Opinions on these two houses please. Which one would you choose?

[JulieAnderton]

I won't link to them as I don't want to be outed, but here are the main details. Both are in the same town, so location is pretty much identical for both.

House 1

Offers over £240K
Modern ? probably 1980s/90s
Detached
4 bedrooms (Two reasonably sized double / two small singles)
1 reception room (18? x 11?6?)
Kitchen (13?9? x 9?6?)
Downstairs WC / En-suite to master bedroom / Bathroom
Centrally heated
Integrated garage + off-road parking for two cars
Garden
Cul-de-sac location
0.6 miles to railway station
0.2 miles to school

House 2

£249,995
Early 1930?s with some original features (front door, some internal doors, a working fireplace, wooden floors, stair balustrade, picture rails)
Detached
3 bedrooms (two large doubles / one small double)
2 reception rooms (14?x12? and 12?x11?)
Kitchen (15?x11?)
Downstairs WC (but no handbasin); upstairs bathroom (but no toilet)
Centrally heated, but two rooms are missing radiators
Car port to side + off road parking for 2 cars
Garden
Through-road, but not particularly busy
0.2 miles to station
0.4 miles to school

We've got a pre-schooler and hope to have another child in the next few years. We'd like to stay wherever we choose for a long time.

Thank you!

The only issue with installing a toilet is the run to the soil pipe.mif the downstairs loo is directly beneath where the new toilet would go upstairs and has a visible soil pipe directly outside then it will be very easy to put an upstairs toilet in and link in to the current soil pipe. However, if the current soil pipe goes directly underground then some excavation work will need to be done to install a new Soil pipe from upstairs (unless there is a man hole which negates the need for excavation). Soil pipes are a nightmare.
Look at the building regs for toilets as you can't have a toilet without a washbasin with a hot tap - it won't meet current building regs and is definitely a bargaining point even if just a small one. Is there room for a hand basin downstairs in the wc? If there isn't space for one then you have more bargaining power as you will need to install an upstairs loo and can then buy a space saving sink on top of toilet combo which will fit downstairs (but the vendor doesn't need to know that) .

House 2 will be better built and make a lovely family home

Have you worked out the floor area each?

Number of bedrooms is a flimsy foundation to judge size on

I've had a quick look at current building regs and it says that adequate hand washing facilities must be provided in rooms containing sanitary conveniences or rooms/spaces adjacent to those containing the sanitary convenience.

The downstairs WC is next to the kitchen. Does that count? (The thought of washing hands in the kitchen sink after going to the toilet is bleurgh, but it might pass building regs.)

I guess a full structural survey would pick up on anything that doesn't meet current regs?

Soil pipes can be a pain but in a detached house it can be easier.

The toilet without sink may always have been there. we sold a house with a toiet off kitchen and no sink and itwasn't a problem not even mentioned on survey.

House 1 is 712 sq. feet (not including dimensions for the the WC, ensuite and bathroom, or the hallway).

House 2 is 840 sq. feet (not including the WC, bathroom and hallway).

It doesn't have to meet current building regs, it needs to have met any that were in force when it was built.

I can't imagine there was never a toilet upstairs. The 1930s houses I've lived in/been in all would have originally had an upstairs toilet separate to the bathroom.

I think if older houses were built that way it's no problem but you wouldn't get pat building regs to build like that now.

If push comes to shove you can put a macerator loo in there, but they are not idea.l (speaks from experience!)

building regs apply at the time of building (ie when the WC was installed) - not retrospectively.

We have a downstairs loo off the utility room - sink in the utility, not in the loo - works fine for us.

Ahh, thanks for the info re: building regs.

The thing you can't change is location . Get that bit right and you can alter the rest to suit ! So which ever is in the best location for trains, school, shops and south facing garden etc etc and also neighbourhood - friendly people who smile can make the world of difference ! Good luck :-)

the other thing you can't change is paper thin 1980s / 1990s walls and floors - awful for heating, hearing the neighbours... also what about the size of windows? and storage cupboards etc? tend to be in short supply in 80s properties unless high end. I lived in one once and won't do it again in a hurry.