To think a 2 bed house is ok if we only have 1 DC?

[Marghe87]

We are ftb and are looking to buy a place in the next few months or so. We live outside London (work in London so cannot/don’t want to move to other cheaper parts of the country) and our budget can only get us a (nice) 2 bedroom house or potentially a small 3 bed that needs a lot of work.
DH and I would love a 3 bed as we occasionally have family visiting from abroad and it’s useful when working from home, however, it is more a nice to have than an essential. AIBU thinking that perhaps we’d be better off buying a smaller house given we only have 1 DD and do not desire another child?
I feel this pressue from society of having to get the bigger house when in reality 2 bed could potentially be enough for us and if we had a smaller mortgage we could have a better lifestyle and afford more holidays and activities for DD.
What is your view? Anyone on the same boat who has regretted/not regretted doing this?

ps: I appeeciate many people on MN might be from different parts of the country, used to living in massive countryhouses and this sounds like a miserable solution, however, DH is a Londoner and I grew up in a flat being from another EU country (where it is absolutely normal for families to live in flats in the city) so we don’t mind smaller spaces

In that case, I would definitely go for the 2 bed! Ideally you could find one with a dining room or q good place for guests.

Of course it’s fine. Despite this Mumsnet will usually tell you each child needs a double room with en-suite. The room should firstly provide adequate space to
play and sufficient room to house a variety of educational books and wooden toys. As your child grows, the room need to provide a desk and sound proofing for GCSEs as well as enough room to comfortably host their guests, whom you should always welcome with a ‘proper’ dinner and a fully stocked fridge. The west wing should remain theirs until they are married, in case they want to return

you remember your upbringing for the experience, holidays etc - I’d go 2 bed and have spare money. Don’t buy a house for occasional guests

@Grapewrath I almost thought that’s what you were suggesting is an actual need😅

That's totally fine!! Your DD will still have her own room and there'll be plenty of space. Honestly go for the 2 bedroom house, save money. If you're stopping at 1, there really is no need for an extra room.

I live in a tiny 2 bed with 2 teens who have to share despite being male and female 🤷🏼‍♀️

It will be absolutely fine.
Terraced houses tend to have 2 large-ish bedrooms. So you could get your child a regular/4-ft double. Then get one of those pull out singles to go under YOUR bed.
When guests stay, they stay in your child's room, and your child sleeps on the pull out bed on your floor.

We live in a small 2 bed with 2 DDs who share and have always shared. No desire to buy bigger. Location was key for us when buying. Absolutely no regrets.

We also have a very comfortable sofa bed for guests in the living room.

I grew up in a two bed till I was 16, I happily shared a room with my sister.

We have 1 DC and live in a 2 bed and its fine. We have a spare mattress for the living room when people come to visit or people just stay on the couch. We will hopefully be having a second child and no plans of moving because my mortgage would go from £400 to £1000 a month minimum with house prices and rising interest rates. Id rather have the extra cash and live in a small house at the minute.

Two bed is fine. Get a truckle bed for the child’s room which can pull out into a double. If you have guests your child can come in with you for the night, or in the living room (you could put a sofa bed in there as an alternative). Maybe in the future you could get a loft extension on the two bed.

I'd look for a 2 and a box room style 3 bed house. Just gives you that extra storage/potential office space in case of future working from home. There's one on the market near me for £325k that my friend in a similar situ has been eyeing up, possibly a bit far from London though, think it's 50 mins train to Waterloo 😂

Yeah we had a 2 bed when we just had ds1. We moved to a 3 bed when I was pregnant with ds2. Even then, the bedroom size wasn't the issue so much, but it was a very small 2 bed with a tiny lounge and kitchen.