Help no hallway

[GoldTurtle]

Me and my partner have been looking for our first home. After many viewings we finally think we have found our dream house but 1 thing that we both thought needed was a hallway to make it perfect. I've attached the floor plan any ideas on creating a hallway would be appreciated and the costs.

You have got one, it's just very short! Think about what you want it for, as that will influence potential solutions.

Moving a staircase is very expensive and disruptive. It usually involves knocking out a supporting wall, which means you have to put RSJs in and is definitely not a DIY job.

Alternatively, if you really really want a hallway to parade down as you enter your home - you could repurpose the garage?

I sectioned a strip out of my living room by building a wall out of Kallax units from Ikea.

The storage units are accessible from the 'hall' or the living room. The 'hall' is vinyl and the living room carpet.

I rent though, so I couldn't actually build a proper wall.

Gives me somewhere to take shoes and coat off and temporarily dump the shopping though.

We were having second thoughts too. As we haven't put in an offer because of the hallway issue. The property had been on the market and sold but 6 months down the line the sale fell through. Now reduced by 2%😬 It was a defo move in home

Yes that's a very annoying layout. The living room is effectively a corridor to the rest of the house and you're limited in what you can do layout wise.

Do you plan to keep the garage? I would be tempted to rearrange the kitchen into the garage and create a door so that you can circulate the house without having to go back one way.

No plans on keeping garage.. Good idea to move kitchen to the garage though.

What's the space coming from the dining room to the stairs?

Get rid of the garage and use the space to create. Much bigger kitchen, hallway and downstairs cloakroom.

The space from the dining room to the stairs is under stairs storage

Thanks, that's whatI thought.

I would knock through the kitchen and 2/3 of the garage to make a kitchen with dining area. Take the remaining chunk of the garage next to front door as a hall area with coat and shoe storage. Build a the wall across with or without a doorway.

So open up the wall between the existing hall area and the garage. You will probably need an rsj.
If you know a builder get them to come and have a look. There is loads of potential.

I don't have a hallway, just a small square as you open the front door with the stairs ahead of you.
I have no ideas for you but I have to say having no hallway, for me, is a complete pain in the arse.
We take our shoes off when entering but if there's more than one of us we have to kinda line up outside waiting for our turn to get into the "hallway" to remove our shoes.
There's not really enough room to bend over so you have to sit on the stairs 🙄 we also have coats hanging behind the front door, which also minimises the space.
Complete pain

I agree with turning the garage into your kitchen and having an area at the front for a sort of porchway. You could then turn the existing kitchen into a utility room and downstairs toilet.
However, this will all cost a lot of money, which if you have that money you could probably just find a house with a hallway!

Look for another property that has a hallway.

Great ideas but it all comes down to money, the house is on the market for around 325k and haven't got the extra money to make substantial changes.😕

Then I'd work out whether you can still love it as is.

Longer term - I'd knock kitchen and garage into one, and then instead of trying to find a hallway inside, add a porch across the front door/ new kitchen front.

What's on either side , is it terrace, semi, detached?

If you have the space to the side of the garage then it would be relatively quick and easy to add a side entrance to the back half of the garage, section off a hallway into the kitchen and use that as your main entrance in the mid term while you save for a full garage to kitchen conversion.

We have no hallway whatsoever - front door opens directly into living room. It's not ideal, but we got used to it pretty quickly. How long do you plan on living in this house for? Is it something you can cope with for a few years, or is this your 'forever' home and therefore more of a deal-breaker?

Do you have children OP? Is there a reason like wrangling buggies that you need more space in the hallway?

It looks like there's a lot that needs doing to that property if you haven't got the spare cash for the sort of reno that would give you a hallway - I've had a quick look and there are other 4 beds in the area in better condition so is it the dream location - and if so would you consider less bedrooms in another property?

How long term is this house for you? If it's a step on the ladder I doubt the cost and effort to put in a hallway would pay off if it's something you can just live with for now and have on your list for your next house. I understand why a hallway is desirable, but is it necessary? (If the house is ticking every other box, it's hard to tick all those boxes!)

As it doesn’t sound like you’re planning on putting a car in the garage, is it ridiculous to suggest entering the house through the garage?

You’d have loads of space for coats, umbrellas, shoes, buggies, bicycles, dog leads etc in a place where the clutter will be way less annoying. And guests can still come in via the front door.

You would need garage doors that open easily of course.

my house is like this, the stairs are in a really bad place, cannot watch anything in peace on the tv as people are constantly in and out into the kitchen from upstairs , its very annoying

Could you add a porch rather than try to create a hallway? I once lived in a cottage that had no hallway at all so we added a porch with storage and space for coats etc. which worked well.

With regards to the interior, you could arrange the furniture so people walk behind the sofas etc so you don’t feel like you’re living in Piccadilly Circus. Or do what a friend of mine has done and turned her living room into the dining room/office and her living room is now the old dining room.

If the OP ends up converting the garage into a kitchen diner she could block off the living room door, channelling everyone in via the kitchen.

But then you're still left with the ridiculous situation of walking all the way round the house to get to a room!