People who design houses should have to live in them!

[SweetMoon]

Went to view a new build yesterday on a new development. Nice looking house but there was a major WTF moment with its design.

It was a town house over 3 floors and had 4 bedrooms. 3 Bedrooms were ensuite. Bedroom 4 was the smallest bedroom and then right next to it a massive family bathroom. But the other bedrooms all had decent size ensuites, including 2 with baths so basically the only bedroom using the massive bathroom would be the small bedroom 4.

Why not just make that en suite aswell? Or better yet, use bedroom 3's big ensuite as the family bathroom (it could be accessed from the landing if a door put in) and have the massive bathroom as another bedroom or a study?

Or am I missing something? There was a seperate toilet on the ground floor for guests, so bathroom wouldn't even be used by a visitor.

Although quite a big house there was also nowhere to store your hoover or a broom or anything as no tall cupboard or even a space where they can stand. That was a little odd. The downstairs loo was huge, so again could easily have been half the size and then a lovely cupboard could have been next to it there.

AIBU to think people that design these new houses should be made to live in them for a month afterwards so they can realise all the little things that are just odd!

Nope, YANBU but re the downstairs loo, it will be massive becasue it has to be accessible to wheel chair users. I moved into a new build last year and the utility room is smaller than I would like (I wanted room in it to put a tall cupboard for hoover storage etc) but right next door is a sizeable downstairs loo, it bugs me the way the space is divided but that’s the way it has to be

I agree with that mostly but sometimes you have to abide by guidelines set by the council on space standards (the minimum area that each room has to be. Also with new build houses ground floor toilets must be able to accommodate a wheelchair as they have to be designed as lifelong homes, hence why your toilet probably feels so big to you. I can't comment on your house specifically but again, houses usually must have a family bathroom which is usually the biggest bathroom in the house and that is again usually linked to the smallest bedroom as the bigger bedrooms are more likely to be used daily, therefore making ensuites for them more practical for day to day use. Planning architects do sometimes draw layouts that can be a little hard to understand why they have put things where they have but when the Building Regulations (construction package) are drawn up any major problems are ironed out unless it is a council planning decision.

There's little things in our new build like the position of radiators which make fitting furniture into the room quite awkward. We wanted a cabinet or sideboard in the dining room but between windows, doors and radiators, we only actually have space for a small unit.

And that's my first world problem of the day...

When we bought our last sofa the salesman said that people in town houses are having loads of issues buying furniture as it doesn't fit and they can't even get them inside.

I always wanted to be an architect. I reckon I would have been pretty bloody good at it too, as I've got some common sense.

Yes, there are building regs that need to be adhered to, however, I don't think any planning department would object to making room sizes bigger by getting rid of an unnecessary bathroom.

YANBU. They are usually designed ridiculously. We went to look at a new build that had a dedeicated closer for a washing machine but nowhere to put a dryer-wtaf? Why couldn't they put the washing machine in the kitchen and the dryer in their 'utility closet'?

They’re called architects. And they get hired and told what the client wants. Sounds like the client aka the developer, decided the target market wasn’t looking for 4 double side bedrooms with small ensuites but 3 double sizes bedrooms and a box room to use as office space.

There’s usually a lot of thought behind this as they try to accommodate the widest target market to maximise their chances of selling the house.

New builds never seem to have adequate storage.

We all want different things - although this wouldn't work for you, maybe it would for others?

OTOH they do have plenty of electrical sockets!

Whoever converted my house from the cowshed it evidently once was, must have done so before electricity was a 'thing'. I have about six sockets in the whole house, and the place is a mass of trailing extension cables and double plugs.

Why not just make that en suite as well Well that sounds sensible.

Is this the norm now, a bathroom per bedroom? Will people not even share bathrooms with members of their own family? Or is the house aimed at house sharers so there's 4 people (or couples) who each have their own bedroom and bathroom?

Out of interest, which room was largest, the small Bedroom 4 or the 'massive family bathroom'?

I agree that good storage cupboards are a must. Our house is far from perfect but one thing we do have is good storage - a big walk in cupboard both upstairs and downstairs above and below the stairs. There is also a large brick shed outside (post war council house).

I hate en suites. I'd much rather have larger bedrooms and a couple of normal bathrooms than several en suites in a house.

New builds will always have a family bathroom rather than all bedrooms having an ensuite, it's just how they are designed. And yes, the architects will have very little say in design, other than planning/building regulation criteria the client will have all of the say. If you are planning on buying a new build home the best thing to do is buy from plan and then make the changes that you want before it is built. Yes this will cost a little bit more but it will mean you actually get what you want as long as it is possible.

Conversions are different as they have less guidelines but all work has to be safe and not damage the integrity of the building, a lot more complicated basically.

I don't get the whole en suite thing at the expense of living space. How many toilets does a family need? We currently have an en suite off the master, which is handy, but I'd much rather have had a cupboard or a bigger room!!!
I remember viewing new build houses recently and had to dismiss one because we couldn't fit our king size bed in the biggest room but there was a massive hallway? Just why??

I know they have to build houses to sell, but ffs they could be a bit more sensible sometimes with layout and the available space.

5 toilets to clean......!

This is a bit of a derail, but I totally do not understand the proliferation of bathrooms in these new builds. One per bedroom just seems ridiculous. Surely the space could be better used?!

Most people buying houses want one bathroom per bedroom if possible (obviously not everyone does but the majority do) so people will design it that way in order for them to sell more easily. I am in agreement that it is silly and i'd rather have more storage or bigger rooms but most people don't seem to feel that way.

My downstairs toilet is off the utility room and I definitely wouldn’t say it’s big enough for a wheelchair user. They would have to wheel in backwards through the utility room, into the toilet and then leave the door open! Is that English planning regs you’re going by? Maybe Wales is different. Our plug sockets are higher though for ease of access, and the light switches are just above door handle height.

Just seen a posting for new apartments (flats) being designed & marketed especially for older people. They have a tiny bathroom with a bath, not a shower. Photos don't even show handrails. Most older people I know need a shower as they can't get out of a bath. So why put a bath in???

^^ that's in England. Sockets are higher but I couldn't see anything else that would make things easier for older people. The only concession seems to be a communal lounge.

I wonder how many of these ensuites get converted into walk in wardrobes? Especially seeing as bedroom space can sometime be a bit limited and even getting a bed and a wardrobe in can be a struggle.

In my experience it's way too many toilets and absolutely no storage. God knows who designs them but it's clearly nobody who's ever had to run a home!

Yes, I am talking about Building Regulations in England, don't know what the rules are for Wales so not sure if they are different. I am not sure about designing for specifically older people, as far as I know there are no rules just for them. But yes, unless the bath is a walk-in one where the side panel has a door that opens then I agree, a shower would be so much better.

We rented a new build for a while and my pet hate was the interior stud walls everywhere which meant you could hear anyone peeing anywhere in the house!!!

Very glad to come home to bricks walls.