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Original poster

Dilemma! Same house on same street, £34k cheaper

188 replies

Parisah · 15/09/2020 07:08

Hi all!
This scenario in the SE:
House A: decent enough interior, few steps away from amazing school, north facing garden, last sold 2016, chain free, further from train tracks, north facing garden.

House B: older interior but not awful, other end of road so further from school (but relatively close still), last sold 1998, not chain free, closer to train tracks (they are at the end of the road) south facing garden.

Both Victorian semis. House B is £34k cheaper.

Can house A be worth so much more, maybe because of train tracks?

OP posts:
Roowig2020 · 15/09/2020 09:59

I'm moving from a house with south facing garden to one with a north (slight westerly) garden. I am worried about sunlight too but It is 40ft long- I'm not sure if it matters so much due to size? Anyway the house is fab, so I've compromised. It also has a very private south facing front garden.

Op I'd go for the one that you're mostly likely to get your kids into the school you want. I wouldn't want to live near a train track either.

idril · 15/09/2020 10:00

If there is any chance of hearing the trains, go for the one further away. Train noise is hideous in my experience.

I'd prefer south facing garden but I'd go for north facing over train noise.

Branleuse · 15/09/2020 10:03

id be bothered about train tracks if I had cats, but otherwise not

sunshinesupermum · 15/09/2020 10:07

A - you like it more and if it's your forever home paying over the odds should not be an issue if you can afford the £34K difference.

MikeUniformMike · 15/09/2020 10:08

With the railway line, the noise depends on how fast the trains go.
Mainline trains would be horrendous, but a branch line with the trains not going very fast is not that loud.

sunshinesupermum · 15/09/2020 10:09

Rooowig2020 if your garden is long then you will get sun but only during summer months. I have had north facing gardens twice, the current one is 100ft and we aren't overlooked which mean we still get a lot of light. Our last kitchen and garden faced west and it baked in the afternoons - would have hated south facing!

MeridaTheBold · 15/09/2020 10:11

Our friends have a train line at the bottom of the garden (not exactly but it feels that close) and it's horrible tbh. Their house is lovely. It's a nice area but the proximity to the train line is a real negative. I do think the lack of chain is another major bonus for house A. And it sounds as though you're more likely to remain in catchment even if boundaries are re-jigged at a later date.

cravingthelook · 15/09/2020 10:11

I live under a viaduct (literally) I never hear the passenger only trains, however if I open the windows I can hear the A road that's 40 yards further away from me. It's really loud.

So depends if its passenger or freight trains ... the noise is different

quiteathome · 15/09/2020 10:13

Used to live near a quiet trainline. However there were freight trains that woul dgo along it every so often. They were so noisy. I would not want to be in a house with a garden next to a train line. Even a quiet line- with people staring into your garden from the train- it would feel intrusive.

And wrk on houses is expensive- from experience- we have done it because we adored the house. However the bill has been far more than £34k. And it depends on how much is livable. (New electrics, roof, central heating, kitchen bathroom. All adds up)

GabsAlot · 15/09/2020 10:18

couldnt the catchment change in 2 years though then what

Binny36 · 15/09/2020 10:19

I would look at catchment of both too

yellowgusset · 15/09/2020 10:21

If house B is 0.1 miles from the school then it is safely within the catchment for the foreseeable, surely?

I would actually say that A sounds too close to the school! Give me train noise over inconsiderate parking any day of the week.

pastandpresent · 15/09/2020 10:21

I would definitely go for house A. If the other house was sold last in 1998 and older decor, all the things like piping, wiring could be old too. And addition to that, close to the train tracks. But tricky point is north facing/south facing garden.
Do you like house A as it is, or would you do it up regardless? Do you mind being close to train tracks and potentially the noise that come with it? Is the garden big enough so it gets sun even though the garden is north facing?

Jeremyironseverything · 15/09/2020 10:21

Get negotiating hard on the one you like.

bridgetreilly · 15/09/2020 10:23

Make an offer on A, citing the price of the house down the road as part of your reason. I'd maybe go in £15k or £20k under the asking price of A, so you're recognising it does have advantages but just not at the level they are expecting. Point out that you are also chain free. Then see what they come back with. If they stick to their guns, walk away and buy B.

