Open plans more desirable or not?

[estebancolberto]

We are buying a 1930s 3-bed house. We are considering whether we can remove the 3 internal walls downstairs to connect the kitchen, dining room, and living room. Is this a good idea? Are open plan houses desirable or not for buyers as we would like to sell this house after 5 or 10 years.

We have partial open plan. However we have a large house with lots of space!

What I like is not fully open plan but an open room dividing unit. The base of this could be double sided cupboards and shelves above. It helps with storage and definitely separates spaces. If the house is big enough, you can retain a partial wall and add open shelves on the end. A 1/3,1/3,1/3 arrangement.

Ive seen huge kitchen diners with tiny original living areas. Not sure this works either. Often the lounge needs to be bigger.

For kitchen living, buy a very quiet Miele dishwasher. You hardly know ours is on. It’s whisper quiet. Do all washing overnight. Also think about a washing cupboard so washer and dryer are hidden and therefore sound deadened.

We had open plan kitchen / back room in our old house (1930s semi) and loved it when our children were younger. I think this is why it’s so popular; the space is so useable with a young family. However, we have just upsized and this house is not open plan. We have no plans to create another open plan space as our children are older and we were all getting under each other’s feet. They like their own space and as they grow up and have teenage friends round, I really don’t want 5 teenage boys eating pizza in my kitchen whilst I’m cooking dinner. So honestly I think it’s personal preference / lifestyle. I do think open plan is very ‘in’ right now but everything dates eventually.

I wouldn't view a house like that. I love a kitchen diner but a separate living room is a must.

Heating costs but especially cooking smells make it a firm no for me.

We've bought a house but has bifold doors to separate the kitchen from the dining room & living area.

We've not moved in yet so don't know how often they'll be open or closed but nice to have the option!

If the stairs and hall are kept separate, the heat stays where you live. In the lounge/dining/eating spaces. We have casual eating space in the kitchen and I like it when DDs have friends round snd we all chat. They can eat or drink and I don’t want to shut them away. However if it’s a small space, a casual eating area is a luxury but we still love entertaining and the cook not being shut away.

This is the ideal option.

Kitchen, dining living place plus separate living room that you can close the door on when needed.

Fully open plan puts me off. I enjoy cooking and having people over and after a few hours of making dinner, I want to shut the messy kitchen door behind me and serve up, in peace in a different room.

I think having one open plan room is ok as long as there's a separate living space too.

Honestly I can't thing of anything worse than sitting in your kitchen, cold big open spaces all truly awful.

Wow, I am quite surprised by most of the answers.
I thought people love open spaces!

I would go for an open space 100%

Nope wouldn't touch open space. I look in horror at what some people have done to otherwise fantastically practical houses. If you must kitchen to dining room is OK, but if the kitchen is already big enough fir a table there really is no point

We have that and love it. It’s bright, spacious and as our garden is north facing, the light from the window at the front means it’s never gloomy. Cooking smells don’t bother us. We’re lucky enough to have a small utility room with the washing machine and dryer in. Dishwasher is super quiet and you don’t hear it at all. It’s a great social space.

Why are open spaces cold? Lots of houses they have been altered have the latest insulation. Ours has. Also decent kitchen ventilation allows all but the very strongest smells to not spread. Tiny lounge and huge new kitchen/diner is not the best use of space. Lounges need to be of a decent size too.

I would want at least one closed off room so I wouldn't buy somewhere that had only one open plan living space.

I find open plan much more practical, especially with children. Before we converted ours the dining room sat unused and I spent my time running between the kitchen and living room checking DDs were ok. Now we can all be together.

Plan for how you’re going to live and enjoy the home not plan and half live in it for fear of a proper rive sale in 10 years time.

no to half living

I think the only people that ‘love’ open plan are those that have a big kitchen/dining/living space BUT ALSO a utility room so laundry is out the way, and a pantry so messy kitchen stuff is hidden and a seperate TV snug and a seperate study and a seperate play room!!!

I much prefer having smaller but more rooms. Means someone can be watching tv, another can be in kids room playing on a console, someone else can be working in the study and I can be cooking in the kitchen with whatever I want blaring on my iPad. If it was open plan only 1 of us could be doing something with sound or we would all have to wear head phones so we may as well be ok different rooms!
I like each room being differrent with its own personality and vibe,

We're all different with very personal views about what works best for us at various stages of life depending on how many people live there and what the age mix is.

We have a bit of a mix, extended a tiny kitchen in a 60's semi-d out to the side and back to give us and open L-shaped space accommodating a bigger kitchen, small dining room and a modest sunroom. Separate tiny utility room. It is perfect for us. We all sit at the dining table to eat together and the kitchen is through an archway. The original dining room became a sitting room so now we have 2. Handy because DH watches a lot of sport (I'm allergic!) and DC practice music (loudly). There's a quiet space at the dining table or in the little sunroom for me to relax with a book. It works well when entertaining the extended family, people can break out into separate rooms for quieter conversations. If the weather is good we'll all be out in the garden anyway.

I've seen some fabulous large scale open-plan spaces in friend's houses - but they all have a separate room to escape to. We've just stayed in a lovely holiday apartment for a week and I could. see how a family in the block could make it their all year round home - but you would all need to be singing off the same hymn sheet activity wise!

Lounge needs to be separate so kids and kids friends can watch tv or game together while adults socialise/cook in a separate space without kids noise.

We have a house that the previous owners had removed the wall so we have a big kitchen diner. It’s gpfist a six seater table and small sofa plus the actual kitchen is massive. I would not consider an open plan house at all though obviously some would.

i dislike OP too

I prefer a separate kitchen as I don't like to eat with clutter around me and the sink/dishwasher etc.

It’s pretty easy to clear away as you go along. Have a large sink and stack pans in it. You just get used to working differently.

I've just sold (complete Tues) my Very open plan house. It has lounge, dining room, sitting room/study and kitchen all open plan.

I like it in summer but in winter, it's a real pain to heat and is never cosy and warm.

I really struggled WFH as well when the kids were home as there is no privacy.

It's great if you want to throw big parties or have lots of people to entertain. My kids friends loved it but being quite a quiet, private person myself I always end up in my bedroom in the evenings as I hardly ever sit downstairs on the sofa.

My floor plan. Only internal doors downsrairs are to the garage conversion (sitting room) and hallway.

But how do you manage to WFH in a home office without a door? I need to shut my door to stop being interrupted by the rest of my family making drinks, demanding snacks etc!