What's it like to live in an older (ie Victorian) house? Pros and cons please.

[TsarChasm]

If we ever get out of out of our 3 bed semi I would love to buy an older house.

I've not lived in an older property before but it seems to me that they are bigger inside (ie you get more for you money) are better built (ie not plaster board walls and chipboard floors) and have more character.

Can you tell I'm very disenfranchised by my house

I'm starting to hate the way newer houses are asking more money for so little living space and quality.

So what are older houses like? Draughty and expensive or better than newer houses? Do you love or hate yours?

I love mine! Yes it's a little damp in places, and a little draughty here and there, but it's so nice to live in a house with heart!

My last house was so bland and characterless, it ticked all the boxes, but lacked something...

really built way .. good thick walls .. muffle sound

extremely high ceilings make every room look huge

big windows (would prefer sash but only managed to replace one so far) .. so keeps quite warm

lots of character and alcoves and interesting things

love it .. grew up in 30's semi .. had edwardian flat before (stunning windows) ..

curtains are really really expensive

christmas trees look amazing [girn]

we alived in a gorgeous flat with huge windows and elaborate ceiling roses
big chunkdy doors and 2foot high skirting boards
fireplaces you could stand inside
thick brick and stone walls
beautiful it was

but the windows were single glazed and rattly and let rain in - we couldnt afford to replace them cos it was a conservation area and the council wouldnt let us have double glazing - and single glazed, wooden sash windows were about 5K a window i kid you not (huge windows they were]

They're not all well built. The Victorians were no stranger to cost cutting. I'd say pros are:

Handsome
High ceilings
Generous window sills.
Fireplaces
Sash windows
Details like coving

Cons are:
Gardens are often dark because the house is tall
Every DIY job always reveals another problem
High ceilings makes decorating less easy for the amateur.

On the whole I like them.

All the walls are squint, nightmare to line up wallpaper.

Damp can be sorted, draughts can be excluded, windows can be remade.

I miss my childhood home, can't you tell

Nice thick walls so you can't hear the neighbours. Big rooms.
but damp, bits need replacing cos they are a hundred years old and can be a bugger to heat.
Oh, and we got a coal celler

agree with all the plus points listed. and I would add that having big -wide and high - hall-ways is lovely. in fact I would probably say that our upstairs landing is among my favourite parts of the house!

down points I would say that their lay-out (if still in its original form) is not particularly in keeping with more modern ways of living. kitchens can feel remote from the rest of the house (very often at the back of the house with access from the hall-way rather than other rooms). bathrooms can be disproportionately small. or few.

agree with the walls being off. we had a nightmare trying to get our new toilet square!

Big windows and high ceilings give a feeling of space.

Even with central heating there's fresh air in it (this is a good point!).

But damp was a real issue in ours, and condensation on all the windows.

Small/non existent garden.

We've just sold ours and bought a 1930's 3 bed semi - smaller and fewer rooms, but HUGE garden and I think we'll be a lot happier.

dry
rot

never had a problem with damp or draughts (drafts?) in ours

Great room sizes, lovely features, good proportions, often in handsome-looking streets, thick walls means less neighbourhood noise.

Colder, liable to damp, more expensive to maintain, no parking obviously, and in typical Vic houses really narrow, irritating hallway that always looks cluttered as soon as you put your handbag down in it.

Yes the walls are funny. No right angles at all.

dry rot will be there, you just might not find it

ours isnt victorian, but origianl part built in 1700's.

its got tons of original features and character, down sides are dust, seems to appear from no where, creaky boards, difficulty getting furniure in/out and hard to buy new windows/doors for as all odd sizes!

Dry rot is inevitable. And the reason the houses feel airy is because the windows rattle. They have a charm though. Attics are lovely.

All music to my ears. Especially Twigs lovely remark about Christmas trees .

1930's would be ok too.

I just hate all these little (emphasis on 'little') pokey new houses. They are rip off.

Fantastic

We live in a Victorian semi. Traditional layout: narrow long hallway with doors to lounge and dining room off it. Kitchen is at the back of hte house off the dining room.

Solidly built, feels strong, cosy and protective.

We have replaced all our original sash windows with double glazed sash windows. Still retains the character but keeps out the draughts and rain.

We have exposed all our floorboards and do get some draughts up from the floor, but nothing a nice comfy thick rug can't handle.

Christmas tree does indeed look stunning in the bay window.

Lovely original fireplaces, coving and elaborate ceiling rose in lounge.

Also, in our case, the Victorians were not so stingy with building plots so even though we only have a very small front garden and no driveway/garage, we have a 100ft long rear garden. Brilliant

All in all, this house has character, it has a soul, it is a true home. We love our old Victorian lady.

If It's a detached house, at least you can just pay a huge amount of money to sort out the dry rot yourself withouht trying to involve difficult neighbours

maintenance is on going but if you get on top of it its not too bad and you are more than rewarded for every piece of art and flowers etc just look better and at xmas they really come into their own

1930s houses are good but they tend not to be in very interesting areas. I wouldn't mind a 1930s mansion block flat.

lol @ 'all music to my ears' after dry rot mention

Dry rot grows really slowly and isn't that big a deal. Damp on the other hand is.