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...

Our garden faces North. It's true that it's often in shade but not true nothing grows there. We have apple trees, rambling roses, gorgeous climbers, loads of lilies, dahlias, veg patch, dozens of spring bulbs, like crocuses and daffs. It's very pretty.

Plot 19 looks nice.

Plot 13 would be my preferred plot on that development in that house type.

The parking looks to have plenty of room, the front garden looks a good size as does the back.

The direction of the garden has never bothered me. (Currently East I think)
I also live at the end of a shared drive which is also not an issue.

If it is a new build you can get things done like a gas fire/stove installed excluding VAT or a conservatory/bifold or garage (not necessarily done by your builder/seller) so this could represent a significant saving if you undertake the work now rather than later.

www.gov.uk/vat-builders/new-homes

With some careful research you probably could work out how likely afternoon sun is. Not sure folk on internet can. If its hot enough for paddling pools it does not matter if they are in shade. What some people do is build raised areas if it means they can catch more sun for longer i.e have a raised corner. I can see why you want to be sure as 15-20 years is a long time. I would not worry about it being dingey, if you have large windows it won't be. I bought off plan but there was 1 show home. We got into measuring it all out.

I wish I had bifold doors!

My garden is slightly north west facing. It was the only one left on the estate so we had no choice. We have hours of sunshine in the summer. No sun from mid October until February. Only one small corner is always in shade and hydrangeas happily grow there. I grew pounds of sweet grapes this year. I wanted a south facing garden, but this one is great. At our last house we had east facing and hardly saw the sun. Our new house is light and bright.

31 maybe

we've got a south facing garden and it was hell before we had some shade built. I wouldn't worry too much OP, the house has lots more going for it than the garden. Could you sit in the front garden?

Honestly you will have Sun in your garden especially as you won't have a garage. It won't cover the whole garden and sun spots will move through the day.

You have chosen this plot because of other benefits, privacy, drive, larger garden, you've said you only want some sun, So the plot is perfect for you.

I've had a north facing garden and we still had sun, and the garden wasn't that big either.

Also having windows at both end of your rooms will make the rooms light.

rest easy, it'll be fine.

try this OP, sun tracker suncurves.com/en/

I have a north west facing back garden. To be fair it was fine when I moved in in March, but now it gets hardly any sun, the sun might tip it as it moves across. but on the other hand the front of the house is nice in the morning. I was happy in the summer as the back garden always had shade and in those really really hot days it was nice. But overall, if you could change I would :( If you cant change it, it'll be ok - one side of the garden is sunny all summer, and I grew sweet peas and roses. The other side is mostly shady though. I think the months oct-mar will not be that nice, as even when it is sunny outside, it doesn't affect the back.

Not sure what the "shared driveway " issue is . Your parking spaces are your own and the access road is "shared" as all roads are and ends where your spaces begin. If the garden is deep enough and the houses are not too high you will get the sun at the back anyway. I would be more concerned about the angle of the main rooms and size of windows. If the larger windows and main rooms are at the back facing north that might put me off.

PS it's not too bad and lets face it the winter months are dreary anyway, so I'm getting lots of candles and things for the back of the house. THe front is still bright in the mornings. In the summer it was fine - nice if you're not a heat lover as you could always find a bit of shade

It depends where in the country you are, and how much you like the sun. If you are Scotland/North of England, then it might be worth changing which plot you are buying.
I'm in the South, and for the last few years have been very grateful for my NE facing garden when the temperature rises over 30 and my house and garden are nice and cool. Very hot summers seem to be getting more of a thing and for that reason I'd prefer a north facing garden.

Our house is like that. It's no problem and definitely rather nice when it's 30 degree heat and you can sit outside comfortably and the house doesn't heat up.
It also means you don't have to cut the grass too often. :D

Stick with it. The position will be more important and it looks like you’re tucked away. Our old house had a garden facing gene same way and we grew strawberries and raspberries. Go and look at different times of the day (just look over the fence) to reassure yourself. There’s definitely not a 20% difference in price here between south and north facing.

I'd hate the shared driveway = neighbour disputes!

North west will get sunshine in different areas as the day goes on, so you may need to move around a bit! Its perfect for when its really hot and you need some shade. We still have a very sunny corner now in October and can still sit and have a coffee outdoors. The patio right by the house is always in shade and in the winter light, the low sun means we dont get the same amount of sunshine, but in winter, who cares?

The last house my DP lived in had a north facing garden. It was lovely in the summer as there was a huge area of sun, but always a spot of shade that I could put my chair in.

I’m moving from a south facing garden at the minute. I couldn’t have any of my friends with children round last summer as there is no shade, and kids could not be pursuaded to sit under sun shade for more than 3 minutes. It’s a total sun trap and I have to water it constantly to prevent it being scorched earth in the summer.

Well, it's the area to the north of the building that will be shady. If you are not having the garage then quite a bit of your garden will be getting sun, as the garden is much wider than the house and there is quite a big gap between you and the next house. It will mainly be shady directly outside the back door.

In that respect number 13 is better than others as most of the plots seem to have north-ish facing gardens but yours has a bigger gap between you and neighbours for the afternoon sun to come through.

I can't really help because no way in hell would I buy a new build :( must you?!

It sounds like you considered the options pretty well..there won't be a perfect one.
My house I get sun until early evening. I have no parking. I hear the neighbours etc.

I grew up in a north facing kitchen. You never get any sun in the living room/kitchen.

I now have in a south-east facing kitchen and the dining room/kitchen gets lots of sun and stays nice and warm.

I feel bad for my mum, she dreams of a conservatory but there is no point, there is just never any sun.

We have a garden in the same direction and it isn't great to be honest. The top bit never gets sun so the grass is ruined and we only get sun when it is at its weakest so it is almost always cold in the back garden whereas our front "garden" is boiling!

We too thought it was great for the kids, but we get so little sun in this country that when it is here we want to enjoy it!

We have a north east facing back garden. I’ve never really thought about all the many issues previous posters have raised. Our garden is quite long so our table and chairs get sun right through to mid evening in the summer, although the patio at the back door is quite shaded. That is really pleasant in very hot weather though. A neighbour has a south facing garden and her patio is far too hot in good weather.

Our kitchen isn’t very bright, but we have a large window and french doors, so get quite a lot of light, and switch the lights on at other times. Our lounge at the front we have the curtains shut a lot during the day as the sun is so strong it fades the curtains etc. We have loads of pots at the back with flowers and they grow really well.