Detached new build or 1930s semi

[user1475955902]

Back story: In early May we sold our 1990s 3 bed (2 dbl and box room) det link house to a lady who had sold her house. We fell in love with and had offer accepted on 3 bed 1930s semi in our desired (better) area with lovely (better) schools (we have 3dc under 10) than where we currently are (though bedroom sizes smallish and would have meant a loft conversion for larger 3rd bedroom and small 4th bed) - so all good! Budget for works factored in price. Small chain - our buyer, us and seller.

However, chain collapsed on exchange day due to buyer's financial issues (no deposit from buyer) so seller decided to put house back on market immediately and it was resold to another family a few days later .

Our dilemma is, (new offer accepted from a ftb) now have narrowed our new choices down to 2 in new area that we (Dh) and I like but,

I want to offer on another 1930s semi with large garden (my idea of Heaven!) but it needs quite a bit of work (new kitchen, bathroom, lots of diy, new carpets and redecor etc) but has larger room sizes (3 doubles) than previous offered.

or

my DH is now more keen on a new build, 4 double bed, detached, single garage with 2 car parking, on a small development. He feels it's a better investment, no work etc, space to enjoy and no weekends/holidays decorating, diy etc, good square footage. Last plot for sale on small development by builder includes substantial discounts, flooring and other incentives and immediate moving in date. Downside for me is Plot has small garden, much smaller than other plots sold on site.

Both in same desirable area with good schools.

WWYD?

TIA

If the house has 4 beds and is a good long term option than the value isn't that important, if you sell in 20years the value will have bound to have gone up. If your thinking of selling in next 5 years than be wary.

And with 3dc (like myself) 4 beds are crucial, you may find you need more space sooner than you think in a the 3 bed and that a loft conversion/work is not as convenient as you think.

Does the new build have better living space? As the children get older they are going to be less in the garden and more needing quiet space to study or have their mates round.

As much as I like the look and lovely period features of my 1930's semi I often dream about a lovely new build house.

We have been in our house for 9 years now and ,to be honest, the never ending list of maintenance that needs doing can be overwhelming at times.

Also , every time we have wanted to renovate a room it has been incredibly expensive and time consuming. The walls always need plastering , the ceilings and woodwork always need real attention. It's never just a new pot of paint and some nice wallpaper. It cost us £35k just to replace our modestly sized kitchen because of all the horrors that were hiding behind the old one.

The ancient heating systems that would cost an arm and a leg to replace, strange wiring that you discover is dangerous even though you were told that the house had been rewired professionally. Damp smells , slow leaks that you discover only when the neighbour mentions that her plaster is bubbling in the adjoining room.

Silly things like curtains costing a fortune as windows in older houses tend to be bigger , or in the case of my house, strange/interesting shapes which make it impossible to find anything suitable to cover them with! And fixing the stained glass windows which are all over my house , inside and out, is very expensive.

Oh and you won't get get time to enjoy the larger garden because you will be committed to a lifetime of DIY maintenance jobs!

I used to live in a nice detached new build but wanted to move to the town we are in now where the housing stock is all very large 1930's semis. We had no choice but I often say that I wish we could have just picked up and moved our lovely modern house with us.

Life was much simpler in our previous house.

In what direction do the back gardens face?
That would be the clincher for me.
Long term will the 1930's semi hold it's value better?

Detached would do it for me.

Wow! Thanks, interesting POVs have given me lots to think about! The plan is now that we will go and have second viewings of both in the next few days and weigh up all the pros and cons, especially your posts where I hadn't even considered (Bold:Angel, you have have hit the nail on the head!) I am leaning toward the simpler life and as PP have said life is too short for perpetual DIY! Thanks everyone !

We recently moved from a 1930s semi to a detached new build.

I would echo the other comments about how much work it is to get the house how you want it. Every time you want to do anything, you discover you need to undo 80 years of bodging of some kind of another, which makes it hazarded, more time consuming and more expensive. We did make the 1930s house really nice in the end but it cost a lot. I think the roof on that house is coming to the end of its life too (no immeduately but soon enough in house ownership terms) and that'll be expensive for the new owners.

