Semi-detached with social housing

[Tirednhopeful]

Putting my tin hat on for all the “don’t be rude” replies, but would you buy a house sharing a wall with three council flats?

We are in South East London and are lucky enough to have a detached house currently. But it is too small for our growing family and work needs (genuinely - detached but not huge) and a large house on our dream road has come up that we can afford. Only issue is it shares a wall with three council flats. Looks quite shabby on the outside, and I just have no idea what to expect really.

And yes I’m conscious that you could get bad private owners on the other side of a wall anyway, of course. But realistically what do people think?

Absolutely not and I grew up in a council house

We all own houses - £500 k plus and our bottom fence has a garden and social housing flats on the others side. The flats look like a large house, there is one lad on his own aged 25 had been on housing list for a while, a single mum with 3 primary school age children, a couple with his mum and their two children. We haven’t heard a peep out of them ever!

actually that’s a lie the mum we heard shouting at the eldest to pack it in once over the summer when they had been trampolining for hours. We silently applaud her patience.

So no it wouldn’t bother me / plus you have someone you can complain to if needed but home owners are fair more entitled than renters

It depends. Too many variables.

What size are the flats? 2 bed - potential for up to 5 people per floor (couple of adults, couple of kids and a baby). 1 bed or studio - more likely to be one or two people per floor. Also "Victorian" doesn't necessarily mean anything. We have friends in a Victorian mill workers row who can hear everything next door but the semis the next road over were built for much richer people and have thicker walls.

I guess this is really my question - surely living in a semi-detached where the shared wall was purposefully built that way is very different to having flats above and below you. The houses are huge (4000 square feet!) so I my guess is that they were built for slightly wealthier people and might be solid… it’s just not that often houses of this size that we can afford come along so that’s why I’m considering it I guess…

Having been detached twice I'd struggle going back to having to hear neighbours through the wall
Edited to add... social housing or not! Our last neighbours were stuck up pricks but had annoying loud dinner parties

No - not particularly because they’re council, (although that would cross my mind,) more that 3X neighbours/noise/cars/chances of one set of them being idiots…I’d be inquiring why the vendors are moving.

No. My friend is in a semi with an adjoining house that has been converted into two flats. Upstairs neighbours are a lovely family. Downstairs neighbour has been stored there and ignored for 10+ years despite openly smoking a crack pipe on the doorstep and carrying out a string of anti social behaviour to the neighbouring properties. Nobody in authority is interested, because then they'd actually have to do something and it's much easier to just leave the crack addicted schizophrenic man where he than actually address the issue. Too expensive, too difficult. You'll never get anything sorted if you are unlucky enough to have issues with the social tenants

As someone who grew up in council housing and is currently looking for a ex council property to buy (bigger bedrooms than 1930s semis) I say no. I used to own a 5 bedroom semi next door to two flats and the tenants were a fucking pest. It’s ok dealing with one set of shit neighbours but when you could have 3 individual sets then it’s just too much. I had a woman with learning disabilities who set fire to her stove twice and her peadophile boyfriend as my best neighbours, yep you read that correctly. The nonce was the best of a bad bunch. Then I had the happy hardcore music blasting until 4am incel. Then the worst the drug addicts who would leave their DS with me whilst they knocked lumps out of one another until one had an heart attack and died during a fight and lastly was a drug dealer who’d been in prison for attempted murder. He was a special cunt.
All in all, maybe one set of neighbours i could have coped with, but to have the 2 flats both occupied (and in your case 3 flats) with wronguns it’s too much. And statistically social housing is going to have worse tenants even if that sounds like Im tarring all with the same brush, which Im not, it’s just being realistic.
It’s such a shame because massive semi detached houses are so beautiful. The one I had was, it was just the area was full of antisocial people.

Living next to three flats after the joy of detached is one hell of a risk. I wouldn't do it (as someone who moved out from a Victorian London terrace to a home counties 60s detached to escape shitty neighbours) And I do think the social housing element is relevant. Not because "all social housing residents are nightmares" or whatever, but because you're likely to get more people per flat, simply due to the housing shortage leading to chronic over-occupation. Meaning eg a family of 4 stuffed into a 1 bed because the kids are expected to share while the parents sleep in the living room, etc.

Drive by the area after dark, take a walk around. It depends, my sister bought an expensive new build, there are a few apartments that were sold to a housing body, mostly adults as they’re apartments, there has been some trouble with the tenants and she is planning on moving.
I live in an ex social housing estate, it is mixed, the houses are over 70 years old so the majority of neighbours are settled and from previous generations in the area. It is quiet enough.
If the flats are built a long time it should be more settled.

After several bad experiences I would never buy another home that was attached to others, regardless of whether they were private or council.

Noisy neighbours can make your life hell, no sleep, constant stress, it's not worth it.

I would rather live in a cheaper, less nice home with the peace and quiet that only comes with no adjoining neighbours.

If I couldn't afford to buy an unattached home, I would rather rent until I could, because then you can just move if you have problem neighbours.

Personally i get small house in good area and i wouldn't live next to social housing. Nothing against it. But you have to think of resaleability.. If you have concerns dont do it.. I