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...

I'd stick with what you've chosen.

The wider drive and the quieter road would outweigh the benefit of any south facing garden for me.

I have viewed both south facing gardens that were in near full shade and north facing gardens with a good amount of direct sunlight. Whilst I can see why the appeal of a south facing garden it leaves you with less control over your light if you have neighbours at the back of your garden, who could grow a leylandii and block much of your light source.

I’d be inclined to choose 14 over 13 because where there is the gap between the house and the garage the afternoon sun can stream through.

Also I think the (future) garage location makes slightly more sense as the right hand side will be the sunnier side of your garden, especially the far end.

We have north west, because we have a ground floor extension we get loads of sun during summer (most of the shadow the house casts is over the extension roof, not the patio), we have hardly any shade for a couple months in high summer. But this time of year with sun lower in sky you do notice the lack of sun in the garden.

What can be really nice with north west facing like ours is that any tall trees at the back of the garden don’t cast a shadow. We have a lovely view of trees but no shade from them and we get lots of sun over the house from the front.

@Dougt

I’d be inclined to choose 14 over 13 because where there is the gap between the house and the garage the afternoon sun can stream through.

Also I think the (future) garage location makes slightly more sense as the right hand side will be the sunnier side of your garden, especially the far end.

We have north west, because we have a ground floor extension we get loads of sun during summer (most of the shadow the house casts is over the extension roof, not the patio), we have hardly any shade for a couple months in high summer. But this time of year with sun lower in sky you do notice the lack of sun in the garden.

What can be really nice with north west facing like ours is that any tall trees at the back of the garden don’t cast a shadow. We have a lovely view of trees but no shade from them and we get lots of sun over the house from the front.

14 was our first choice but unfortunately already sold so we went for 13. 14 have also opted for no garage according to estate agent so would have no shade from them either. That's a good point about the trees too!

We are north west facing, in the summer our kitchen and lounge are nice and cool, we get plenty of sunshine to enjoy though we aren't sun worshipers. If you love the house it won't matter.

My garden is north facing and we get plenty of sun in the summer, infact we still have the sun well into the evening when my south facing neighbours are in the shade. It’s perfect for us as we are more likely to be using the garden in the afternoons than morning.

I used to have a south facing house. So the small back yard was north facing. Even in a yard of a small terraced house I got enough sun to be able to sit out just fine. I can't say I noticed any difference in sunlight or warmth from the front to the back of the house. It all seemed light, not dark and gloomy at all.

@MikeUniformMike

I wouldn't by a house called No 13. because it would put buyers off.

So you would refuse to buy your dream house, in the perfect location because it’s number 13? If so, how ridiculous.

Honestly, it will be fine. You will get shade by the back of the house in the middle of summer when it is really hot and you need it.

Our back garden faces due west and on really sunny afternoons there is no shade whatsoever and it can get unbearably hot, both in the garden and in the rooms facing that way too.

@Annasgirl

Change - I thought you were going to say you had purchased a second hand house. If it is a new build then you can change. Ignore the builder and EA who will try to fob you off - you will live there for years and take a 20% discount when you try to sell (there is a 20% premium for South Facing gardens). It is worth the hassle of changing your mortgage application to change to a South or even better, a West facing garden. (I've had both, currently had a South facing but I prefer West facing as you get afternoon and evening sun.

there is a 20% premium for South Facing gardens

Wow - amazing. I never knew that and I have purchased much property in my time.

I simply don't get the issue with a north facing garden, unless you live in a tower block. I have one and it gets the sun all day (sun goes east to west) all through the summer as the sun is high enough in the sky to be over the (2 storey) house. Admittedly in the winter when the sun is lower only the back end gets the sun but we don't sit out in the winter anyway, as for nothing growing - we have raspberry canes against the house and they have been incredibly prolific this year. I'm with others though re the shared drive...

Shared drive is a big no for me. The garden isn’t ideal, but I’d put up with it.

We've had an NW facing garden for 30 years - it's fine. Not being overlooked is a big plus. The shared drive is only really a problem if your neighbor has 2 fat cars or can't park properly.

I think the garden is wide enough that you’ll always have a bit of sun. I wouldn’t worry.

And what I’d take from this thread is that we all have different ideas of what matters. 😀

@ZaraCarmichaelshighheels
So you would refuse to buy your dream house, in the perfect location because it’s number 13? If so, how ridiculous.

Not at all - my ExDH and I bought a No 13 - the neighbour said 'you're brave - every one who has lived there has got divorced' we laughed and poo-pooed the idea - 4 years on we split up. I would never buy a no 13 again - and I'm not superstitious...

South or South West facing gardens are the best. North is the worst. Change it!

Yes of course it was your house number that caused your marriage problems, silly me.

Rang EA, he said it's not a shared driveway, we have 2 spaces and then a fence the same as between our gardens.

Previous poster isn't the only one who'd worry about a Number 13. I know someone who should be a 13 but the street doesn't have one. The developers went from 11 to 15.

As stated its plot 13 not number 13. This development is adding on to an existing small development of the same address where there is already a number 13.

The driveway is the saving grace though. It provides a wide gap between houses for the sun to reach your garden. But in summer the whole garden will get sun at some point anyway.

I would not care if my house was number 666 if it was my dream house in the perfect location.

Is it a 3 storey town house because a tall house will cast a lot of shade ??
But I wouldn't be near the roads noisy, fumes, worrying with DCs as there is not proper front garden fences nowadays.
Is the house tall and how long is the garden.
Mid summer the sun is pretty high in the sky and most gardens should get sun over most of them.

If you hold a pen across the compass so it is east/west you will see that there is going to be quite a lot of sun reaching the garden in the summer evenings. As the sun sets in the west it will shine over your left garden fence .
In the winter you will get loads of warming sun through the front windows. In the summer enough sun will reach the garden.

I must be really weird then but I've never considered garden/sun direction when buying a house! Perhaps because there hasn't been a whole lot of choice in my price bracket, I bought the one I thought was the best value house for the money and an ok garden was a bonus. Admittedly I'm not a gardener, although we do grow veg. Gardens aren't the thing I care about, at least in my (three bed standard house) price bracket.