Which house would you choose, based on these floorplans?

[Whichhousetochoose]

Please help wise mumsnetters, as trying to decide which of these two houses is making my head hurt! Both new builds on the same development (next door to each other), both have pros and cons. I’ve attached the floor plans for each house.

Current living situation - me, DH and 4 year old DD, hopefully DC2 one day. Both work from home the majority of the time. My parents would come and stay several times a year (hopefully friends would too). Currently living in a tiny 3 bed end of terrace.

House 1 - large kitchen/dining/family area, with a separate lounge and small study. Bedrooms are good size, although beds 3 and 4 smaller (bed 2 is the biggest). No window in landing area.

House 2 - similar size kitchen & the diner area is smaller than house 1, but has a massive living room and a large family/playroom. All bedrooms are really good sizes, plus has large window on the landing so good amount of light.

So really, I cant decide between having a larger kitchen/diner and thus a smaller living room and study, and two smaller bedrooms (house 1). OR have a smaller kitchen/diner but have a huge living room and playroom/study and have all the bedrooms on the large side (house 2).

Both have garages and space to park two cars. House 2 is £15k more expensive.

Ive been looking at them for so long I can no longer see the woods for the trees! Help!!

This is a great idea.

I would do this

I wouldn’t be too concerned about the living room being narrow. The main reception room in our London flat is the drawing room of a big old 5 storey Georgian townhouse. It’s 4m x 5.5m and zoned into 1/3rd a formal dining area with an 8 seater table and sideboard, 2/3rds sitting area with 2 3-seater sofas, coffee table, bookcases, TV, fireplace etc. It feels spacious. Nowadays, a developer would probably squeeze in a kitchen/diner/sitting room into the same space 😂 It also works well as a just a sitting room without the zoning. We used to have it with set out like that but I have turned the dining room into my home office/library/guest room/quiet sitting room for me 😂

I think it is a very elegantly proportioned room! Your living room isn’t far off that. It is a little more elongated so zoning would make it look more aesthetically pleasing. You won’t feel squashed or be squeezing around furniture or feel like the TV is in your face in a room that width 😂 It’s more that visually it can look like a corridor if you don’t place the furniture well or you end up with the sofas being too far away from each other for a comfortable conversation.

I would choose house 2 also, and preferably make the amendment suggested by @Familiaritybreedscontemptso. That would work so much better than the long narrow aspect the living room seems to present. Putting in a stud wall or dividing doors wouldn't be too onerous. And maybe a bay window on the side? (Our box room bedroom has bay windows to the front and side, they increase the floor footprint far more than you'd expect)

House 2. The upstairs of house 1 isn't great, and I prefer house 2's layout. Plus £15k difference is nothing to get the house you really want

An update! Our house sold today to a cash buyer, yay! So we are now in a position to proceed, most likely house 2. Although now I am a bit concerned about snagging, build quality etc with new builds! Any advice?! Ill of course bring it up with the developer when we meet with them (hopefully the weekend) but obviously I know they will reassure everything will be fixed asap etc!

Hope it all goes smoothly for you @Whichhousetochoose Yes, builders promise all sorts until they've got your money. They may well do a great job with snagging though, are there any neighbours you could knock and ask?

@martinisforeveryone thank you! I did consider doing that, as scary as it sounds to knock on a total stranger’s door! 😂

Well, generally speaking, most people want to be helpful and if they're not, do you want them as neighbours?

We lived in a new build on a small development and one day a guy knocked on our door and said they'd relocated from the other end of the country to a house around the corner, his wife was pregnant and needed a hand in finding out where services etc were and would I perhaps give her a bit of time to get together and help her settle in. We'd also relocated only about three months before, so I was on top of all the things she needed and was very happy to help.
That was a good side of being in a new build, we were pretty much all in the same boat and lots of us had babies, toddlers or were pregnant. Good times.

I'd go for house 1 as the kitchen/dining/living room, and a large separate living room as a family room is the dream for me. The study is a bonus for storing bikes and strollers. Maybe a homework or craft room once kids are older.

I agree the upstairs is better on house 2 but as young family we are miles away from needing four doubles.

I’ve seen lots of people recommend using a professional snagging company, if I was buying a new build I would definitely consider using one. We did a house renovation and there have definitely been a few things crop up which would easily have been noticed if someone who knew what they were doing had been looking.

@Twotooto will definitely look to use a professional snagging company. Im a bit scared now after reading so many horror stories online about new builds!