Would you buy a house that backed onto a train line?

[nicolllaaaaaaa]

Hello, Great house, great area. Backs onto a trainline. Would love some perspective. Thank you.

Depends on a few factors - how close the line is to the house itself, how busy the line is and how fast the trains go. We were put off a house because of a train line, but it was a small garden, the main line to London, and a high speed bit, so the noise would have been bad. There was also a level crossing just down the track so we’d have had the siren for that going off three times an hour! It would have driven us bonkers. However, a bigger garden and a quieter track is something we might have considered.

No, but the three times I looked at houses backing on to train lines, two were lines that were really high above the garden, as if the train could fall into the garden - mad and unlikely but I felt really uncomfortable. It made the garden unrelaxing. The third was on the flat with just a flimsy wooden fence. I had really active toddlers at the time and could imagine one unlocking the kitchen door while i was sorting laundry and being on the track before I knew he'd gone. That also gave me the creeps.

The only time I really noticed the trains when I lived backing on the train line was during big freeze/snows like 2018, and with the grade where we were the lighter trains were basically doing a very controlled slide downhill with the brakes on hard and sandite on full dump. That was pretty loud, but it was what, three or four times in eight years?

It depends. I the train is above you and it will be going 20-30ft from your bedroom window every 5 minutes then it would put me off. If same level or lower and just two or three times an hour then no. I have friends who's house backs on to the train line in London and it's a non issue.

My house is across the road from a railway line, no houses opposite me on that side, first couple days days I thought it would make me go insane but honestly within a week the trains are just background noise. Been here a year and don't bother us at all, kids sleep at the front of the house and no problems from them. We are at a level crossing as well which is fine. The only issue we ever have is when they work on the line. They do this through the night but generally any very noisy works is done by around 11pm/11:30pm and while it's noisy it's usually only 1 or 2 nights when they do need to do it

A random anecdote that popped into my head from this thread - I once knew of an affair between 2 married friends being discovered as a friend of /his/ wife saw them enjoying themselves in /her/ garden from the train that went past. Was a city commuter line and often stopped along that stretch.

My advice is not to buy anything near to HS2!

Trains pulling out of stations can be hugely polluting. Just a small line isn’t a big deal but expresses thundering by at all hours would be a problem. Our first house did back on to a railway line and we had a long garden. We all planted a few trees and it wasn’t very noticeable. With double glazing the sound wasn’t an issue. But it wasn’t a massively fast or busy line. We wouldn’t do it again but those houses still sell because of the generous gardens.

@SomethingAboutNothing - that's the plot of Girl on a Train isn't it?

Most TFL/Network Rail property has pretty secure fencing and if you feel your child could kick through it you should definitely contact them.

Not a chance in hell!

Labobo similar, if I recall she was obsessively watching a couple but its been a while since I read the book. This really happened, about 25 years ago, though obviously I have no way of proving it 🤷‍♀️

I am about 300m from an above ground train line. The house shakes when the stone trains go past, but you get used to it.

We used to be even closer and the intercity diesels were noisy as they needed to accelerate to get out of the nearby station (modern trains are quieter). Take a look on Google Earth to see where the nearest signals/curves in the track are as this will make things noisier.

I personally think it is a price worth paying for not being overlooked.

My mum and dad had a house that backed onto a tube line that was overground iyswim (suburbs). It was fine and no chance of the open outlook being spoiled by development and house building. My dad used to get a step ladder and go blackberrying on the sidings! You'd probably get caught now. We had lots of good crumbles in those days

We did and have lived here for the past 4.5 years. We have a small garden but the train line is raised up above the property and there is a line of trees between so we still get privacy and never feel overlooked.

The Trainline is busy but we have just got used to it and it never bothers us. We notice it a bit more in the summer when sitting outside but you soon zone out to the noise

Take a look on Google Earth to see where the nearest signals/curves in the track are

That is a good point. I rented a house next to a railway line and my bedroom window was ten feet from a signal. The whole house used to shake when light went green and the trains set off. Sometimes they would be sat outside the house idling for what seemed like hours.

@VienneseWhirligig

I think it would be nice to be able to watch the trains out of your window, I can see a main road from my bedroom window and often lie in bed at night watching the cars pass by.

I agree.

Rented for 10 years near a train line and you do get used to it.

I've lived with a London commuter line at the end of my (tiny) garden for 9 years now. It was the only way we could afford a house in our lovely area. Trains average about 6 per hour outside peak times (I think but have never counted!)

Pros: a nice Victorian terrace house in a leafy bit of Zone 2
Cons: the overnight work, which can be truly awful. But realistically only a problem a couple of times a year.

As PPs have said, your brain zones out the actual train noise after a surprisingly short time, so on a day-to-day level it doesn't bother you.

Would I move if I could afford an equally nice house away from the line? Absolutely. But for us the benefits of the house and location outweigh the down sides.

I am selling mine right now that’s on the train line. I adore it, not overlooked. Tons of trees between us and the line. It’s amazing. Don’t notice the trains at all anymore. We are only moving to relocate to a new area.

Where are you @Chipsahoy?

We did, years back, as it was the only way we could afford to move to our village. Our back garden was, in effect, the railway embankment
Once we got used to the trains (took a few months) we hardly noticed them, with the exception of a goods train that passed by at 4am, but it didn’t wake me up, I just noticed it as I’m often awake at that time and everything else was so quiet
Visitors commented, but we didn’t really “hear” them
We later rented the house out and then sold it very easily, so it obviously wasn’t majorly off putting

There is a line by us that has one train an hour. I would buy a house backing onto it without hesitation. Long garden and no neighbours at the back.

We live near a train line - 2 roads away, but I can see the trains go past from the top floor. I'm very noise sensitive and yes, the trains bother me. I couldn't cope with being nearer to them. And I can't have my window open during work calls as the noise is too loud. My DH and neighbours have no issue with it at all though.

Train line - yes you get used to it ( I've lived near a train line before). I wouldn't want to live near a train yard though. Stayed near one once. Tremendously noisy, screeching noises of the trains slowly being moved into sidings, especially at night for some reason. High pitched & only a few times a night, so much more difficult to get used to.

Personally no mainly because I am a terrible sleeper. I am about half a mile away from a line and I am often woken by trains, especially as there are multiple places nearby that they hoot at. However, I think it is less disruptive than the two delightful people nearby who choose to regularly rev their cars for ages at anti-social times.

I once viewed a house for sale next to a train line. There was no back garden and the house backed on to a steep, overgrown embankment. It made me wonder how you'd get access to the back of the house if you needed to do maintenance.

My friend did. She said you get used to it quite quickly and if the windows are shut she doesn't hear it