Talk to me about your 1960s semi

[Pigeon257]

We currently live in a Victorian terrace- lots of beautiful original features and all that, but a bit small and we can hear the neighbours and have a tiny courtyard garden. We'd like to upsize and I imagined us in some rambling character property...I've now had my head unexpectedly turned by a 60s semi, needs work but has good sized rooms and garden, plus is on the right side of town for schools and commutes. It's ridiculous but I seem to have an ingrained aversion to anything built after WW2. Help me get over this bizarre snobbery and tell me what you love about your 60s house! Pictures a bonus 😉

I loved mine but has to love because of noisy neighbours. The walls were all solid but very poorly soundproofed

Mines had the living room and main 2 bedrooms joining with the front door, staircase, kitchen and bathroom on the outside. If I did it again I would make sure the front doors are adjoining with living areas on the outside if that makes sense x

Sorry meant to say had to leave

My parents have a late 50s semi and I LOVE it! Solidly built, spacious rooms and large windows. The use of space is so sensible: smaller hallway and larger rooms whereas my last 30s semi had a generous hallway and smaller rooms. Their house also has some lovely features: a stained glass window by a sort of nook for the phone & coats, and alcoves in both living rooms.

Edited because autocorrect has forgotten English this eve

We got a total bargain 10 years ago
the house had been extended but the rooms unfinished as the previous owners had split up
our living room shares a wall with next door.
but the extension (large kitchen/diner office and loo downstairs) doesn’t
plus upstairs there’s an extra bedroom and ensuite.

I had a lovely 1960s house. Big windows, lovely sized garden, handy garage. Trouble was, in my heart I knew I'd wanted a character house and just could not love the 1960s house.

Just moved to an 1880s house - much smaller, no garage, less rooms. Oh my goodness I'm so happy here. It has made me realise that no amount of 1960s practicality could ever have compensated for the feeling of being in a house that speaks to my soul and feels like home.

First time buyer (August last year) here so might not be as relevant to you.
We initially offered on a 3 storey victorian which was lovely on the inside but pulled out due to needing a full reroof and all chimneys to be removed (it then went on the market 3 times again before being purchased cash only for 22% less than what we originally offered but that's another story).
Ended up with a 1965 midterrace which we LOVE. Our heating has barely come on all winter so our bills are extremely low, the rooms are spacious and have HUGE windows so so much light.
Party walls are block and really solid so we barely hear our 3 kid family neighbours.
It's also been an absolute pleasure for redecorating and kitchen remodelling.
Not sure I could cope with the worries of a Victorian house now!

We moved from a Victorian terrace to a 1960s semi recently. I love the big windows. The house feels light and airy, even in winter. The garden is a good size. It all feels quite clean lined and fuss free.

My parents bought a 60s semi off plan and DM still lives there. You can hear the NDN going upstairs (the staircases back onto each other) and certain things like them playing their piano. In DM house you can hear everything said downstairs from upstairs because the stairs come down into the open plan kitchen diner.

It's also a lot cooler inside than my 30s semi. Windows are every flipping where. The lounge may be 18ft long but that's 18ft of sliding doors to keep clean and going into the bedrooms means pulling the curtains if you are doing anything remotely personal because the neighbours opposite also have large windows.

My parents have a late 50s semi and I LOVE it!

My 1957 house is solid and brilliant. The 1960’s semi I moved from was awful. I could hear the neighbours putting cutlery in drawers, turning on light switches, I could even watch tv with my sound off and hear every word. It was a nightmare.

We.movwd from a 70s house to a victorian. (Moved area). The 70s house was great. Large windows, faced east/west so sun most of day, really warmed the house. Large rooms, hall, garden and good sized garden, parking. I'd definitely live in one again. It was a link detached, so couldn't really hear neighbours. Go for it, I loved funding mid century furniture too.

Thanks all! Here's the thing: I grew up in a very elegant 1920s house in the 80s. It was the same age then as a 60s property is now! Surely 60s architecture must be the next sought after thing..?!

Anyway lots to think about - soundproofing seems to be hit and miss based on what people have said. Thanks again!

I’m the opposite to you - I would only buy a mid-20th century house. We have a 50s semi, it’s great - big rooms, lots of storage, never hear a peep from neighbours, big windows, very solid house; rarely need much heating on.

I'm in a 1960s terrace so we hear some noise from the neighbours (stairs backing on to each other) but nothing excessive. My friends moved from a victorian terrace to a new build detached as the noise in their house was so bad (they could hear everything........)

Like others we have big windows which unsurprisingly cost a lot of money to replace.

You'll probably want to check for asbestos.

Part of the reason we bought our house is that the master bedroom is large (for a small house). The last house we rented was late 1950s and also had a large bedroom. Other houses we viewed of different eras all had small master bedroom.

Our first house was a small 1930s semi and we later moved to a slightly larger 1960s semi.
The 1960s house was so much easier to renovate - plasterboard rather than lathe & plaster walls; different standards to windows, room heights , doors etc ( though they are different again now), which made curtains etc so much easier.
There are a lot in our area as it was a time of expansion in our town, and they sell like hot cakes. Very popular family homes.

Downsized from a large Victorian detached on a noisy, busy road. Beautiful to look at but a lot of house to look after and always needed something doing. All DC have their own homes so just us now so we bought an early 1960s semi detached in very sweet and very quiet cul de sac. Massive garden, no house the other side just a drive to another house further back. No noise from neighbors as the walls are thick. Not over looked. Lower energy bills. We love it! It's ugly to look at but we are much happier. We worried we would struggle after having always been in a detached but it's not an issue.

I like my house built in 1969 but it's attached and I would not want to live in an attached property again, especially since the house next door became a rental. The house feels a bit flimsy and sometimes it sounds like the neighbours next door are living in the same house as me! But when they are out, it's lovely and quiet.

I like the good-sized rooms, the garage, large windows; the bathroom and toilet are in separate rooms which I like, and it's away from a busy road.

I totally get this. I am miserable and depressed in surroundings when my soul just doesn't 'feel it'. I know within 2 minutes of viewing a house whether I'd consider it or not.

On the other hand (to my parents being in a late 50s semi), my in laws are in a small 60s semi and the walls are paper thin. You can hear their neighbours constantly which was a pain during early mornings when they had small children. The rooms are quite small and pokey. I guess it depends on the build!