To not want to move into a house?

[SnotRag81]

I’ve always lived in flats. DH and I currently live in a 2 bed flat with DS and we’re now in the position to move to somewhere bigger. I’ve looked at a few flats and when I showed DH he rolled his eyes and said “will you stop looking at flats, we want a house”. I don’t!! I’ve always lived in flats and I have no desire to change that.
DH says a house will give us outdoor space but neither of us are gardeners so what’s the point? There is always a park nearby for fresh air.

DH is refusing to discuss it further saying he isn’t moving into another flat. AIBU?

Of COURSE YABU. Who the hell would choose to live in (and BUY) a flat when you have the option of a house? No brainer. Of course a house is better.

I would love to move from our flat but financially we can’t afford a house - I would love a garden as we would love to adopt a dog 🥲

Flats are much more common in Scotland. Beautiful, large tenements flats (not just in the cities, but in the older established towns eg Stirling) with large rooms and (in many cases) original features. Also, often with a real sense of community:- families, older people, younger adults all living separately but in community (chats on the stairs) and available for each other. I much prefer that to a small modern house on a "family" estate, often well out of town (need a car) and quite isolating unless you are in the that age demographic Most people could never afford to buy (or upkeep) an older house which offers the type of spacious accommodation which a traditional Scottish tenement flat offers.

Living in a freehold property is worth it. We looked at both last year and really wanted freehold if possible, not a share of freehold

We lived in a 2 bed flat until our DC1 was 4, then we moved to a house. But lots of relatives are raising families in flats and it's fine. Personally I think apartment living was much more convenient - stairs are a real pain with young dc and it was lovely to wheel a sleeping baby into a lift and leave them in the hall to nap (we still do that now but have to bump the buggy up a few steps). We didn't have a garden with our old flat but I know lots of families with garden flats so not sure why people automatically assume you wouldn't have a garden in a flat. Neighbour noise is worse in our current Victorian house than it was in our modern flat

The main reason we got a house was because we wanted freehold and to have more freedom to modify, e.g change room layout which is harder in a flat (but not impossible), and also for future gains as houses increase in value more than flats. I also feel like the property is "ours" properly as it's a freehold.

Generally flats are cheaper than houses, and location is more important for me. If living in a flat was the only way to live in a nice location then I'd opt for location every time. But if you can afford a house in the same quality of location it seems a bit short-sighted financially to opt for a flat over a house.

Depends on a flat! Definitely would prefer a nice spacious newbuild flat with noise insulation and lots of storage and a terrace/balcony to your average house on 2-3-4 levels with multiple stairs, and zero noise insulation and energy efficiently. Cities like London - definitely a flat. A small family with one dc - nothing wrong with a flat. A house makes sense for a bigger family and suburban living.

I prefer flats too, we’re moving into a house as my husband already owns it, I would much much rather we sold it or rented it out and lived in a flat instead.

Surely it depends. When we moved we could either afford a maisonette in a nice area or a house in a shit area. For us it was a no brainer to live in the nice area and I've never regretted it.

Or you could compromise and look at maisonettes? Then you get the best of both worlds.