To buy a 3 storey house

[Trillis]

Posting for traffic.

DH and I seriously looking at buying a 3 storey new build. It has a master suite on top floor, other bedrooms on middle floor and enough living space on ground floor. However, DH is a bit concerned about the layout. It's plenty spacious enough, but he isn't keen on us being on the top floor, mainly because he would prefer to be between kids and any intruders. And because there isn't a loft (our current one is full). It's also next to a big patch of open grass, which could be a good thing (the garden is like a postage stamp) or a bad (local kids congregating there).

Would any of you have concerns about the layout? Would a 3 storey house put you off? Or the open land at the side? There are loads of new builds going up in the same area if that makes a difference.

For background, our main issue is that the house isn't actually where we want to live so we'd want to sell up after about 8 years. We're therefore really concerned about saleability. We are only considering it because we've been looking for several years now and haven't found anything we can afford which has enough space and is on a bus route. We are in a rural county, very poor bus service and I currently spend up to 2 hours each day ferrying kids around (thats driving time, not waiting for them time). Kids are secondary age so could get themselves around if there was a bus. We also have nightmare neighbours we are desperate to get away from.

I suppose my AIBU is AIBU to buy a house that has a layout we aren't sure will put people off buying it in the future, in an area we don't really want to live, just because it's convenient for DCs schools?

Thanks!

We lived in a new build 3 storey.

Neighbours had the same house. One night they got broken in to. Kid was sleeping in the middle floor and they were sleeping on top floor.

Didn't put the alarm on.

Took off with both cars.

The following day a locksmith was hired to change the locks on practically the whole street.

The locks that they put on newbuild houses are extremely cheap and piss easy to break. Get a good locksmith. We paid a few hundred for one lock which was made up a five other locks.

Oh I would also advise it maternal locks on doors too.

We are looking at a newbuild again and those are the first priorities.

Paid over 1k to put internal locks at our current rented home. It's dead money but gives us peace of mind

They've built a couple of these in my village. Houses with five bedrooms over three floors - but no outdoor space for the kids to play or anywhere to hang washing or let the dog out.

At the moment they are lived in by families with older children - who, presumably, are nagged ceaselessly for constantly being on their X Boxes and not 'going out to play'.

I imagine the sound of three teenagers hurtling up and down all those flights of stairs at all hours might get a big much too.

We live in a 4 story Victorian terrace and I absolutely love the flexibility and space multiple floors gives you. There’s always a peaceful part of the house despite having a noisy toddler.

Thanks for the tip about locks Fizzy, I had thought of changing external locks, but it's one of those things I might think "oh, I'll do next week" and then not get around to.

For those asking why move to an area we don't really want to be in, it's simply a compromise between living semi-rurally with associated appalling public transport links where we have to ferry the kids everywhere, or living on the edge of a town with a regular bus service they can use instead. Once the kids can drive/have moved out, we can move to where we would prefer to be. Also, the part-ex offer on our house means the purchase/sale will be less stressful. We lost the only 2 houses we have really liked due to our not having a buyer at the right time.

We sleep on the middle floor of our 3 storey house, even though the master suite is on the top floor. I don't want to be above my kids - fire, intruders, numerous reasons. We bought the house with that plan in mind though.

I think 3 storey houses can be a bit of a niche market when it comes to selling, but they do sell. They can provide flexible living if you don't mind lots of stairs. I wouldn't want to sleep on separate floor to my kids personally unless they were older children.
The patch of land would concern me. I have two friends who have moved into new builds facing wasteland/communal land. One was supposed to become a new park/play area for the estate. Years on it never happened and is an overgrown eyesore that attracts kids from the estate messing about on. The other friend moved as it attracted kids, who weren't a problem at their young age, but she was worried it would become a nuisance as they grew into teenagers. Also there was a fairly hefty annual ground rent to pay for this communal ground to be maintained (and not always very well) That's definitely worth finding out about as it's apparently quite common on new estates

We've just moved from a 3 storey that sounds similar. We lived happily there for 11 years. Now we have to lock our bedroom door as we can't hear dc coming up the stairs!

Initially I was concerned re dd sleeping on a different floor but we were downstairs half the night then upstairs the other half and it was never an issue (it becomes normal).

I love my three story house. My dm alwAys says how bad it is but we love it. Its like an extra hidden floor.

@Trillis are you in Norfolk?

We have pretty much what you describe & love the house. We have a huge bedroom & en suite & DC have big bedrooms on the second floor. Ours was lacking in downstairs space though so we recently looked to move but hated all the bigger traditional houses & non of them had the bedroom space we currently enjoy so we're in the process of extending instead.
We also changed our front door as the old one was shit & pissed cold air in-reliably informed it's a pretty difficult door to get through so don't really have intruder concerns.
The difference for me to you though is we also love the area we're in.

Not in Norfolk @kangar00

Thank you again all who have responded. Some real food for thought here.

Trillis

A friend of mine lives in a 3 storey house. She told me she regrets it as she hates walking up all the stairs. She uses the 3rd floor as a dumping ground. Is the problem with your neighbours so bad that you would have to declare it?

We've got a three storey house backing onto playing fields. Love the views from rear of house. Get dog walkers and children playing football behind but not any dark goings on that I've seen. We were concerned about the security element so have house alarm and lockable windows. If burglars want to get in they will do it field or not I assume but it would make it easier to burgle I agree. We use our garage as storage and you do keep a lot less stuff when you can see it. Our DS is on the top floor so we don't have that issue.