The other thing is that it's a contemporary myth that older houses are really well built while new builds are made of spit and sawdust. You could very much hear the neighbours in our old house and you could hear through the internal walls. It was the same in any 1930s house we rented before that, and it's the same for our friends who live in 1930s houses. One set of friends are woken up almost every morning when their neighbours' children get up (at 5ish) and come into their parents' bedroom. We can't hear any neighbours in our detached 2008 house and there's absolutely no issue with sound travelling between the rooms at all.

One annoying thing is that we bought this house after all the housss on the estate had been built for 2 years but the developers are only now finishing off the roads and pavements. And only after the local MP got involved. It's fine where our house is, but there are people who've been living with no proper road outside their house for 7 or 8 years.

I couldn't bear to live in a bog standard new build - but I've seen some that are really nicely designed and less soulless, so the style of the new house would be key for me. I live in a 1930s semi that we have extensively renovated and it's true, it all costs more than you think because of 80 years of bodging. we moved in and lived with ours fairly untouched for four years and then redid the loft conversion and added a large extension. It's now huge and well laid out for our needs, but in no way is it finished! Right now I should be painting woodwork and sticking new washers in taps, replacing a couple of dodgy light fittings and filling and painting over some old holes in the ceiling, not to mention wallpapering my bedroom and redecorating the kids bathroom completely. And putting a splash back in the kitchen and replacing the sink, recutting the worktop and tightening the taps in the utility. And replacing the toilet and sink in the downstairs loo. That's what I can think of off the top of my head. There's a few ceilings we haven't repainted since the builders left too. Or boarded and shelved the airing cupboard they ripped out to access our side stack.

Part of that is that we did some stuff on the cheap, so now two years later it needs doing properly, and part of it is that I am a constant redecorator and we had a baby about the same time as the extension. But a lot of it is because the house is old and stuff just breaks. I still wouldn't swap it for a new build (although for a Victorian or Georgian, totally), but it is a bit of a lifestyle choice!

If you are taking on a 30s house you need to know that these houses now need a considerable amount of work. You will need to gut each room to make look nice imo. My Dh is pretty handy and has done this to most rooms and done a lot of remedial work on the brickwork too. He also taught himself to plaster which is invaluable. If your DH is not handy this will cost you thousands.

As previous poster said if you need a new kitchen it will cost £s as the place will need gutting, rewiring floors levelled etc etc.

Roof will need attention if hasn't been touched we have just put a new one on - the list goes on.

Our house is semi-finished but still needs loads of things touched up. It's a hard slog unless you throw a lot of money at it from the start and then negotiating builders is hard too and fraught with problems.

I do drive to new build developments and look to move but when I drive home realise I couldn't move because the position of the house and the space I have is second to none.

i would buy the 4 bed new build detached.

we are just about to put our 3/4 bed 1930s semi on the market. it feels spacious at 1200 sq ft because we have a minute kitchen and no utility squeezed into the square footage, so good sized living and dining room. our plot has no garage and a single car driveway but really good on street parking. lovely high ceilings! we have spent a lot of time re plastering, re wiring, re plumbing and new boiler/radiators and loads more, so next person should have an easier ride than had - it was bloody exhausting!

So, if the choice at the time had been a 3 bed 1930s semi or 4 bed new build detached with same square footage, i would have chosen the new build even though it might feel more cramped with more rooms squeezed in.

Why? detached round here go like hot cakes and even though you still can have issues with neighbours, one less if you're not joined on. You can also be less fussy about the level of noise when youre having friends over for the kids etc. I would rather have a smaller living room or dining room so i could have a utility room to keep the washing machine and coats somewhere. Id rather have a smaller garden that can be used more as opposed to our 120 ft long garden which takes time to sort out.

we're hoping to offer on a 4 bed new build that is 1950 sq ft and it feels so huge compared to ours now. i think it will take time to adjust to a new build because here is so light and high ceiling -ed but i'm sure we'll manage! also the new build access roads are winding and cluttered with cars .

My DH is very much a traditional or 1950s or earlier type person but after 6 years here, 2 kids and both of us working full time, we want an easier life.

yes swissY, my dh isn't handy and we've spent tens of thousands getting ours where it is! be sad to walk away after all that effort but hey ho, hopefully it will be right for another family or couple.

