Would you buy a house on a main road

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We have finally gone under offer so can look at houses ourselves. We live in an expensive area and for our budget there is usually a compromise we must make. Things like schools, proximity to A roads or railway tracks, or claustrophobic roads with no car parking are things that I'm not prepared to compromise on, but the house we are looking at is on a moderately busy B road where the traffic can go at 40. The house is maybe 30ft back from the road with ample parking on hard standing and you can't really hear traffic inside (not noticeably), or from the garden, which is very large. The schools are excellent, it is near a station and very near to our childminder. My only worry would be walking with my toddler (and new baby) along that main road. There are less busy roads which it is very close to at a junction that we could cross to and walk down more safely, and I suppose I could use reins with my son until I was happy. But do you think we are mad to consider it? I don't think it would affect sellability as it is a very desirable are and many of the properties in the area are on this road and they do sell.

I wouldn't but mainly because I have four cats it would be a good idea to walk down the road at a couple of different times of day to see how busy it gets and wether you feel comfortable , the house itself sounds far enough away from the road

I would - we lived on one growing up and it was fine. You can often get more for your money and/or be in a better area if you compromise on a main road, and I think it's a compromise worth making.

I think the key here is saleability. If it doesn't bother you and you're not planning to move, it sounds like the right compromise, after all very few of us can afford a perfect house!

However, if you may want to move, and the current owners are struggling to sell then either they've priced too high or you'll experience the same. Although, everything sells at the right price.

There's a home near us, which sounds identical! The owners are trying to sell privately, when we queried the price they quoted about 300k, then when they put it officially on the market it was 360. Needless to say, its sat on the market and they're now having to rent it as they need to move.

Priced realistically, it sounds ideal in every other way, go for it.

We have just bought on a village high street. However the positive was car parking round the back. Private and ample and the garden is at the back too and is quiet as any noise muffled by house.

We plan to get wooden shutters on the front aspect windows internally for privacy. Sound insulation and warmth too. It's an old house and I can't wait!!

We've lived in a house on a busy road for 20 years - and really, it's fine. We couldn't possibly have afforded the same size house in a quieter location - it was comparatively cheap because there are lorries and buses rattling past most of the day. But with double glazing you don't hear it - or at least it quickly becomes normal. Road safety was a worry when the kids were little but they had the need to be careful drummed into them from day 1 and would never take risks.
It's swings and roundabouts really - sounds to me like the pros of the house outweigh the cons.

It's noise and air pollution I would consider. Have you read any of the research about the impact on DC? There is emerging evidence about impact on health and education impact.

Traffic was a lot less 30 years ago so what happened in my day etc is irrelevant.

No, we did it and it's not a good idea. You can't hear the noise in the house, I'm guessing that's with thr windows closed, try opening them in summer, or at peak times. Also the pollution makes everything dirty, from your curtains to your patio/decking.

We lived on a main road for 3 years and I Couldn’t wait to leave . There were So many things about it That I disliked and would never ever choose to live on one again.

• increase in traffic noise- v rare that there was no passing traffic

Opening windows meant more traffic noise and smells Manoeuvring in and out of the drive into the flow of traffic Walking anywhere was busy and not relaxing Kids riding bikes- this was difficult when they were younger. It was hard to cycle anywhere and set off from home

I would strongly suggest you visit often, the house and the road. Walk along it at diff times of day with your chn and see how it feels.

My house is on a main road and I've lived here for 7 years. For years I lived on quiet roads thinking it would be bliss, but inconsiderate parking was a definite turn off, together with the close proximity of neighbours and their noise. Now, apart from the soft drone of vehicles, it feels very quiet, the houses on the main road are spaced out and everyone has enough parking not to park on the road. I love it.

Noise would be my challenge.
How busy? does it quiet down at night, 20 cars in 1 minute?

I live on a busy road. Have done for 20 years and no regrets. We moved here when our DC were 3 and 4.

If you've got pavements then I can't see the issue. The house is well set back from the road, I think it would be fine.

Depends how busy. We live on a road that can get busy, though isn't constantly busy, and while crossing the road can be a pain and I have to be mindful of when to book supermarket deliveries, it is fine and we got a much better house for our money than in a nearby cul de sac. On the big plus side, we're close to main bus routes and the road gets gritted in winter.

I couldn't cope with a house on a road that was continuously busy, though.

We moved from a quiet cul de sac to a main road, set back approx 30ft with a large hedge. We had triple glazing installed upstairs.

I was really worried about it but actually it doesn’t bother us at all. We love it here.

And, yeah, if someone parks like a dick, the police move them on!

I wouldn’t. We did and I massively regretted it.
DD kept getting viral wheezes and as soon as we moved they stopped. She has had one in a year (treated at home) compared to four hospital admissions and permanent medication.
It also rattled when a drain became loose and lorries went over it.
Never again!

I live on a busy road - moved here with DC aged 6 and 2 and it's fine. It can be busy in rush hour, but the rest of the time it's pretty quiet. A lot of the time I'm barely aware of the road. Our windows are double glazed and the aspect and main bedrooms are rear-facing, plus we're also set back from the road and have a decent-sized driveway, all of which make it a lovely house to live in.

I think the pollution souks actually kill me off. I wouldn’t be keen on my DC breathing it in either.

I grew up on a main road and it was great. Similar set up with the 30ft drive.

If the UK would speed up on going electric for all transport, I would buy on a main road. However as the goal of all electric is 2040, I wouldn't want to be so close to the current noise and pollution.

Nope. Have just moved away from a cul-de-sac off a main road so my kids wouldn’t have to grow up breathing car fumes. Would prioritise being away from traffic over house size.

We live on a main road through a village and it's absolutely fine. You don't hear any noise, and as the kitchen is in the front, I love looking out and seeing people going past. We have a large front garden, so are set back a bit and our parking and garage are at the back. When we narrowed down our 'drive by' houses to look at the first thing my husband said is 'oh but it's on the road'. But the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages - I love it here - and this is from someone who lived in the country previously!!! There we had to cope with huge tractors on the road, often with young, inexperienced drivers - nightmare.

I think my current house on a main road suffers far less pollution than most.

I’m set back 15m with large gaps between houses. I seldom wash the windows. I washed the windows more in a terraced street with hardly any traffic.

It can be noisy at times but I do have single glazing and open fire places. In the rooms with secondary you don’t hear a peep. And in the neighbours with double you don’t hear much. Probably 1or 2 cars an hour during the early hours. But I believe the road is a 20’000 car movement a day road so looking at 20 cars a min during the normal day.

In my city if you want front gardens or period houses you are looking at main road living. Not actually that much cheaper living on the main road. The price reduction for being on the main road -20% is then negated by ample parking and period features which boost the house by more than 20%. The non period houses on the main road are very cheap and hard to sell.
The 3/4 roads in my city which have period houses off the main road you pay a huge premium +50% but there are literally only 100 of these houses. And they usually sell without ever going to market.

My only annoyance is parking. I’ll be putting in a turning space in the drive in future. It can be hard to reverse in at times due to drivers behind paying no attention to your signals/ driving too close.

I’m looking at a house on a busy road but the pros outweigh this con.

When you say main triad how main

A road
City town village
Rural

It's difficult to say with out more context? X.

I wouldn't because I have a cat.
I would also be concerned about pollution and being able to get onto the main road safely in my car.
My bf when I was at school lived on a main road, 2 of her brothers (young teenagers) and one of their dogs were knocked down on the road (not at the same time!) and although none of them were killed they all had broken bones.
They also had more privacy than most families, but not much sense of community and she preferred coming to my house because we could play out on the street and had more families around us.