To want the bigger house in the less than perfect location

[Woodlandwalks]

We put our house on the market specifically for a house that came up in exactly the village we want to be in. It's where we used to live when we were renting and loved it but as first time buyers, we couldn't afford to stay there. The house is very run down (hence we can afford it) and would need completly updatng and we don't have a lot of money to play with so it would take a long time to get it how we wanted but certainly liveable.
We put an offer in Saturday which, long story short, we now think was accepted but we never actually heard back to confirm this though we've now seen the house is listed as sold STC on Rightmove (we offered what they asked for after a bit of negotiation but then as they were going to confirm, we never heard from them again so have had all weekend thinking they're biding their time before they accept.) Because of this, we started reviewing our options again and have come back to a much larger property we also looked at in a perfectly lovely area but not the perfect location for us (aesthetically speaking, practically minimal difference for work etc.)
We went and saw it a few weeks ago before we had sold to keep options open but dismissed it because it was not in the dream location.
But after the anti-climax of not knowing what happened on Saturday (the agent said he'd call right back with confirmation that we'd bought it and then nothing), we have thought about it again and it really could be a very nice home and it is a lot bigger and it needs less work doing to it immediately which would be easier as we have a young baby.

My husband thinks we should buy the smaller house but now I'm really not convinced. It's end of terrace Vs detached, only marginally bigger than our current property with a smaller living room and whilst both only have 1 toilet there's scope to easily put in 2 more in the existing bigger property where we would have to actually extend before we could put in another in the summer house. My husband keeps saying Location Location Location which I do get but we're only on baby number 1 and would like another child one day and as lovely as the villiage is, we'll spend most time actually inside the house. AIBU to want the bigger house?

I think the hurt and disappointment about "the" house is getting in the way, tbh.

Ring the agent on Monday, find out for sure.

Draw up a list of what you need in a house - space, proximity to schools, budget, honest appetite for renovation. how important is a particular village etc, and go from there.

Don't underestimate the cost/time involved in major renovations. Is it realistic to do the work yourselves? I would get another viewing on the smaller house and take a builder with you to obtain a quotation on all the work needed. Bear in mind that you will likely uncover other problems as you go along. Tbh, it sounds like neither property is right for you. Perhaps you need to explore other options or wait until something else comes up.

Also the bigger village has very regular buses into the large towns so great for when the children are a bit older and want to go shopping or to the cinema with friends, or go to college without having to rely on me to drop them off. (The sleepy village has one bus a week into the bigger village on a Thursday at 11.30 and back at 2.30!)

Thank you, general consensus seems to be the bigger house. I agree about the renovation work being a hassle and definitely not something I personally want to be doing but husband is very keen and convinced it won't be as difficult as I think it will be. There is work to be done on the bigger house but only for our personal taste and a bit of updating rather than a full project that needs to be done straight away. I do really worry about how much work the small house needs doing to it immediately with a small baby. Having had a lockdown baby, I'm only not starting to be able to feel I can do more and enjoy our time together with her so I don't want to spend the rest of my maternity leave stressing about doing up a house. I think we maybe got caught away with the fact that the house is in the right place but is it really the right house... I just don't think so. But have to convince my husband.

Only now starring, not not 🤦🏻‍♀️

Starting!!!!! Dear God!

We moved to a bigger house in a less desirable area. It’s literally 10 mins from our old house in a “nicer” bit but we went down a postcode 😂 I love our house, and I’m glad we moved. people can be very snobby when they hear the name of where I live now. I have no regrets.

Detached every time.

You just have to stand up for what you want and not go along with the 'dream' of a house in the tiny village, because sadly, it sounds like you can't really afford to live there.

I know 'they' say buy the worst house in the best location, but if you can't afford to make it liveable, the shine of the nice village is going to wear off pretty quickly.

Plus there's the time, energy and motivation factor. Are you keen DIYers and/or OK to be sourcing/managing tradespeople who might not turn up to give quotes etc? If not, you might effectively end up living in a shack for years on end.

You put in an offer on Saturday and now it's early Monday morning and you're considering your other options? I'm confused by this timescale! It's not even office hours yet. I would never expect estate agency over a weekend Is that normal where you are? I'm in Scotland where offers are through a solicitor.

Anyway I hope you get the place you want and it all works out well for you!

If the detached has parking and a good garden I'd go for that

I’d go for the bigger house in the bigger village. You may love a small sleepy village now, but it may be less appealing when your DC are older, are bored because they have no local friends and you are constantly driving them around.

The next available house to buy in the same village is £130k more expensive.

I'm not sure I'd want to live in the worst house in a village.

