For those of you that live in a Victorian terrace...

[Wondermule]

Do you regret buying it? I know houses are all different but just trying to get a feel for how high maintenance they are.

And if you do regret it, what sort of house would you go for next time?

TIA

No I love mine, what are you worried about exactly?

No regrets here! I'm in a late 1800s housr. I'd rather live here than in a crappy new build.

I hope our next home will be Georgian. That's the dream.

No regrets, I love it.

Have been looking for a new house recently as we have more money but I just keep being drawn to similar houses but more nicely decorated. Perhaps we'll just do this one up instead!

Grew up in one and live in one... like most the houses round here. Not remarkable really I’d say. Probably not your thing if you’re obsessed with neatness, straight lines and matching... otherwise fine.

I love an older house. I currently have a 1930s house, but have lived in Victorian and Edwardian, all of which were lovely. The little features are gorgeous and you get wonderful high ceilings.

Wouldn’t really want a new build (or anything newer than my current house really) personally.

Nope. Moving from a Victorian terrace to a Victorian semi. Love them.

@sbhydrogen Georgian houses are fabulous!

I like mine but the walls are too thin.

Love mine but it’s of smallish size so doesn’t get cold and draughty. Also we got a proper extensive survey done before buying. We are doing the loft so we know that the money we spend will just go on top of value of the house. The location is great. The ceilings are lovely and high. We are lucky in that our neighbours are great and also young families - there is some noise that comes through. We have a new baby and I would have felt very self conscious about this if I hadn’t heard next door’s 6 year old having tantrums so many times.

I've lived in two Victorian terraces since 1996.

I don't exactly regret it as there's not much choice for houses where I live (London) but I feel in my gut that my next house won't be a Victorian terrace.

Reasons:

1. The deep narrow layout of the house. The very tiny hallway. The kitchen out in the back extension can feel a distance from the rest of the house (where children might be playing for eg).

1. Terraces are awful if you want major works done in the garden.

1. Neighbour noise.

1. You don't get a nice wide aspect out into the garden unless you do the side return extension (very costly) and the bi-fold doors thing.

1. And yes they can be costly to upkeep unless the person before you has done a huge refurb in which case they will be on the market at very high premium prices.

1. There is not a bay window in the land that doesn't have a damp or cracking issue and they create a weird wasted space in a room.

I want my next house to be a more square 60s build, still usually have large rooms, usually a better aspect onto the back garden. With side access.

My house is also 1890’s and I love it! Love the really high ceilings and period features some of which we put back in (coving, corbels). It’s really cosy too as it’s a terrace, don’t hear the rain or wind unless it’s really bad. We renovated before we moved in so all wiring, plumbing and floors etc have been renewed so no maintenance issues. We also replaced the 1970’s aluminium windows with sash ones (unfortunately could only afford uPVC) and they look great. I would choose a Victorian house every time 😁

Get a structural survey done if you’re looking at Victorian terraces so you should know if there are any issues.

I’ve brought two Victorian terraces but had been looking at new both times. In the areas I had been looking the room sizes in new build tended to be smaller especially the bedrooms.

I dream of a Victorian terrace! I love them. Only thing I always wonder is how noisy they are in terms of neighbours. Are the walls think though? We’re currently in a detached so I don’t know if it’ll be a shock.

**Thick enough!!!

I don’t own one but I do rent one, in fact it’s the second rental in a Victorian terrace I’ve had. Prior to that I had always lived in 1960s houses.

I don’t know whether they are all like the ones I have lived in but because of the walls having no cavity they are quite hard to keep warm. I feel it as soon as the heating goes off. The one I love in now has had a good bit of money spent on it (redone completely from the wiring up) and is in very decent nick but my landlord has to do what I would say is a fair amount of maintenance. The bathrooms have both been downstairs too, straight off the kitchen which isn’t really ideal.

If I were ever lucky enough to buy a house I probably wouldn’t go for a Victorian terrace because of the maintenance and the heating costs (and this one is fairly well insulated) and the rooms are quite small compared to my previous experiences of 1960s council houses. They were always very solid, big rooms, straighter lines and easier to keep warm. Less character though. I don’t hate the terrace it just wouldn’t be my first choice.

My first choice would be a detached large house in a semi rural location but I need to get a grip if I think that’s ever going to happen 🤣

@Wondermule

Do you regret buying it? I know houses are all different but just trying to get a feel for how high maintenance they are.

And if you do regret it, what sort of house would you go for next time?

TIA

We bought one that we rent out, also something needs doing to it, endless money pot

I live in one - my only problem is my neighbours have a very badly trained dog that they don’t look after properly and it barks 24-7. That is ruining the house for me at the moment but the neighbours on the other side don’t bother us at all so it’s not so much the house as the extreme level of the noise. But maybe something to think about - see if you can scope out what it’s like, I sort of wish now we had visited a few more times and hung about on the street as he barks so constantly we’d probably have noticed it.
We love the high ceilings and the fireplaces etc. We will need to put in some double glazing at some point.

I love mine except for the narrow poky hall. And the tendency to damp. But I love Victorian/Edwardian terraces - they feel like proper houses to me.

Love it.

Downsides: noise carries so we feel sorry for our poor neighbours...

Awful parking

The one thing I'd change is having access to the garden which isn't through the house - we back onto a steep railway cutting and have no alleyway.

Oh cross posted and can see that noise can be an issue.

@Chicchicchicchiclana I do like the bay window though, no problems with one at all (but has been recently replaced) and the tv fits nicely in that space.

Nope. We started in a Victorian terrace and moved up to a 3-story Victorian semi. All houses need work and (IMO) Victorian houses start by being better built than new one.

I don't regret it, exactly, but I would dearly love something modern. I adore modern architecture.

My house is 1880's and I've lived here for nearly 40 years.

Its a house - nothing more nothing less - you spend as much on refurbishment as you want. Most homes around here had major work done in 80's and 90's to bring them up to standard so even if nothing more has been done there will be little different to a house that old. I don't know how widespread it was but all but two houses in my street got done. Since then any work has been cosmetic by choice.

Major problem - parking. Cannot get away from it parking is a major pain in the neck. Most houses are a car length wide but most houses have two cars.