What is wrong with buying an ex council house?

[icepackquestion]

I am looking at houses to buy. When I have mentioned some to a few people they have asked if the are ex council. I don't know the answer so I just move on.

When I viewed a house yesterday the estate agent said "this is ex council but it's one of the few I would happily live in myself"

What is wrong with ex council houses? I literally have no idea, and couldn't tell the difference between them and others.

My absolute favourite home I've ever owned was an ex-housing association house. Massive house. It had literally everything I wish I could have now! Big lounge, separate dining room, kitchen with a walk in pantry, downstairs loo, four bedrooms, nice size garden, big brick outbuilding with a Belfast sink... God, I loved that house!

Similar to @TerribleCustomerCervix we paid £180k for a 4 bed semi with 3 reception rooms and two bathrooms plus a very decent sized garden. It's ex council that the previous owner had developed.

The rooms are huge and there's still a loft and garage if we ever wanted to further extend (we don't). I joke to dh that we live on a street of builders because the whole street is the same - ex council that have been developed over time but I love that the street has an interesting look to it not the uniform style you see on new build estates. I love our house but we could never have afforded something this size if we were buying new. Yeah as a pp has mentioned ex council is code for lives near poor people but our neighbours are lovely and I think places should be less divided in terms of income etc anyway.

My house is ex council.

Upsides: it’s big, with a decent garden, and most of the neighbours are lovely.

Downsides: one neighbour (sadly, directly next door) is rough AF and horrible.

But upside: we can complain about them to the council! (I don’t know who you complain to about privately owned awful neighbours?)

But also downside: any complaints you make about neighbours have to be disclosed to the buyer when your sell. So I’m currently weighing up what’s worse - not complaining, and having to live next door to a twat? Or complaining, then possibly finding out, and then having to reveal all to a buyer?

Oh, you can sell your house back to the council. They act very quickly and it’s an easy sale. But they don’t pay “market rate” - usually about 10-20% less.

My plan is to make a million then sell this back to the council for a pittance, hoping they give it to a scary family who’ll sort out that awful neighbour…

The lady we bought our house from had lived in it since it was built in 1952/53. I always think how amazing it would have been in that era to move into a house with not one but two inside toilets.

BalladOfBarryAndFreda

I don’t know if this a goady thread and posters will be accused of being NIMBY snobs but unfortunately a lot of council and local authority housing estates suffer with higher levels of antisocial behaviour than solely private estates and areas. That’s not to say that there isn’t crime in privately owned areas, it’s just a different sort and perhaps more hidden.

I live in the country in a row of old properties. Four council houses have been built just over the way from us. The only time you hear screamy, sweary arguments, they are coming from those houses. It isn't constant though.

And aside from that, we've had no issues whatsoever. The people in them never cause any problems and I wouldn't know any different if they crossed me in the street.

The types of neighbours I have aren't generally seen in non council estates.
However, I will say that some of it is down to the awful housing association. They don't maintain houses or keep the place clean. It makes for miserable living conditions.

I live in ex council house and most of the neighbours have now bought aswell so probably about 20% that haven't bought so it's not always about living with poorer neighbours. I would buy my house again anyday over a tiny poorly built new build.

There’s council houses and council houses. There’s those that are on estates that are still predominantly social housing with many not looked after in rougher parts of town and those on estates nearly all owned and maintained and extended beautifully.

It’s not the house so much as the immediate location and neighbours.

I think the problem is when you buy any house, you don't know what your neighbours will be like yet they can make you love or hate where you live. So people try to look for ways to minimise the chances of having shitty neighbours by making huge generalisations about certain areas. Sometimes they're correct and often they're wrong.

@roobicoobi

People are just being snobby.

No. People are being realistic.

My house is ex council, as are most of the houses in my street. Across the road there are 2 still conciliatory owned, 4 bed properties so they will always house large families. At the moment we have a lovely couple and their 5 kids in one and a couple who are as rough as it gets with 6 kids, another on the way, grass 3ft high, banger motors on the drive and road (they have 5 cars - only on can drive) they smoke weed and the house next to them (private) has the smell wafting through to them. Neither of them works. That have been under social work in the past but the file is apparently closed now, despite them barking at the kids and never actually talking to them and they have a huge speaker in the garden for bang bang bang music for about 5 hours each evening. They light fires at least twice a week and are generally rowdy and disruptive. I don't think all council tenants are bad, but at the same time these are the kind of people who would never be found anywhere else.

