what are your must haves for house

[mum2015]

A wishlist can include so much but practically what do you think should be there in a house for say family of four

so far I have listed

• detached
• 3 bedrooms all atleast 10x12ft kind of size (no boxroom i mean) preferable on same level.
• a formal living room
• a kitchen/dining/living big family room
• a study room (can be used as guest bedroom room when needed)
• two bathrooms
• utility room
• garage
• off street parking

what am I missing? what looks not so essential in the list?

I would rather have four beds (master en suite plus family bathroom) than use a study a a possible spare. Having done it in the past, it means the study is out of bounds if you have guests, and it is a faff setting up a bed or undoing a sofa bed. It also not very, well, homely.

Sorry, posted too soon. Secure garden?

Space to extend if needed without compromising the garden.
Separate utility room.
Access to garage through house .
A foyer or closed porch before reception rooms, I hate external doors that open directly into a living space.

Absolutely no toilets off the kitchen either. Next door to us is like that, single door that opens into kitchen. I walked out when we were being shown around it by the salesman. I just can't entertain it!

None of us can tell you what is essential for your family - it surely comes down to price/location pay off as to if you deem stuff essential?

For us:

Minimum 5 beds
Minimum 3 bathrooms
Utility room
Decent sized garden
Detached
Off street parking
Central heating, e.g. gas available, not an oil situation
Ditto mains sewage, not a cess pool situation
Must be light, we looked at somewhere recently with tiny windows, it was definitely no good
No neighbours really nearby
Not overlooked
Catchment for good schools if state or near private schools if not
Good state of repair, e.g. not needing £££££ of work

I have a house with its basics right, I mean in catchment of good school, close to amenities, good neighbours, manageable garden, potential for extension. We bought it some time ago and have saved up to extend.

I am currently working on its plan for extension and have options of reconfiguring rooms, converting or not converting garage, open-plan vs separate kitchen, ensuite vs two family bathrooms etc. So loads of choices and looking for suggestions.

Garages provide useful storage space, even if not for a car.

A downstairs loo is a must. Makes a huge difference.

I hate ensuites and Jack and Jill bathrooms.

thank you. adding to the list

• Access to garage through house
• Must be light, big windows
• good point and need to re-think about study vs guest room
• no external doors that open directly into a living space.

yes, definitely no toilets off the kitchen.

I am still not sure about ensuite to master bedroom. It is so convenient but the sound of flush would disturb sleep.

Garage, for me, is not essential.

Private back garden essential imo.

Storage options also essential. (Though would assume there'd be a decent attic if you were buying a house.)

Not exactly essential as I haven't got one but a boot room. My hallway is drowning in shoes, boots, coats, hats, scarves etc. I would love to have a room for all those things, conveniently located next to the front door. If I could squeeze the Hoover and ironing board in there too I'd be in heaven!

Nice spacious hallway
Downstairs loo
4 bedrooms ( master with ensuite )
Sitting room with French windows/ patio doors
Kitchen with room to sit / eat
Seperate dining room
Garage
Gated drive
Near sea
The last 2 on my list anyway 😀

wont have attic after extension so garage is becoming must.

really good point about boot room. added to my list.

near sea!!!
i wish!

Location is important. Our house is lovely but I wish it was not on a main road and was much nearer to a park so DC can meet up with friends and kick footballs around. And we want to be near a bit of green to walk the dog.

Children's needs change as they grow up. With toddlers you want to be open plan and seeing them play whilst you make dinner etc, but with teenagers you just want to shut the flipping Xbox away.

Somewhere that visitors can feel relaxed and welcome and stay over in some sort of comfort.

We're house hunting at the moment as a family of four. Hard to believe that many families grow up in ordinary 3 bedroom semis and terraced houses without utility rooms, garages, ensuites, studies etc. I look at those places and they feel too small. When did we all get so aspirational?

I agree about a boot room, we have one and it's v v useful

Me too !
That's why near sea is on my wish list 😀

2 bathrooms

3 large bedrooms

A loft

A large garden

A kitchen I can move around in easily

The rest I can live with/change as and when.

Doenstairs loo
Spare double bedroom
Flat garden - I long for the day I can open a door and let the kids roam in the garden without having to supervise them up steep steps etc
Safe driveway - we have offstreet parking but it's right next to a busy road so I can let the eldest walk out to the car without supervision
A downstairs separate room with door to be a playroom (hide toys)

1400+ square feet. Don't care about any configuration, everything can be changed. Size matters. I never looked at 2/3/4 beds, only square feet.

I saw a studio in London 3 times bigger than a 2 bed flat, people would have missed how easy it was to divide it up if they'd only been searching for '2 beds'.

Thick walls. Semi or detached.

Outside space of some kind.

Close to tube, within 0.7 of a mile.

Was very glad to get all of the above. Completely undervalued, appallingly badly described by the estate agent. In a street where properties of the same size went for well over a million mine was a third of that due to bad description.

If I ever sell I'M writing the blurb. Never selling though.

We are house hunting too. I have the following list of non-negotiables:

Off road parking
4 beds and a study or 5 beds
Utility room
Kitchen you can eat in
Garage or other outdoor storage
2 bathroom large garden, but not too large
Not a doer upper

DH has just one requirement:
Character

It appears that these two sets of requirements are mutually incompatible ( unless you've got 2 million to spend on a Georgian farmhouse)

Detached and garage not essential for me (but we have loft and big garden so have 2 sheds).

I'd have a downstairs loo for definite, particularly if you're going to have a study / occasional bedroom downstairs.

If its essentially going to be a 3 bed house (with a study) then personally, I think 2 family bathrooms is overkill. If you decide to have 4 bedrooms, then I'd expect a family bathroom and an ensuite.

Agree a boot room / largish cloakroom off the hall would be a nice to have.

I'm house hunting and on my list:

Location
4 beds minimum
Downstairs cloakroom
2 reception rooms
Large kitchen diner
Garage
Off street parking

It doesn't look like much, but maybe it's actually impossible... we've been looking for over a year now.

Decent storage is essential - our last house was fab - proper cupboards in every room (not 'units') plus huge cupboard on landing, walk in pantry and another huge cupboard in study - ideal for toys/box files etc etc). Walk in wardrobe off master plus two other wardrobes in same room .

Never really appreciated until we moved and although we are lucky to have a lovely home I really, really miss my storage.