Would you buy a large semi or a smaller detached house?

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I'm just wondering what's more important generally, being detached or having more space. I have found a 1920s house that has been flipped with everything completely replaced (roof, kitchen, toilets etc) and it has been extended but it's semi detached. The other house is a new build, detached, but overall its a bit smaller. Would you go for the semi detached that's bigger or the new build with warranty thats smaller?

I would bever buy a new build house. But setting that aside, wgat are the square footages of each? What are garden sizes like? Can you extend either? What are the floor plans like for usability?

Detached everytime. I've had wonderful neighbours but I don't want to know their lives so intimately. And it's nice to know we can make noise without disturbing anyone.

Is the detached big enough for you? If the semi is the right size then I'd go for that. Detached is obviously preferable but not if you're squashed in!

I would buy another semi but wouldn't want neighbours on both sides sides so don't see the semi as a negative.

How do the areas compare?

I love living detached and if it wasn't vs a new build I'd say detached but in this case would say semi detached. We lived in a 1930s semi and only heard our neighbours snoring at night as our bedrooms were next to each other and he had breathing issues. The street was very welcoming and friendly too

Depends how much space you need. More DC's, more space, ie the semi. If your family will fit comfortably into the smaller detached, then a detached is always thought of as posher and preferable. Plus if it's new built, there'll be less to do.

We'd go for the spacious semi but we're 3 adults and 2 dgs visiting often...

Detached every time. I def think the privacy beats the extra space, but it’s a very personal thing.

I'd go for the semi if the alternative is a new build.

Frankly I think that choosing a detached over a semi when the semi is bigger is pretty much snobbery and nothing else. If status is important to you then go for the detached. We live in a terrace. I grew up in a terrace. Both very nice, substantial late Victorian houses. I really don’t get the antipathy to neighbours in a lot of England.

Get the older semi. Get a survey done on the building works. It’ll be solid. Is it the same area? Schools etc are these important? Parking, commuting etc

If everything else was equal, I'd go for the more spacious semi. In all honesty, I've had my semi 12 years and never had an issue with the neighbours in any way. And it was a new-build 😜

I'd like a detached house, but I'd not downsize for it, and that's me on my own at the moment. So, I suppose it depends what's important to you ultimately.

DH grew up in a terraced, I grew up in a semi. Our first house was detached (cheap area, pre-boom) so when looking for our new one he would only consider detached, I would have consider an extended semi and we would have got a lot of space. Detached we are, which given how loud ds (asd) can be it is probably a good thing that we don't overly inflict ourselves on anyone too much.

I did look a bit though when our former next door neighbour said how quiet we were, quiet compared to a jumbo jet I guess.

I think new builds, detached or otherwise, are on (generally speaking) smaller plots and much more overlooked than 20s and 30s houses - so whilst you obviously won't get noise coming through a wall, you'd perhaps have less privacy in a detached in your garden / generally on a new build estate.

I've lived in detached & semi detached and would have a 20s semi over a new build detached every day of the week.

I read somewhere they only built new houses to last 20 years. And seeing as you spend the 1st 2 years nagging the builders to put right all the jobs they've bodged, that doesn't seem a good deal to me. They have flimsy walls and gardens with all the building rubble buried in the garden. Many of them also have unnecessary service charges and freehold issues which makes new builds something to steer away from. The other issue is that houses built in the 1920s had the pick of the prime spots. New builds tend to be in less desirable locations.

If privacy is a big deal a mature garden makes a huge difference, does this new build have any trees, hedges, big shrubs on the plot?

Are the gardens the same size?

We live in a 1920s semi. It's spacious and has high ceilings and quirky features and a large garden. It's probably harder to manage (just had a nightmare bathroom replacement which involved new floor,ceiling and walls!) but a friend's tale of woe about her new build faults was a reality check.And the rooms are much smaller.

Ideally I'd prefer to be detached but next door's 3 small dc and their everlasting extension may be colouring my view just now.
Depends how much space you actually want.

I'd take the detached any day.
However, I have heard too many horror stories about new builds to make me even consider one so in your case, you may want to take the semi

Semi-detached is fine if your and your neighbour's living rooms aren't bang next to eachother. They often are but not always and that makes a big difference. Even if a house is well insulated, noise can come through. Also make sure there is a good hedge dividing the houses.

If the semi is bigger than the detached and the garden is private, I'd go for the semi.

Neither.
Keep looking.

Detached. Every. Single. Time.

I would be put off by it being a new build but the freedom you feel of not having adjoining neighbours is wonderful - would never go back. I also have dogs so I don't worry about them barking when we're out either (not that they do anyway).

Think we need more info

How detached is it? Most new builds seem just barely detached and not really worth it. We’re semi-detached and never hear anything from next door anyway.

I live in a semi and never hear the neighbours through the wall.

I hear them in the garden listening to music loudly or currently they’ve rigged up a tv outside to watch the football. But that would be the case even if the house was detached.

So yes you could spend more on a smaller detached and still have bad neighbour noise.