Bigger detached house for now, better for the children when they get older as more space in the house and a larger village will have more for them do/more friends etc. If you really don't like it, you can downsize to 'sleepy' later.

Post Covid, everyone wants and needs more space for home working etc. a smaller house will limit this so your market for selling the 'sleepy' house might actually be more limited.

Also, in my experience, children/teens play out less and less these days so much is online. I would very much prioritise internal space (and have done and don't regret it)

Detached house every time. I’m in a semi at the moment and really wish I was detached. As kids get older you don’t have to worry about noise or music, shouting, late night gaming in bedrooms next to namers. Detached every time.
You don’t really get to know a village until you liv e in it. Sound here it looks like there’s nothing going on but there’s lots once you get get there. Do either have pubs? That would be another decider for me .

It sounds like you dont actually like the smaller house. You just got caught up with the idea that a house you can afford came up in the village you want. If that house came up in any other town you wouldnt want it.

If you have no money left for renovations it will be stressful and take a long time and at the end of it you still wont have a house you love and which suits you long term, it will just be in the right village.

I would definitely go for the bigger house.

We were in a similar position. Renting in a wonderful village but couldn't afford a decent sized house - we could get into a 2 bed that needed fixing up.

Then we found a lovely new 4 bed in a different village but not as nice a village - nothing wrong there is just not much there.

We went with the bigger house and we now love our location. We have a great community around us that has helped us all survive lockdown and anything we need is within driving distance.

We went down a postcode in a city though, and are literally yards from the better postcode we wanted. We have the advantage of the wonderful school and the house has a massive garden which has been a godsend recently. We might have got a slightly larger house for the same price but with a tiny yard and we do use the outdoor space all the time.

Both my builder/property developer BILs would be firmly of the opinion that you go for the worst house in the better area than vice versa, as that is where you make the biggest potential gain; and a small house can easily (for them!) be made bigger/improved.

But for me, the hassle of renovations would simply not be worth it, the benefits of detached are huge and I'd want a home, not a business plan.

I'd go for the larger one.

I moved from the big newbuild detached in the less desired location to the smaller house in our dream town. I still miss my old house and all it’s lovely space and insulation now. We moved here because I wanted to have village school, shops and amenities in walking distance and yes that has been great. But the kids have outgrown the school, feeding the ducks, the swings etc long ago now and most activities involve us getting in the car or on the train to out of town places or the nearest city (nearer to house 1!) I’ve also never made as many friends in town 2 as its nowhere near as friendly as the one in Merseyside was.
Take the bigger house!

Another vote for detached, bigger and less work. You have a new baby, both of you should be wanting to spend time as a family. Your husband would become consumed by a large renovation project.

I know people love to bleat location, location, location here, but come on they're 3 miles apart?! We're not talking a crime ridden cesspit vs ofsted outstanding catchment area. What can that village offer that's really worth you being in a less desirable house by quite some distance from the descriptors? How much time would be spent enjoying the house vs spent enjoying the village?

We are taking a bigger leap moving 20 miles from a mumsnet naice place to a Mumsnet favourite "dump". Lockdown has really opened our eyes, our postcode snobbery is literally costing us double the square footage we can get and our happiness. The undesirable area has excellent schools, good amenities, on a train line to London, it's just ugly! But 4 months in lockdown has taught me we need to be comfortable at home, we rarely go into town except to shop as we like to go out and explore other places anyway, and it's not like we are compromising on education quality or anything like that, nor are you.

So it may not be as much of an investment if it doesn't need as much work or if it's a less desirable postcode, but which house will you be happier in?

Go for the bigger house. You’ll love the area eventually if the only reason you are hesitating is because it’s unfamiliar and larger than you’re used to.

We bought a larger house further out than we originally intended as it’s what we could afford. & definitely glad we did. We’re not on top of eachother, could convert a few rooms to work space for us/children. It’s just lovely being in our house. Also chose it as there’s less to do up, we will eventually do the house up to how we want but the decor and everything was near pristine when we moved in so it’s not an urgent uncomfortable can’t live with situation.

Getting a smaller fixer upper can be exhausting. DP bought a fixer upper and was still fixing it up when he sold up seven years later!

Bigger house gets my vote.

When you say location of smaller house is more desirable...do you mean generally or just more desirable for you and your DP? I would think that not everyone is attracted to a sleepy village and actually the other location might be more desirable with greater facilities etc?

Have either/both of you been thinking about the bigger house since you saw it? If it offered a lot more house and it was only the location that was not quite right I would have expected it to have been in your thoughts a fair bit.

If it wasn’t then are you sure it was just the location that was the issue? There will be other houses that come on to the market, maybe neither of these are right for you?