To not want to live in a ground floor flat

[Tiredeypops]

Currently flat hunting with DP and saw the most gorgeous flat today (huge for our budget) and he is really keen but the bedroom window looks directly onto the car park and the lounge is onto a communal garden so for me it's too much of a compromise. Has anyone ever lived in a flat like that? Am I overreacting or does having to have curtains drawn the whole time just drive you mad?

Get one-way nets and people won't be able to look in, but you'll still be able to look out :)

Except at night when the lights are on, then you need to draw the curtains.

No I couldn't, not with communal gardens. Wouldn't like children/people coming close to my windows.

Shutters are lovely ... I live in a ground floor flat and my neighbours can see into my bedroom and I get a lot of privacy with mine and still lets the light in.

I wouldn't be worried about people looking in at you - no different from a bungalow or the downstairs of a house. I would be worried about the noise from people living above you.

It would depend on whether I was renting or buying it.

I wouldn't consider ground floor if I was buying. I've lived in several ground floor flats and you're never too far from a slamming communal front door (unless it's lucky enough to have its own entrance). I have been described as a princesses in the past though...

At least it's one garden, and not two car parks! You won't notice the car park much if it's outside the bedroom. Nice to be able to go in and out of the flat without taking the lift.

I’d hate ground floor bedrooms as can’t have windows open at night

Make sure the person upstairs doesn't have a subwoofer if I'd have known that I would have never moved in to my flat

I wouldn’t until I’d checked the crime rates for the area - I know insurance tends to be higher if you’re ground floor as you’re considered more at risk of a break in.
On the plus side, think how easy it’d be to get furniture delivered and in!

Sounds much like the flat we're in at the moment. I got some plain chiffon nets. From the outside, during the day, you can't see in because the sunlight reflects off them. At night we draw the curtains. Its no biggie.

How strict is the communal garden? I have seen people kind of land grab with pot plants outside their windows. That would keep people away from them.

But you might find it is huge for your budget because ground floor is unpopular. Contents insurance is higher, no view ( except car park) reputation for being gloomy inside. Fine if you like it and want to live in it but when you come to sell it might be tricky.

However I would consider noise from upstairs. Ask if the upstairs neighbours have wood or laminate flooring - if they do you'll hear every bloody footstep and every scrape of their chairs across those floors through your ceiling, in stereo ALL THE LIVE LONG DAY!

Renting or buying? I live in a place very similar to what you've described. I love my flat. But if I had the opportunity to buy it, I wouldn't even consider it.

Are you by a communal front door? You will have the lights and noise of the cars in the car park going straight through your bedroom window. Do the neighbours use the garden?

The other thing to consider with GF flats is that you’ll never be able to go to sleep with the windows open. That alone would be a deal breaker for me. Imagine being in a stuffy flat and have to be hermetically sealed in to it!

Don't do it.

I live in a ground floor flat and I love it

My first flat was on the ground floor. Kitchen and bed two at front parking spaces for about 10 cars (brilliant was z2 London), sitting/dining room and bed 1 overlooked large and beautiful communal gardens. Was a small block of 14 flats: grd, 1st and 2nd.

Had it's own front door next to communal doors. Police said was safer than most others as burglars so easily disturbed.

Had sheer matt "nets" v elegant. It was bloody lovely.

A tale that may help your decision: last summer it was swelteringly hot. I decided to leave my bedroom window open a bit and left my blind open slightly to allow the breeze in. When I woke up in the morning, someone literally had his head inside my flat and was looking at me sleeping. He'd seen me by chance on the way to his car and obviously decided to get a good look in.

No opinion about the flat but my dh and I worked out long ago that whom ever had the strongest feelings won the debate. He HATES ground floors so i bowed to him bc its not bothering me one way or another.

We both agree that people are annoying so the more secluded the better.....Maybe I did have an opinion abt your flat.

You can get window locks, so the window will only open a little way and nobody can push it any further from outside...

A bedroom next to a car park - just think of the doors banging and engines starting at all hours of the day and night. Let alone the people sat in the communal gardens on warm summer evenings outside your lounge window.

People climb up the wall and enter flats four storeys up (climbing on the drainpipe etc) so having a window open is risky on any floor. It also depends on the neighbourhood, what it's like.

How many cars are in the car park? You might be constantly disturbed in the morning by people leaving the car park early and in the evening by people getting home late.

No change we went on a caravan holiday once and was put near the carpark it was horrible with all the lights in the bedroom, door sounds and people I had to go in another bedroom!