Why wouldn't you research an area before you move?

[GlitterGiraffe13]

This popped up on facebook earlier.. A woman bought a house next to the A446 and is now complaining about the noise from the road..For those who aren't really familiar with the A446 it's a really busy road in Birmingham and is used as an alternative route whenever theres a crash/traffic on both the M42 and M6...

She says;
"Before we moved in we had several viewings that all took place on a Saturday morning which all meant that the road was relatively quiet. We absolutely fell in love with the house,"

There was also another article which says she didn't research the area before she moved?

We're relocating soon and we've spent ages researching the new area, good and bad locations to move to and we're going to go and stay for a few days as soon as we can to get a feel for it? Which I thought was normal behaviour?

Even if that was the only time the estate agent could do (unlikely but how else would they sell the house) why wouldn't you drive past it yourself at different times of day to get a feel for the traffic? She's moved from Kings Heath in Birmingham so it's not exactly far for her to go and scope the place out?

I feel like i've missed something here?

Link:
www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/property/couple-forced-wear-earplugs-bed-20350434

It's nkt like new (and lets be frank many older) builds are know for their great sound insulation qualities...

The thing that stood out most to me in the article was after all the complaining about it and she said she might sell next year if it's no better. How the hell does she think she's going to be able to sell it?

It seems like she jumped at the reduced price as they were desperate to move to a detached house. I kinda get where she's coming from as we were so desperate to get away from noisy neighbours we rushed to move and ended up with neighbours who are just as bad/maybe louder than before.
We did come and have a nosey a few times but it seemed to be making the neighbours edgy so we stopped. We didn't hear any road noise or neighbour noise in the house during viewings but it's been very noisy since we moved in.
That said, we weren't daft enough to buy a house that's on a road like that. I honestly don't know how she could have missed that it would be an issue. Now she's publicised it, god knows how she'll sell it.

It does seem wrong (and terrifying) that a cul Dr sac has been built directly onto that road. I could understand if the access road was on the other side and the estate backed on - but if a motorway needs a slip road on and off, why not a 70mph dual carriageway? Cul de sacs usually attract families with kids, that's not a cul de sac you'd ever want children playing out on.

Also I do sympathise a bit about the lorry noise. I'd lived near busy roads, but you can get used to the noise of steady car traffic. It wasn't until i rented near a road that had a lot of goods traffic that I realised quite how disturbing that can be, lorry rumbles are something else.

I sort of feel sorry for her but she viewed it more than once and even on a Saturday morning there must have been a fair amount of traffic. I have just moved from Essex and lived quite near the A13 which was being widened, they put a lot of things in place to protect the houses running alongside, ie crash barriers and acoustic fencing, tree planting etc. How her house got planning permission needs some serious investigation in my opinion, I would fear for my life just standing the garden.

Do people not have Google maps or street view?

Big road equals traffic. School equals professional and considerate driving and parking. Farms equal noise and smells. Airports may just possibly involve aircraft. And occasionally John McLane going yippee Kai ai. If you're on the unlucky side.

Why do people not do any research on the biggest purchase they're ever going to make???

School equals professional and considerate driving and parking
We all wish.

Nah in all seriousness I was just surprised at the number of cars passing at that time. I expected busy, but this was surprising. To give myself a credit. I did not complain because that would be ridiculous. Unless they block my way out though.

Why would ANYONE buy a house right next to a bloody A road? I wouldn't. I wouldn't even buy one next to/on a B road. In fact, I am probably wouldn't buy on an ordinary main road. Dopey mare she is!

The article is quite sad really because she seems to have really wanted a detached house but moved from a Victorian semi in order to do that.

New build detached houses are often less private than semis in terms of rubbing up against your neighbours, and the sound insulation is usually terrible so they are likely to be noisier on the inside - without this ridiculous pre-existing road situation. But somehow they are considered aspirational.

Don’t get me started on the “aspirational” nature of new build 4 bed 4 en suite houses, where the toilet may as well be in the bedroom. It makes me angry

We were living in Spain when we bought our present house 3 years ago. We didn't know Oxfordshire but saw the house on the net. It fitted our budget and was in a ten mile radius of the school myDGS attended so we could be on hand to help out.

My daughter had a look at the house and we made an offer which was accepted. We didn't actually see the house or village ourselves until just before exchange.

We fell lucky. The village is great and we are happy with the house. It was risky though and it was more good luck than good judgement that it worked.

Well yes, it's greedy and grabby on the part of developers and some developments are open to question as to why they got planning consent at all; but if nobody bought them they wouldn't continue to be built.

That was to Valarie

@GreyhoundG1rl

Well yes, it's greedy and grabby on the part of developers and some developments are open to question as to why they got planning consent at all; but if nobody bought them they wouldn't continue to be built.

Yes I agree! I just don’t know why these aspirations keep going as they are almost certain to end in disappointment (and with that, a diminished quality of life) I suppose it goes back to what PPs said about not doing research, or just hoping for the best...

I drive past that house now and again, and strangely enough remarked to DH last time how awful it would be to live so close to all that traffic!

Bizarre behaviour complaining about it now!

To give her the benefit of the doubt maybe she just assumed that the developers would not have built a housing estate where people would have to use earplugs, so maybe she was naive rather than stupid in that respect. But why didn't she think of the awful traffic fume pollution she would be exposing herself and her family to every day?

I used to have live in accommodation and the house was right next to a busy dual carriageway also, my bedroom window was a close the road as her fence was, literally, the road, small path, house.

I got used to the noise but couldnt have the bedroom window open as it tended to be around 5am when the trucks would be delivering and would wake me up, but mostly never noticed the noise that much - thank God for triple glazing.

My last house, (not work related) the garden backed onto the railway line, again you get used to it and hardly heard the trains. I preferred the train line to the dual carriageway.

Would never buy a house that close to a carriageway, constant noise and the outside of the house was always dirty due to exhaust fumes.

God the husband actually told reporters he works at Rolls Royce. I hope on nothing important, considering how blind and daft he clearly is. He will be getting the piss taken out of him at work, not that she is much better. Both idiots, good luck to them selling it.