I should add mine is a detached 4 bed if it was a choice between a 3 bed semi and 4 bed detached new build I would definitely choose the latter.

Yes budget our favourite conversation is how lucky the next people who move in will be as we have done so much of the heavy stuff!

My dh and I wanted a character older property, but couldn't find one we could afford. Therefore, we settled upon a 4 bed detached on a new estate.

For us its private, no issues with parking, lots of space with all double bedrooms, no maintenance, very cheap to run and very warm with lots of insulation. Not what our hearts wanted at the time but we love it and wouldn't consider going for an older character property now!

I'd in theory love a 1930s semi. However I have to say that a new build estate is a great place to raise a family. Most people are in the same situation as you, kids make friends and play in and out all the gardens and in the street. It's definitely an easier life. Think of all the family weekends doing trips instead of someone doing diy, the other amusing the kids and everyone arguing and tired.....

I didn't realise how much works would be required in a character house and thank you for sharing all your experiences. I know how lucky we are to even have the choice at this time of our lives, we have loved living in our 1990s box but appreciate that new standards and designs are now much better. We just come back from the new build site and discussed with the sales lady about the incentives etc and they've offered stamp duty as part of the package which has swayed us to making a reservation. Our buyers will be relieved as they are desperate to move into ours, which was part of the problem why I was so unsure. Thanks again, really appreciate all your responses.

We have a 30s semi and I would choose that type of house over a new build every day of the week.

In my view, the new build is likely to be a poor investment - if its the last plot on the development, it is the least desirable plot (everyone has chosen a different plot above yours). Even though you might be able to haggle, you're unlikely to make money on it. People who want new build generally want brand new, not nearly new that someone has lived in for 5 or 6 years.

On the other hand, I think 30s semis (at least where we are) are always sought after as they are solidly built, have decent sixed plots and usually have scope to extend in the future - hence they hold / increase in value.

You are right though that they do take up family time in terms of DIY and gardening, but all our children enjoy helping / pottering in the garden. We also use our garden pretty much all year round too. With 3 children, I'd be reluctant to buy a house without a decent sized garden.

Actually they release the houses on new build estates in batches. So the last plots released can often be very desirable; it's just that they were last on the build schedule. Some of the best plots on this estate were the last two houses built (on what had been the car park for the show homes). There were very good plots in the final phase too.

Like all houses, resale depends on what the houses (and estate) are like and the location. We'd never have bought new on this estate because we assumed it would be horribly cramped like the other local new build estates, but after visiting friends here we realised this one is very different. It has a much more traditional street layout (no one has a front door that opens straight onto what are effectively backlanes with no pavements, for example) and there's plenty of parking. The landscaping's lovely too.

Also there are some advantages to buying a house that's a few years old in that the first owners will have done all the snagging. So it's not true that people will either want 'period houses' or brand new builds. There are people interested in all kinds of houses.

OP: that's exciting about making a reservation.

Great news OP! I would have reserved too, I hope you will have a smooth move and a happy new home :)

That's exciting news. . Hope it all goes well.

We have a 5 bed detached new build spread over 3 floors. At 2200 square feet I have never been in a 1930's semi that has the space that ours does. We have huge windows and fairly high ceilings as well so I'm not seeing where these comments about small boxy rooms is coming from we bought it 3 years ago and according to recent valuations it's gone up just over £150k so has proved to an excellent investment.

Given your position I would go for the detached every time. I would never take a semi over a detached, why would you?

I have a 1930s semi, which I adore. BUT i have just finished shelling out the best part of 100k to convert the attic (now a 4 bed) and fix the many many problems.

It's been a strain. Previous owners were clearly enthusiastic about DIY, but not competent. If buying another house now, id go for the new build.

Thank you, am starting to be excited

Good luck in your new home, having never wanted a characterless New build, I am now in my forever home and feel very lucky x

The 4 bed detached new build, definitely!

We lived in a 1930s semi for many years and the attached neighbours (who bought about 12 months after us) were bad enough to make me swear to never buy another attached house if there was any way to possibly avoid it. Given that the detached is in as good a location and is a 4 bed property vs only 3 in the semi-detached, I really can't see any reason to go for the older one.