention it, Talkin I would be wary of buying another house powered via overhead lines. We had brownouts or power cuts every day for about 4 months, a couple of years ago. It only got fixed when a stormy winter finished it off for good.

This thread has made very useful reading for me. We're planning a move in the next couple of years and because it's through choice rather than necessity we've got time to plan. Some of the things pp have mentioned as irritants hadn't occurred to me, but I feel more genned (sp?) up now
We also have to sell our house and I've been a bit disheartened by the number who don't like three storey houses and multiple bathrooms/toilets, as we've got both! Our living space is all on the ground floor though, with two floors of bedrooms above though, so am hoping this isn't seen as being quite so bad

It took us a LONG time to sell our 2004 three storey, but we fronted on to a green and parking was a trek from the house. We bought a 1995 4 bed "executive" detached. It must have been built just before they abolished cupboards because we have loads of storage. Currently adding a 5th bedroom plus utility and office in place of the conservatory. The plus side of our previous house being virtually unsellable is that we had a lot of time to save!

I'd never buy a house again that only had one toilet.

I think most people find three storey townhouses impractical with a young family because of all the stairs and the fact that the children often have to sleep on a different floor (especially if it's below) the master suite. Plus the living space is often in the middle, meaning it's a long trek (sometimes even having to go through a ground floor bedroom to get to the garden.

But that seems to form the bulk of the building of 'family' homes these days because it's cheaper to build up rather than out, and you can cram more houses in if they all have a small footprint.

No-one seems to like them much from a practical perspective, but it's a case of like it or lump it. Pretty soon all these 60's and 70's houses will be massively sought after and command a price premium purely because they have lots of lovely widthways space around them and only two storeys with a proper loft and good parking.

Galley kitchen - shite for a family. Rockeries front and back

I would never dismiss a bungalow because it's a bungalow. I live in one now and it's brilliant.

I would never live anywhere again that involves any kind of management fees for communal areas and I agree about places that need doing up.I shudder at the thought of the money I've wasted on that over the years.

CamelHump- my first purchase aws a 1980s flat- sound proofing was never an issue.
I bought my city centre flat in 1983 ( new -off plan) for £23K.

Ah so many people hate living near a primary school.

I miss the sound of the children playing since we moved .

Reminiscing about those days, as I sit in my semi, down a "quiet" road in a supposedly sought after area.

I'd swap the noise of my neighbours stomping up and down the stairs, screaming, arguing and slamming doors for the sound of children happily playing three times a day at the drop of a hat.

i had no idea the walls of my 1970s semi are so thin!

Are they thin? I hear nothing from my neighbours.

They are, prop yes, i had no idea. I'm glad you don't have the same problem though.

I live is a 1970s house and I hear nothing. My next door neighbour is a singing teacher, plays piano and has a dog. It's so quiet I could hear a pin drop.

Arsenal, I think people hate the pick up/drop off parking free for all rather than the sounds of children playing.

Three storeys are great with older children though.

Mine isn't a modern townhouse but is more than 2 storeys and so we have the best of many worlds re big rooms and lots of floor space, it isn't tiny rooms stacked on top of each other on a weeny plot.

I love how flexible the space is. Ours has been adapted over the years to suit changes to our family.

When we had younger children we were on the same floor as them, with top floor for guests, study, games room.

As the older two reached teen years, they moved to the top floor.

Now the older two have moved out and the youngest is a teen, DH and I have converted the whole top floor to a master suite with full dressing room etc. It is blissful having an entirely private, kids free floor .

I think living in a bungalow would feel very weird to me but they are often on massive plots (relatively speaking) and are great development opportunities, so I wouldn't dismiss one out of hand if it was in the right spot.

Stairs are magical spaces. I remember playing a lot on stairs as a child.

My home atm has lovely stairs, up eight steps then a twist up a few more then a landing, where the stairs split- and continue in two different directions- to the West there are three bedrooms, and to the East two bedrooms and a family bathroom.
We jokingly refer to it as the "East wing" and the "West wing".

Three storey house is perfect for getting away from piano practice. Perfect for teenage privacy. Lots of very good things about three storey houses. Seriously, don't worry about having one, loft conversions are on the rise and people appreciate that extra space at the top of the house which is quieter.

Something I would loathe which I don't think has been mentioned is houses where people park their car right outside their living room, I mean inches from their front window instead of in the road. I would seriously dislike that intensely. A car is hardly an ornament to look at all the time. Claustrophobic via parked car!

I have a classic London house - two rooms on each floor, four floors. The stairs are steep and it is baking in summer but it is awesome.

Totally agree about storage. I went to look at a new build flat (1 bedroom, £175k ish so not cheap) and the estate agent got terribly excited showing me the single storage cupboard, as though this was a fantastic new invention. It was so tiny I felt claustrophobic.