Myself, my husband and my 2 year old have been living in a one bed flat for a long time now and the cramped living space is really starting to get to us. We live in a lovely area very close to everything we need - supermarket, DS's nursery, the beach, my work...it's perfect.
We were very lucky to get our flat considering we work part time and rely on benefits. The problem is though, now that we desperately need a two bed, all the flat landlords in our area turn their noses up at us. I understand it, but at the same time, this part of town feels like our home. We are settled and don't want to move, except to a very close by flat, and at this point we'd take any offered to us.
So all the nicer flats we hoped for won't take housing benefits/DSS (not sure what the difference is), so we now have to look at less nice flats in the area, which are in old buildings above shops and pubs. So far most of those we have looked at have problems, such as no double glazing or severe damp or other damage for instance. We have just found a very nice flat though. It's cheap rent, cheap council tax, and recently redecorated. The bathroom looks new, the kitchen is nice and big, and there's lovely laminate floors instead of the usual tired carpets we're faced with in similar places. Even though it has two bedrooms is cheaper than our current one bed flat.
It's above a pub though. Normally I wouldn't care anyway, noise rarely bothers me, particularly music. But I feel really uneasy living there with a toddler...
Is it somehow unethical? For the child to hear music until closing time each night (12.30pm), to have hoards of smokers outside the main door? The possibility of hearing fights?
It's not a rough pub, and the bedrooms are at the back of the building, so the noise won't be immediately underneath us. We live in a small town and people are generally nice and respectful, though of course that doesn't carry over when people are flat out drunk. The area is quite safe too. But still, my heart says no, but I also wonder if I'm overreacting.
What do you think?
We are really not well off, struggling most of the time to get by. I much prefer living in cheaper flats in the town centre where my son is in the catchment area for a good school and nursery and the neighbour's are anonymous twenty somethings and singletons than our other option, which is the poor part of town with junkies in flat blocks next door who neglect and abuse their kids. I have lived in the poorer housing estates in this town before and the hassle we got from the scum bags of the neighbourhood, and the neighbour's hitting their wives and kids is something I would never want to expose my son to.
Honest opinions? Should I consider this flat? Or hold out for something better?