Which house would you pick?

[Pinkkink]

We are stuck between two houses. Which would you pick?

Littleworth Hill, Wantage
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-82154441.html

Main Street, East Challow, Oxfordshire
www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-62445942.html

Both lovely. Dependent on the garden for me, then preferred area.

Second one wins hands down.

OP they are both lovely houses. Are you asking what we think because you like both equally or because you want to know which would be most impressive?

Either way I think you’ll have a much better idea from a viewing of them.

I like the inside of the first house but the second one looks nice from the outside

I prefer the first one

House 2 isn't on the main road. The pin is in the wrong place. It's the second to last house on a no through road. In the photos there's a site plan photo that shows the actual location.

House 1 ticks all our boxes but I'm not sure I can live with how ugly it is. Both sets of parents live abroad so the guest room on the ground floor is appealing.

We have 4 kids, 15,11,8,3 (G/B/G/B). Eldest is at a private secondary and the others will follow so the secondary isn't so much of an issue for us.

DH and I both work from home most of the time so office space is a must.

@AliceRR I suppose I'm asking because I don't love either. We've always had a period property but this time I'm desperately trying to convince myself that it would be better for the kids not to live in a building site for ages. I'm trying to pick a house where we could put down boxes for the most part. I wouldn't mind doing up bathrooms or smaller projects. Because the kids alternate genders with big age gaps no one is a natural sharer either so need a fair few bedrooms. So I guess I'm asking for help choosing between two houses I don't really like!

It'd be house 1 for me without a contest: it's 40% bigger and cheaper. And I really like the vaulted ceilings.

OP, have you been looking long? Are there no houses that you like at all?

I like the first house. Do either of them have a view?

I live in an ugly house but the once inside, the view makes it worthwhile. Also, it's functional and requires little upkeep.

The first one if you have the money to do lots of work opening it up.

Second one has only a front garden/no rear garden and a shared courtyard style driveway with two other houses. Change anyone's mind?

I've read enough on MN to know that I'd never ever consider a shared driveway!

I think you should keep looking.

If it absolutely had to be one of those two, I’d choose one. It gives you better bedroom accommodation for your family. I wouldn’t go for the shared access of two and don’t think the bedrooms would work very well. The cabin is also a white elephant unless you stripped it and made it a shared office. I also don’t like the downstairs loo through the kitchen.

If you don't really like either, keep looking. There are well-designed modern houses around.

The second one is odd - is that a sauna or an indoor hot tub? Either is grim.

prefer house 2

I don't like either. Both have odd main floor plans, neither seem to have a flow around the house. It's like they done extensions without thinking about how it will work in practice.

I don't like either. You have a decent budget so I would continue looking, especially since school catchment don't really matter for you.

First one, it is bigger and and a back garden is must for family home.

I prefer house 1

We went to see them both today. House 1 is a bit tired and on a tatty estate. They also were smokers and that made it a no from DH. House 2 the layout was odd with lots of wasted space. The living room and dining room were really dark. If it had a big garden I could have made the compromise but it was tiny. You also have to drive down a footpath to get to it! It took us ages to figure it out. We'd never see another delivery again.

Is Wantage where you want to be or could you be further out in one of the smaller villages?

Sounds like you've decided neither, but for the record house 1 is best. Second one layout is annoying.

That’s a bit unlucky. Is there any pressure to find somewhere quickly?

@Killerqueen2244 doesn't have to be Wantage. Could be anywhere south of Witney, east of Faringdon, west or south of oxford.

I like the layout and feel of house 2 better. House 1 just seems very middle-of-the-road, and I would love all the nooks and crannies.

House 2 is also much bigger (by about 1000ft according to the floorplan), which would give you more options to move rooms around to suit, despite it only currently having 5 instead of 6 bedrooms.

Not sure about the hot tub though, I've heard those things are a pain to clean!