Ex-council house

[Loopyteddy]

We have sold our rural 2 bed bungalow recently and are looking to move to a 3 bed house local to us but into a village.
We recently looked at a property that has been renovated in the last 2 years. The price of it means we will not be borrowing the maximum amount and can keep a little cash back from the sale of our house to make the new house our own. Basically we will be in a better financial position then if we went to the top of our budget.

This house isn't very big but the layout is great for a family with 2 small children as it has a space for a playroom that is joined on to the kitchen diner.

However it is an ex-council house and 3 different people (friends and family) have told us not to buy it because of this.
When questioned as to why, they just say they're not built great, we will have trouble selling it if we want to later on etc

Can anyone tell me is there an issue with ex-council houses that I'm not aware of? We haven't had the survey done yet but will see if that flags anything up.

Thanks is advance

They sound like snobs who have no actual idea what they're talking about.
We went from a new build which was shoddy at best. It started practically falling apart after 2.5 years and we have no DC or pets or anything like that. We both work full time we were barely there!

From that to a lovely 3 bed ex council house built in 1935. It's solid, very much built to last. We haven't had any issues since and id never buy a new build again. The only quirky thing I can think of is that the light fittings aren't central in some of the rooms. That's easily noticed on viewing and easily fixed.

Also our garden is bloody huge! Another plus point.

When was it built? Ours is ex-council and it's built like a brick shit house. It's 1950s with an enormous plot.

If built between the late 1960's and the mid 1980s it will have been built to 'Parker-Morris' standards, laid down by the Ministry of Housing. These were rules about room sizes, and storage - far more generous than those which apply today. (Parker-Morris standards were abolished by the Thatcher Government in the early 1980s.

Sounds ideal . Go for it. They’re just a bit snobby. my parents divorced , remarried and divorced again so that’s all 4 of my parents (and stepparents) living alone in a 4/6 bed house each! Such a waste of space and it’s all just competition and snobbery. 2 of them can’t afford to do anything with their lives and one of the houses is falling apart. Nuts. I’ve got a tiny semi in suburban London with no upstairs bathroom but it has a drive and a stonking great garden that you can lose your children in quite easily and a 24 ft pool. It looks rather like a little cottage and guess what? Council make your home the way your household needs it , your family got to pick their own houses . You do you.

It was built in the 60s. It looks really sturdy.
I just wondered if there was a known issue that I wasn't aware of, but that's obviously not the case.

If it helps you OP, my sister owns an ex council house and has 4 viewings tonight & 5 tomorrow and it only went on the market yesterday.
I don’t think you’ll have an issue with selling on and it sounds perfect for you.

They’re much better built than new builds!

In my opinion, most council houses tend to be well built and maintained with larger room sizes and on larger plots than modern houses.

What's not to like?

Ignore the snobs, buy it and make it your own.

I also think this is snobbery but do be aware they are not alone. Ex council houses are often immediately recognisable as such due to a certain look they have outside and are often in typical looking council estates, even if all now owner occupied.

People are right in that thy are often well built and quite spacious, and th trade off is for the often less attractive appearance you tend to get more for your money in terms of size and space v other properties which are not ex council in the same price bracket and may have more kerb appeal.

So I doubt it is the build etc, but more a snobbery about living in a recognisable ex council house and estate.

Thank you! You have stopped the creeping doubt I was starting to feel about it.

I don't live in an ex council house but dp works in housing repairs for our local council & the houses are very well maintained. They have bigger issues with the new builds they have than the council built houses (lots of new builds here are selling some houses to the council). Dp has to go and sign off the new houses and they regularly have massive lists of snagging issues compared to their own properties so I wouldn't let a bit of snobbery put you off. He wouldn't let me buy a new build them we bought our house.

Unless there's something specifically wrong with the area e.g. bad estate then it sounds like pure [out of date] snobbery.

As for the house, as long as it's not non standard construction and the survey is ok, it sounds fine.

The drawbacks of a semi (I'm in one) are obvious, but that's the gamble you take and it will be priced as a semi.

It sounds fine to me!

If it's a 60s build there might even be some good 'heritage' features that you don't get in new build. When we bought our first ex-council semi, in a village location, we discovered herringbone parquet under the living room carpet! And of course it had a usable chimney. Good luck.

I live in one and I like it. I think the whole road is privately owned now and most have extended. All have great large gardens. People can be strange about status etc.

Re selling that's a load of rubbish, we're selling our ex council house, it's a good solid build, had 10 viewings within 3 days of it being listed and 2 offers within 4 days of it being on the market.
It's been a good house, no issues with it, good size house and garden which you don't get much with newer builds
Only moving as we too want to be in the local village and have outgrown this house now. The village we are moving to has a few like ours and they sell really quickly due to the large gardens.
Our surveyor said what a solid house it is.

My sister lives in an ex LA house and she has no intention of moving from it. I think the houses themselves are great quality and very much in demand from people who have a lower budget. Sure, you'll never get the same amount for it as a similar sized non LA property if you ever sell it, but I don't think that matters. I think the area would be my only concern. If it's an area where there's lots of LA housing and the potential for tenants to be less than savoury then I'd avoid it, but if it's only a street or two and lots have been sold off then it would definitely be a contender.

It's in a row of 7 other similar properties, all but 2 are now privately owned.
Just on the Main Street of a very small, sleepy village. It's not on an estate.

I would also be the first to admit that the outside of the house isn't really attractive.
It was the inside layout and new kitchen that we liked.

I bought one to renovate a few years ago. My mother was horrified, "you've worked your way back down to the bottom of the property ladder!" Once the work was done, she bought it off me

@TwoBlondes that's brilliant

You can give it a facelift , render the front , put a nice porch on it . Usually a little makeover like that gives it that more upmarket feel for not much money.

It's snobbery ffs! They are built fine but I know people who wouldn't buy one because of what they are ! 🙄

If it's sixties built, it should be fine but you do get council houses built shortly after WW2 of non-standard construction that are poorly built so it isn't solely snobbery, you just need to be careful what you are buying.

If the space, rooms and garden are ideal for you, and it sounds like they are, the outside appearance is something you can deal with after. Fingers crossed for you. 🤞