My next-door-but-one neighbours own, whereas my immediate neighbours either side are council, they like to spend a sunny weekend revving their bike engines and playing loud music from their speakers. Noisy twats can be anywhere

Our first house buy was ex council. Brilliant house, even with the previous owners botch jobs! We made a lot of money on that house when we sold due to the area becoming a commuter hotspot.

Some of the neighbours were the problem, it’s a vicious cycle though, a some proportion were just dragged up, didn’t care about anything or anyone except themselves....which can be true of a lot of people of course but a poorer area comes with its own problems, more crime, a lot of litter and no one really kept their house looking nice. Ended up having a HMO behind ours which just had people hanging outside smoking all kinds of things and one guy threatening us for no reason at all....We didn’t want to raise a child there so we moved.

Ours is ex council and the build quality is better than new builds with lots of storage and good sized rooms. As to the neighbours there is a mix of housing association owned and private rent. The only ones that cause any problems are the private renters.

My next-door-but-one neighbours own, whereas my immediate neighbours either side are council, they like to spend a sunny weekend revving their bike engines and playing loud music from their speakers. Noisy twats can be anywhere

Yes they can. The chances of having anti social neighbours is still higher in council areas.

Thanks everyone. So in summary it's basically people referring to the neighbours being council tenants.

@icepackquestion

Thanks everyone. So in summary it's basically people referring to the neighbours being council tenants.

That’s quite goadily phrased, was it intentional or are you pissed off with the answers?

To be honest I’m surprised at the answers, I’m also surprised as everyone’s council house seems to be either massive or huge, where as in my experience they are bigger than new builds in the same bracket, but that’s all.

I guess it's a case of how 'ex' it is?

Near me there is an 'ex' council estate that hasn't been council owned for over 30 years...so I'd happily live there. The houses are lovely!

However, about 5 miles away, there's an estate that's notoriously awful (and no, I'm not being snobby!) it is national news nightly bad! I definitely wouldn't buy on there...and there are houses for sale 🤷‍♀️

@icepackquestion

Thanks everyone. So in summary it's basically people referring to the neighbours being council tenants.

Well yes...basically! What were you expecting as your answer? You can see for yourself when you view what the actual property is like 🤦‍♀️

I literally have no idea, and couldn't tell the difference between them and others.

I don't know how I know what council houses look like but there are styles that are common up and down the country and generally you can always pick them out.

I own an ex council house, and it's great. There's no way I could afford this much house in a newer build estate. The only thing new builds have that we don't is a second toilet/bathroom, but there's only 4 of us and we cope fine with 1 toilet.

We did have a dodgy neighbour, who went to prison for drug dealing. But they owned their house too, so it's not as if they were council tenants. My friend lives in a nice new build estate and she had awful neighbours, who have also ended up in prison, so it doesn't protect you.

@MaybeCrazy2

Ex council house means you could possibly have a problem with the neighbours. People don’t tend to look after something that doesn’t belong to them, as they don’t pay for it.

unbelievable!

Thanks...I PAY to rent the house I am in and I DO look after it as do my neighbours.

What a snobby opinion.

@CrimsonImp

I literally have no idea, and couldn't tell the difference between them and others.

I don't know how I know what council houses look like but there are styles that are common up and down the country and generally you can always pick them out.

I grew up council but everyone I know can spot thr ubiquitous council house style., or lack of. Often you know when you’re entering a council estate or looking at council houses. Not any more, with the new ones, and not always, but they were usually built for function, with very plain fronts, and that’s the key reason I think they tend to be cheaper, than other similar sized property, it is the lack of kerb appeal.

I can understand what people are saying about the community and crime, but only the op will know where she’s looking to buy and if that’s relevant, or even if it lacks kerb appeal, or if she even cares.

I've viewed it already, it's lovely. It's huge, beautiful Garden, 3 car drive. The people have owned it and lived there for 28 years. Only 1 direct neighbour and it was an older lady.

It's in a lovely area, where I want to live.

My question was not about this property only. I was asking why people ask me this question so much. Not everyone knows everything. Wasn't being goady.

Nothing!

But it means some of your neighbours might be council tenants

@CrimsonImp

I literally have no idea, and couldn't tell the difference between them and others.

I don't know how I know what council houses look like but there are styles that are common up and down the country and generally you can always pick them out.

In this area they generally have smaller/fewer windows, quite a wide plot, sometimes pebble-dashing or red brick. Usually minimum 3 bedrooms. If you have any interest in property periods you can tell.