SpaceOP · 15/09/2020 10:26

@northernstars

South facing garden would cinch it for me.
Yes. I have told DH that when we move house next, my new line in the sand is 1. an actual hallway and 2. a garden that isn't north facing. Everything else I'm open to.

Having said all that, i do think the train tracks may be an issue and I'd be trying to be there for a viewing when a train is expected to come past.

The garden and work needed inside will absolutely impact the price. House across road from us is on market. I think it's quite pricey compared to what our other neighbour's house went for 2 years ago, BUT their garden is SW facing. And the inside, while a bit old fashioned perhaps, is in excellent condition, clean, bright etc with new boiler and heating system etc. Unlike the other house that required extensive work inside. I suspect they'll get their asking price.

ChristopherTracy · 15/09/2020 10:29

Just echoing what everyone is saying about the garden aspect - my current one is North and everyone said it would be awful. In fact it is a complete suntrap with shade only near the house. I have to put in plants that can tolerate and still water every night.

Plus it means that our living room is very light as it is south facing.

MyCatHatesEverybody · 15/09/2020 10:29

I wonder why the owners of house A want to move already, doesn't sound like it was a doer upper if the interior is only "decent enough"?

mummmy2017 · 15/09/2020 10:34

Gardens are important, check how much sun each garden gets.
My old house had no sun at all , until about 5 at night, not even at th bottom of the garden.
My new house is on a busy road. But we have sunshine all day, have had a paddling pool out on good days, that we never could before.

flowerpotsandrain · 15/09/2020 10:35

We have a train track directly at the bottom of our long garden, around 6 trains an hour plus the odd freight. The first 2 weeks I noticed the trains a lot and wondered if i'd made a mistake, then like every other human brain, I'd tuned it out and didn't notice it anymore. I don't notice the trains at all now. DC love being able to wave to granny when she gives us a text in advance and they rush to the windows to wave. We'd miss the train tracks now because it also gives the benefit of not being overlooked by any other houses, we have privacy and that is worth so much more.

Or side garden is north and it's miserable. I'd also never live close to a school again. I did it for 3 years and hated it; the parents and parking, the kids all over the road, the traffic noise etc. It was random honking and kid noise, especially before and after school, at break time and lunch time and so you couldn't tune it out. I loved that home so much but ultimately couldn't stay beside the school.

A south facing garden means you'll have a lot of nice light inside too. Gardening with kids is great, it's so good for them to plant plants and food. They find it magical harvesting their own grown food and eating it from age 2.

LadyOfTheImprovisedBath · 15/09/2020 10:37

We have a south facing garden and it is nice - but the rooms that side of the house get really hot (though luckily not in extention bit so kichen diner and the newer bedroom are fine as set back and I think carefully planned).

It's not so bad in downstairs sitting room manaagble usually but the one upstairs bedroom is awful at times and DD1 has been known to sleep downstairs.

I think I'd be going for A no chain, closer to school and futher from train tracks and sounds like less work needed - so probably close to the additional prrice tag with all that.

greengreengrass14 · 15/09/2020 10:46

Another vote for South facing garden.

Also. at a later date, if you wanted to access or install grants for solar panels, the angle of the roof (south facing?) would be important. House I used to be in we couldn't do it as the roof didn't get the sun.

nonicknameseemsavailable · 15/09/2020 10:48

railway line, kitchen and bathroom can make a huge difference I would think. Also don't forget to check roof, soffits (or whatever they are called), guttering, outside condition (painting/pebbledash etc), porch, windows, state of drive/path/garden. Is there other work needs doing.

mummmy2017 · 15/09/2020 10:49

Also as suggested go sit in the car by the houses, one day do A at pick up and home , also lunchtimes.
You need to see just how bad it can be.
Cars and shouting mean some houses are just not worth it

Thecazelets · 15/09/2020 10:52

Don't forget that south facing garden means north-facing sitting room in most houses. The worst house we've ever had was a Victorian terrace with a south facing garden - and a very cold, grey north-facing sitting room. I was never happy in that house, and we moved after 3 years. To be fair the kitchen wasn't well-designed, and if the back had been opened up to let in more sun it could have been very different.