Why are new developments built like cheap holiday colonies, even if the houses are from 1 million and up

[QuintlessShadows]

Been looking at a house in a new development nearby.

They are luxury homes, with a gym, underground carpark, shuttle service to the nearest train station, etc. the 1 bed flats start from 350k, the houses are over a million, some 1.2 million.

It is pretty enough, with some open space, trees and fountains and decking in the middle with fake rivers, large town houses on 3 floors, miniscule gardens.

I get that land is premium (London), and that you really need to build tall and not waste space. But at that price tag, should they not really make the gardens bigger? The way it is now, big panoramic windows, with a view into a wall.

Great.

"Shuttle service to the nearest train station" and "London" doesn't really compute for me - is it zone 5-6?

Anyway I presume the tiny gardens are because they think their target market will be too busy working/going on mini-breaks/enjoying the on-site gym etc to want to spend time gardening, and/or their target market is buy-to-let investors, and tenants are notorious for not giving a shit about gardens (I speak as a tenant who does give a shit about the garden).

Still, I feel your pain - as far as I'm concerned communal spaces do nothing but bump up selling prices and service charges - when you're actually living in the place, you don't use them.

That said, I've seen houses with tiny gardens that have been made really lovely with landscaping, water features etc, but even then they're rubbish for wildlife and probably rubbish for children too. Pleasant enough for al fresco drinks/bbqs in summer though.

Sounds like one of umpteen developments actually not in London but pretending to be one so they can charge more money. I might be wrong, I'm in zone 2 London but no tube but a 5 minute walk to the train station. Needing a shuttle sounds like it's miles away though.

Big houses with postage stamp gardens irritate me no end. Completely unbalanced.

A £1.2 million house with a small garden would probably cost £2 million with a decent size garden due to the additional land costs. And planning permission may require a certain density of housing.

They build to maximise their profits, which means demand is not there for big gardens.

It is zone 3, but no tube or rail nearby. The drive to the station is just 5 minutes, but 30 minutes walk!

Similar sized properties with garden are 1.5 and up, but these are period homes, and in my opinion much more desirable.

expat I think the target market are working families where both adults commute into the city, and send their kids to the nearby independent schools.

I have never really had an interest in these types of developments before.

The most awful development nearby is this: 2014.nkh2.tccommunications.co.uk/portobello-terrace-barnes/prices-floorplans/

Who'd have thought they would be able to build a row of 2/ 3 /4 bed homes on a tiny strip of land wedged between a road and the railway lines, and more than a million pound per home? The 2 bed homes are cleverly designed from an architecutal perspective, as they quite literally had just a few meters between road and rail, and they still managed to make it look desirable, from the road at least.

hahahaha they did this near me (zone 2). I live on a gorgeous georgian terrace (if you squint and ignore the rubbish the bin men keep leaving strewn about and the discarded plastic bags of london dog shit that owners seem to forget is their responsibility). At the top of the road is a junction with a grim main road. It has crap takeaways, a dry cleaners and little else. there is also an archway to a warehouse or something. Through that archway they have now built 10 new build houses (so the poor sods across the road at that end now have a lovely view of 10 very tall squished houses). The best bit is they have called it the same street name as mine!!! cheeky bastards. These houses have no outdoor space at all. Zero. i don't get it. A house with not a dot of outdoor space. Just buy a big flat!

big house small garden is standard for new builds everywhere. No money in gardens.

or in amenities.

Love it being called Portobello Terrace when it's in Barnes! Also love the idea that you couldn't possibly be expected to share a normal bus with the commoners to get to the station.

This is a silly thread. If garden size is important, don't look at houses with small gardens. If you can't afford a house in London with a decent size garden, you need to decide which is more important: living in London or moving out to somewhere where you can get what you want for your budget.

And btw London is actually over. Past peak.

Thats a different development. Plenty of buses out on the main road, on that one!
Portobello terrace does not have its own shuttle service!

Alpha - I am glad you are finding my thread silly.

I have a London home. With a massive garden. We are settled here. Garden is important.

I would not mind moving out though!

And how do you know how big the garden is before you have investigated?

Ask!

Quint - Why do you want to move if you have your heart's desire in London?

How big is massive? Length in feet please? And width in feet?

None of those Portobello Terrace houses is sold. That tells you everything you need to know: it is overpriced.

I love the way the dimensions on the Portobello houses are in millimetres.

I don't know maybe 10x20 m? Sort of triNgular from house

QuintessentialShadows - You are very lucky to have a 30 feet x 60 feet garden in London. In my town (not in London) a new build semi detached 4 bed house with a 35 feet wide by 25 feet long garden costs £1.5M.

i have a 60ft garden in london. doesn't feel massive to me... but bloody hard enough work keeping it anything other than dead...

Our new place has a 45 by 60 feet garden and I'm no gardner. All the plants are doomed!

Apatite1 You need shrubs for your main structure and then puff that out with perennials. Plus add a few annuals in the spring. You need to spend about £1,000 on good shrubs for a 45 X 50 garden. Assuming it's mainly laid to lawn.

Thanks alpha, I'm taking your helpful advice: low maintenance is key. I do love flowers though sigh....

Get flowering shrubs