We have a wind farm being built very close to us, how off putting is this to potential purchasers?

[NewEraNewMindset]

I am pretty concerned.

We bought our home last year and no mention of the wind farm was made by either the vendor or the estate agents and the development looks to have fallen just outside of the search parameter. Both the vendor and the estate agents knew about the development being approved and within a few months of us living in the house we had a letter from the wind farm company telling us building work was imminent. Until this letter arrived we had no clue anything was happening at all.

We live in a village pretty close to a busy A road and this road is kind of a valley where we are in the hill on one side and the wind turbines are being built on the hill on the other side. Because if this (I have now found out) it feels as though we have these turbines a stones throw away.

Only one pillar so far has been built, it is so huge I am shocked. When it has it's turbine in place on the top it is going to be monstrous. There will be six of them. They won't be visible from our back garden I don't think but are extremely visible from most places in the village. In terms of any noise I have no idea yet, I don't think we will be close enough to hear humming but until they are switched on I can't say for definite.

So with all this said, if we want to sell our house in the future do you think we are going to struggle? I was feeling ok about it but now I see the size of them I feel pretty sick about it

I've shown facts that wind farms can be destroyed if wind is too high, and that their supply is (OBVIOUSLY) too intermittent to be a useful part of our energy policy.

but no, there are still cries of 'rubbish'.

I cant see either of those things effecting house values.

Specialsubject, what facts have you shown? You haven't.

yes, Gridwatch does tell us (part of) what wind is supplying. Over the last few windy days it has been about 6GW, and as I write it is 3.41 GW*.

For comparative purposes, hydro-electric power is about one-tenth of that.

Nuclear is currently 4.52GW, and I was impressed that on the windy days, wind was providing more than nuclear. This was saving the country from importing a certain amount of gas to run the gas generators.

I believe it is possible that there are people who would rather have a nuclear power station, or a coal fired station with its huge chimneys, near their home, rather than some windmills. However I have never actually met anyone who wants to live near a nuclear or coal power station. Only people who want the power stations to be near somebody else. These people never seem to have given up using electricity.

*Actual wind power is about 50% higher than the metered figure, because some of it is not metered so it only shows as a reduction in demand.

Are you sure you can't sue? Are you in England? Isn't there a clause stating something like disclosing material planning applications nearby? I would consult a good solicitor.

Anyway, how far are they in terms of km? They probably wouldn't bother me. Definitely not DH.

I bloody hate wind farm policy in this country though. They are taking over everywhere and it upsets me that homeowners have so little rights. In 20 years time, people will be thinking "WTF".

I'm in Scotland. The Scottish Borders and other parts have honestly been destroyed in places. Once beautiful, peaceful valleys and hills ruined. another reason why I detest the SNP but don't get me started

Rooner I suspect if the ombudsman doesn't rule in our favour we will reconsider suing the vendor. He had ample opportunity on the paperwork to disclose it, but he has admitted in a subsequent letter that yes he knew but assumed we also knew and our searches should have brought it up if we didn't. He also went on some ramble about how we should have looked on lampposts or something, but we did talk to neighbours including the local vicar about anything that could put us off buying and no one mentioned a wind farm! Hence why we were bloody shocked when we received the mail shot talking about the building works starting.

Off the top of my head I think the searches cover a one mile radius and this falls just outside at 1.2 or something.

I can imagine when electricity pylons went up all over the countryside people were also hugely dismayed. Anything new and yep we are going to hate it, particularly when these things are so bloody massive. But it is definitely preferable to a nuclear power station. It also saves us about £100 a year on electricity which I suppose is better than a poke in the eye.

I don't disagree newera. I am pro renewable energy in theory. I appreciate we need pylons. I even concede we need nuclear.

But it needs sensitive planning. We are having huge fights in Scotlsnd over the issue. We have some truly wild land up here and the march of the gigantic turbines is winning. They are everywhere.

Link to Guardian article on a LSE report. Depends on how visible/audible they are and how far away. If you were lied to by any professional and can prove it you may be able to sue, but the turbines were not in existence at the time the purchase went through.

www.theguardian.com/money/2014/apr/08/windfarms-reduce-house-prices-compensation

Wouldnt bother me, they are great.

I love them so wouldn't put me off at all. Same for solar arrays, that are popping up all over our village. The only annoying thing is that they are all owned by speculators.

Another wouldn't bother me at all. I don't think it's as big a problem as you imagine.

Thanks Fading, I will show that article to DP.

The turbines were not in existence no. There had been initial planning refused, then the company appealed, and eventually the Government stepped in and overturned the planning refusal and the project went ahead. This happened over years and as we moved in the project was on the brink of being built.

The Local estate agents also knew and didn't disclose, but then I would never expect them too! I would however expect the vendor to have out it in his paperwork when there were two opportunities for him to do so, and in both spaces he wrote that he knew of no imminent building works in the locality. I imagine he decided that meant immediate neighbours or something.

I'm not sure I would have admitted it. Surely he would just say. " it's not a problem to us"

We almost bough a house once, until we walked past one night and there was a bloody live band playing in the neighbouring property. When we asked the vendor she said " oh it's not a problem at all" the bloody walls were shakin we withdrew our offer.

On the plus side, I like them. They are far enough away to not hear them and you can't even see them so I don't think it's a big problem.

Don't worry, there would probably be as many people attracted to these majestic feats of engineering as would be put off.

Their use is limited while our grid is only over the UK but things are moving to lay undersea wires to extend the network, when this is in place renewables will be much more useful as it will be windy/sunny somewhere connected all the time so it will become more predicable.

Did anyone see that overnight in Denmark the other night wind supplied something like 112% of the electricity? The wholesale price of electricity fell below zero! Be a shame when they all explode, presumably taking the whole of Denmark with them. Or something.

I would not like to live nearby if the noise is a nuisance tbh. Everyone is different though, someone I know just bought a house with a pylon literally in the garden. Idiot.

I would look into suing the vendor if I were you.

The thing with renewable energy is that you need a mix of it and a different way of managing supply and demand than with out current fossil fuel power station dominated model. That doesn't make it useless though

OP what stands out to me from one of your posts is the line 'houses are selling all around me pretty quickly' this suggests that you probably aren't going to have any issues re being able to sell in future.

I wouldn't worry visually but any humming/buzzing would annoy me

Im 8 mile away from Scout Moor Wind Farm, which according to google is the largest wind farm in the uk.

I cant hear anything, however im not sure if i would hear anything from 8 mile away.

Thanks guys. I think until it's completed and we get another valuation we won't really know. We were fortunate that the vendor allowed the house to become empty and very unloved so we put in a much lower offer and it was accepted. If we had paid top whack I think we'd be spitting feathers right now.

I live in the SW and every week I see a new one appear when on my travels. I was talking to someone who lives near one - 600m awayand she said the noise annoys her. It would put me off I have to be honest, I see 2 in the distance (put up over night after planning was refused!) and dread the day a massive one is put nearer as at the rate they go it here it wont be long.

I ve done abit of googling as im quite interested in these wind farms since you started the thread.

Apparently, you can only hear them if they have within a mile from your home. They have to be 300 meters away from the nearest house. Also when you do hear them, they only sound like your refridgerator in your house.

I really like them! Wouldn't bother me at all.

We are already close to a busy A road and that hums. So I don't think we will notice an additional hum if I'm honest. I will update though if we do!