Help!! Have I just bought the wrong house?

[EllisRoses]

We've bought plot 13. I didn't know this whole north/south facing thing. I'm a first time buyer. I did ask the estate agent how much sun the back garden would get and he said morning sun and from mid afternoon onwards, I thought that was perfect as the kids will have shade during the hottest part of the day but we'll have sun the rest of the time. Now I've seen a post about north facing gardens and I googled and oh my god. Damp, dark, no sun ever, nothing grows? What have I done!! There's more plots available but it would be difficult, if not impossible to change at this point and everything would need to be redone, mortgage, H2B, the lot...

Looks like a fairly spaced out new build on a nice estate - not exactly a cramped terrace. I personally don't think the garden direction will make a blind bit of difference in that circumstance. Advantageous if anything - you can sit by the back door in the summer highs without completely burning, while the rest of the garden enjoys some sun. South facing - you have sun, and you will like it!

We have a garden facing due north and it's great - plenty of sun over the house in the summer (when you actually use the garden) and the patio is always cool in the shade. Photo shows lush north facing lawn.

Meanwhile people will obviously potentially only have big glass doors at the back of their homes, and thus they don't turn the house into a greenhouse.

Absolute nonsense that south facing gardens get a significant premium.....

We have a North facing garden and have sun in it at different times of the day (have four different seating areas). We can grow anything and have no damp areas. Tbh in UK it's not like you'll be on the sundeck most of the year 😉

North facing gardener here. Have lots of rare and interesting shrubs, acers, hazelnut bushes, liquor nectar tree, roses, clematis galore and this strawberry tree which is presently flowering and attracting queen Bumblebees galore. Lots of lovely flowers do part shade I personally love foxgloves x

We e had south facing and currently have North and a 70 ft garden. Much rather have the north. Loads grow fine, yes, there is shade at certain times, but with our Summers lately, that’s fine with us, it gets too hot otherwise.

Garden is north, north west. Sun in morning direct to back of property untill about 11am in high summer, from about 4pm bottom end of garden till about 7pm. So if you patio directly next to back of property and at the bottom of garden you can follow sun, my last house was this way facing so long as no trees are planted to bottom of the garden or anything to block the light its quite nice. Shared drive for me is a no no.

Use a shadow calculator app to give you a proper idea of what sun you’ll get. They take into account the time of year and height of sun

I have a north facing garden, I'm not a gardener so I didn't even consider it when buying. It is fine, I have a patio at the back of the house for mornings and then another patio in the top right hand corner which is a suntrap till late evening. I kind of end up sitting smack against the fence to get as much as I can, lol. The main bit of the garden has sun all day and I easily dry clothes all day long on a rotary.

Mine is north facing and we do get sun. It's generally just in one area though (long thin garden)

We have a 60ft back North facing garden & it’s not a problem at all! Quite a large patio & then lawn which gets sun all day.
The 20% increase for South facing - really?!

We'd always had a southwest facing garden until our current house bought 4years ago. The back garden now faces northeast. I've planted wonderful flowers, shrubs and trees. We get lovely sun in the morning and have full sun until about 5pm in the summer. Even at that time it's still very warm in the shade. In our old house we loved the idea of the southwest facing garden. We would sit in the front room at the best part if the day as it was just too hot to be outside (and we love the sun). Now we have a perfect balance. Our summers are definitely getting hotter and certainly for us and the children we get more use out of our current garden than the obe before. Gardening is a hobby of mine too and I just love ours now. Good luck x

For us a garden has to get sun and we didn’t look at north facing or no sun gardens. Depends on your deal breakers. We have a west to south west garden. It’s sun trap and plants do frazzle in it but I love it and it’s what I want. Previous had west facing which was good too. It was v long so always a bit if sun to be found and meant the house, as quite open, always had sun streaming in thru one side or the other

@MaisyMary77

Same here, last two houses we owned had or have North facing gardens.

Last one had 120ft garden so no trouble there. Current house new build, much like OP best garden size wise on development for price which was ore important to us

We’ve got a great sun trap song had a patio put there and during height of summer it’s a sun trap until the sun goes down

When I first read the OP I thought the ‘wrong house’ related to it bring Plot 13

Can I just ask why we bother with science education in this country?

@TheSunIsStillShining is it because the sun shines and the direction of the garden really shouldn’t matter? The real issue is the size of the garden and whether houses next to you or your own house cast a shade when the sun shines?

I really do not understand the garden direction thing because it isn’t the direction per se that is really the issue.

I don’t know if there are other countries where this garden direction is a thing.

The gardens don't look massive but may not be to scale. I have a south facing (tiny) garden and it can be unbearable in the summer. No shade at all. The front gets a bit in the morning and evening but is pretty dull in the day. A friend of mine has a huge north facing garden and gets a lovely amount of sun all day in different parts of the garden.

I have a north facing garden and I love it
It's raised so it actually gets a lot of sunshine for almost the entire day with some sections closer to the house that get more shade.
No problems growing things.

My current house has a north facing garden and I hate it. Never get sun in the back of the house/kitchen, lawn is boggy in the winter and full of moss. I would never buy another house that’s north facing. If you can change it then do

Don't worry, we bought a house last year and thought the same, worried that it would be dark and nothing would grow in the garden would but we spent all lock down out there and it was wonderful. We had a south facing garden in out old house, it was just so hot in the summer and I much prefer this one.

I think it depends on how much you like the sun. I can't sit out in it so we have built a sun/wind shelter in our south west facing garden.
When it's hot it's unbearable for me. We have our curtains shut in the kitchen all summer! Have a seating area where the sun does hit. I would rather the kids have a shady garden to play in full sun from 11am is relentless.

With global warming you might be glad of a cool north facing garden.

Our back garden is north west and I love it. I think as long as big enough not to have full shade from the house then it’s fine. Our front garden gets way too parched and hot, we live in the south east which probably has an influence. From lunchtime onwards we have plenty of sun out back. Zero damp dark areas and plenty of shrubs and flowers.

My sister and i live on the same street. Shes got a north facing garden, mine is south facing.
I get slightly more sun but hers gets plenty, especially in summer. At this time of yeat hers is shaded nearer the house but sunney at the end where as mine is shaded just at the end where the fence is.
My last house was east facing, that was way worse as it was in complete shade by mid afternoon!

Don't change. I bought a house off plan and was OBSESSED with it having a South facing garden. Turns out the back of the house would be roasting on a sunny day and the neighbours diagonally across the back had sunshine on their North West facing patio long after we had lost the sun because their garden wasn't overlooked by buildings. When buying off plan you get obsessed about everything being absolutely perfect. There will always be something not 100 per cent. Imagine you change to one across the road and see your original house does have plenty of sun after all. And remember this is the UK - there are months of the year where you won't even get into the garden in the cold dark winter. Plenty of people have lovely north facing gardens and lots of lovely plants like shade - plus you don't have to water so much.

When I sell my flat I literally cannot sell it in July / August as prospective buyers will be put off by how hot it is. I have an industrial fan going in the front room. South facing balcony new build.