What house would you choose?

[sprinkleddonut]

Setup: husband, wife and 3 pre teen kids both boys and girls.

Which house would you go for in my situation?

House A: 🏡

Beautiful surrounding area and fabulous 4 bed house with lots of room and children have room each however very close proximity to mainline railway backing on to little garden.

House B. 🏡

Not so nice area, 3 bed house (with box third bedroom) Better family living area and huge garden. However would have to eventually extended and more expensive then House A.

I love the first house and that would realistically be better for us as a family however being so close to the train obviously is not ideal + cheaper then house B.

What would you choose and why?

House A for sure. I’ve lived close to a railway line and the train station itself in my last two houses and you just don’t notice it after a while. Unless it’s high speed trains going by?

A. You don't notice trains after a while.

Neither, if you can wait for a better option, but the small garden in A puts me off more than the railway line. The railway may be an issue when you come to sell but presumably it's reflected in the price.

I've lived in a house with a train line at the end of the garden. The trains were never at full speed because they all stopped at the station a mile further on. I quickly got used to them. Where I am now, the trains pass through without stopping and they can be pretty noisy and frequent. I wouldn't want to be too close.
Have you been in the house when trains go past? Would you get used to it, or would it drive you insane?

I adore trains so A every time! My Grandma lives right on the railway line and you do just stop noticing.

My sister's house was right next to a rail line and she had a problem with rats. She was told it's common in that sort of place and it wasn't worth her while even trying to get rid of them. She moved.

Neither.

How frequently so trains pass and what times? Is it double glazed and is the garden big enough to be a distance from the trains? I’d need to sit in the garden while trains pass to see. Also, is there a tunnel nearby? That can cause rat issues.

House a. House b is not big enough for the family.

House A as it sounds perfect for your situation, and the only compromise really is the railway at the end of garden. Lots of people don't mind a railway at the end of their garden so you are unlikely to have problems selling on when you want to.

A

House A

I think houses with railways close by fall into a particular situation where you can get both a better house and an overall better area than you might otherwise have been able to afford, which seems the very situation you're in. There was a thread recently about pros and cons of living near a railway line and what to look out for - it's worth a read.

I would see how noisy the trains are in the house and also what is the timetable - like do they run through the night? If it was loud would keep looking, if you can barely hear it would go with A.

Neither, I'd wait for house C

I wouldn't touch B.

You can improve a home but you cannot improve the area around it!

I’d choose the better location every time so house A for me - but - it depends on how often and how noisy the trains are.

We live near (not backing onto) a train line and the trains are only every 1hr 10 mins.

House B isn't big enough for your family so there is absolutely no point in considering it. 2 usable bedrooms and 5 people simply isn't workable.

House A is big enough for you, the trains may not be an issue. Speak to neighbours, take a stroll around the area at different times of day to get a feel for the noise etc. But as others say you will stop noticing it after a while.

If there isn't a choice to wait for House C then you really only have A as a viable choice imho

Thanks for your replies. I appreciate it.

It's so difficult. Wish it could be house C but unfortunately that doesn't seem to be an option. I love house A and if it was anywhere else it wouldn't be affordable for us :(

How close is A to the train station? Close enough to be an advantage or far from the station when trains are at max speed?

Definitely not B.

Other posters have covered the railway issue.

@Cattitudes

Trains will be at max speed for sure.

I currently live just besides train station and can see every passing train from my living room and hear it. Normal trains are not a problem but usually Cargo/freight trains are very loud and they are frequent at night. I have double glazing in the house and at night when everything is silent , the train noise literally irritates me and can literally feel vibrations through the walls. So I would never choose a house with trainline.

We actually liked one house few months back and our offer was accepted as well but it was 10 min away from the airport but had to let go as the airplane was flying right above it and flights were every 5 mins in the summer and we actually recorded noise by using decibel app and we had to let go of the house. That house had our dream garden and everything we wanted in a house but we didn't want to compromise with the noise as houses don't come cheap and there will be plenty of coming in the market in the future.

Can you just wait until a better property comes along? Why are you limiting yourself to these 2 properties, neither of which are ideal.

@ShowOfHands

I adore trains so A every time! My Grandma lives right on the railway line and you do just stop noticing.

Me too so definitely A.

Also bybthe time your kids are actually teens being close to public transport (assuming there will be a station nearby too) will be a Godsend