To move to a bigger/nicer house but in a worse area

[Helen46]

I need some guidance from Mums-netters who’ve been through similar please…

It’s me, DH and very young DS.

-Current house was brought as a starter home and we are outgrowing it (especially as planning to have another DC).

-It’s in an ideal location - near my family, decent schools are close, lots of shops etc.

-It isn’t feasible to extend our current property and house prices in our area have increased beyond what we could afford to pay to suitably upgrade for move space.

-We could afford to move to some other areas in the same town and get a bigger place - not bad areas as such, but not as good as our current one and not got family up the road etc. They aren’t areas we’ve ever thought ‘we want to live there one day’.

DH keen we move and sacrifice our current area for more space. I am reluctant. I think we can make do for 2/3 more years and see where we stand - you never know, somewhere could come up by us that’s affordable. DH says that even if it did, the fact we aren’t on the market means we won’t get a look in as sellers will want someone proceedable or at least on the market.

What do you think - location over house or vice-versa?

YABU - best to look at moving to get more space even though it would be to a worse area
YABU - location over house

No, I wouldn't as then it'll be hard luck when it comes time for school catchment. However it also depends what you mean by bad area though- crime stats? Amenities? Or just not as leafy

The only time I'd do it is if it was a less nice area maybe bordering a less nice area and there were good local schools or even CofE schools if you attend church/are religious - as their catchment could be larger. Or if the area was fine, good schools, just not as well connected

It's says YABU for both options. Personally I'd choose location until impossible not to.

Don’t do it. You can’t choose your neighbours. If it’s worse area, house prices are lower for a reason.

Oops second one was meant to say - YANBU

Ten years ago we moved to the outskirts of an area that doesn’t have a good reputation. We moved for the house, built by a higher end builder, but affordable because of the location. The same sort and size of house in a different area was out of our price range.

It was fine to begin with. We were far enough away from the less desirable area that it didn’t affect us. As time went on, it became more problematic. Our upmarket ( according to the builder) quiet street became a rat run, anti social behaviour and theft increased significantly, cars and houses were targeted nearly every night and the town centre is unpleasant to say the least.

We moved at the end of last year.

The schools aren’t too bad in the other areas, I guess I mean less walks, have to drive to find shops rather than able to walk etc

The first consideration in all of this is a school place for your young child. That to me determines a move now or later. How far is the new location from where you currently are?

Things to consider, going onto Rightmove now, putting in your current location, number of beds and max price you could currently afford and reverse the search, ie low to high, see what might be a project.

It has been a long time since I had to think about this next one but how much does having another child impact your borrowing potential? Could you ring up a mortgage broker such as London and Country (free) and ask?

For the potential new area, how are the schools? I will tell you what we did, stayed in a too small house to get Ds2 into the outstanding primary then moved into catchment for an outstanding secondary. The area was cheaper because the primary school was awful, that is literally it. However, it is now an outstanding primary and the house prices have shot up to match as we now fall under outstanding primary, secondary and sixth form.

It is all well and good saying location but you could potentially get stuck in that house forever if the next jump becomes too big and you can't afford it. Happened to my friend and her 15 year old 6'5" son is in a box room. The bedrooms are the only space to hang out in as the downstairs has no additional space. The plot is too small to extend or build into the loft due to the small footprint. It truly is a starter home.

Realistically work on the basis that house prices will probably go up and up.

I wouldn’t do it. Stay for as long as you can in the better area for reasons already mentioned.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION.
I'd contemplate a move further away in an area as nice or nicer but cheaper by virtue of being further from a main town. I would not move to a worse part of town for a bigger property.

When you say worse area - what do you mean?

Because there's a helluva lot difference between an area that just hasn't had its bloom or has poor transport links to an area where it's primarily rental properties, high crime, lots of HMO, people don't care about their properties, the area isn't "looked after" etc. I think as someone mentioned above, you can't choose your neighbours, so if the category of the people classes as "what you would say worse" then I'd avoid.

There's lots of things that can fall into "worse area"

Kirsty and Phil didn't do Location, Location, Location for no reason!

I am the opposite. 5 bed house in ordinary but not bad area. House would be 25% more cost in neighbouring well known area. The neighbouring area is somewhere foreigners with lots of money, celebrities go to live as it’s got a name. It depends, I wanted room and long term living, Also, the secureness of the house is important, ours is gated with high fences and walls, good security system and cameras, neighbourhood on WhatsApp with each other, anything that could happen in the area has little impact on us tbh and it’s the neighbouring area that is more targeted for burglaries etc.

Depends on school catchment first of all. Then whether the location is central enough - easy to get where you need to be. Then whether the location is rough around the edges but alright, or genuinely unpleasant/unsafe.

The vote will be completely confused as people will vote before reading your other posts.

To answer your dilemma, then school catchment would make the decision for me. If I were in the catchment for a good school, I wouldn't move to somewhere we would be unlikely to get into that school, for some extra space in the house.

Never move to a less nice area! You’ll regret it. Having pleasant people around you is priceless.

What’s the cost of moving going to be.estate agents, solicitors, stamp duty etc. better to spend the money gaining yourself more space in your current home.

I had a similar dilemma following a divorce. Either 4 bedroom property in a worse area or 3 bedroom in a nicer area. I opted for the latter even though I have 4 children and they now need to share. One year on, I am super happy with my decisions and we’ve all adapted to a smaller house. Kids are happy, neighbours are lovely, the area feels safe (especially with my teens being more independent), plus I love not having such a huge mortgage. Just need to be organised and have good storage if possible. No regrets.

Always go for the worst house in the best location

Location, location, location. You buy in the best area you can afford. This helps (usually) to safeguard your investment.

this is also why searches are so important when buying. What surrounds the house is more important than just the house itself.

buying in a bad area for less money means your house will not appreciate in value and may be difficult to sell in the future

rather, look for something in the best area you can afford that you can make changes to in order to better suit your needs. Even if it is a house that can grow with you through the years. OR you live in for a while and trade up when you can.

look at the history of similar homes in the area for how they appreciate (or depreciate) in value over time.