What's your priority factors when buying a house?

[celiastjames]

Trying to plan our next (and final!) house move, and interested generally in people's views / priorities / strategy!

We know we'd like to stay within the town we are in, which generally is a good area, good schools etc.

Would you prioritise:

A: Size of house - i.e. the largest house / best floorplan you could afford, maximising budget;

B: Precise area / neighbourhood, including street / primary school catchments, cul-de-sac setting etc (even if it meant a slightly smaller house / garden for the same budget,);

C: Size / orientation of garden;

D: Disposable income - i.e. choosing a home you could spend the least on to reasonably accommodate family life in the desired town, with maximum disposable income for holidays and general spending;

E: Type of building - i.e. prioritise detached over semi, even if semi was bigger floorplan / accommodation for a lower price.

I realise for most people this will be a balance!! But just interested in if there are any standout priorities.

E
Detached is the ultimate goal for me.

B - will always be first for me. As a Londoner it's all about convenience and if transport and shops aren't close by I don't care about a bigger house for less money.

A/C - I'm not interested in a big garden but orientation is important to me. Only ever had SW which I prefer. Size of house is relative to
other factors.

D - money matters

E - prefer wider houses and more living space but detached is not something I care about.

I do like off street parking although not an absolute. Has to be a quiet road though.

Location first and foremost. Period building. Low traffic area. Walking distance or short drive to food shops and a train station. Off street parking. Detached. Downstairs loo and an en-suite. Manageable south west facing garden with space for a greenhouse. 3 double bedrooms at least. Large kitchen with space for an Aga and a separate dining room. Our kids have long since left home and we’re hoping to downsize next year so are working on the essentials list.

Our priorities were:
Detached
4 bed/2 bathrooms
Utility
Separate dining room
Ideally new build

Location wise, we weren't even looking at this location but I noticed an ad for a show house for sale in an ok semi rural village which seemed to meet our criteria.

As we were free this particular afternoon, we decided to go have a look just to be nosey really.
Absolutely loved it within 5 minutes and once we were offered a good part exchange there was no going back. Negotiated a free double drive too.

Wasn't where we would have chosen initially but the area has improved massively over the years and we now love it. Have been here 31 years with no intention of ever moving again.😁

Being in Cornwall my list is strange.

Parking. Enough to be completely self sufficient even at times guests come.
Access. So that sensible size delivery vans can drop stuff off.
Garden. That's not overlooked. Doesn't have to be huge. Flatish plot.
Sea view. Although I don't mind if it's not direct.
Built with an aspect it enjoys the sun.
Nearby to one convenience store (at least).
Not in a conservation area - never again!!!

If the property ticks those boxes then I'll look at the rooms!!

No surprise we've not moved in over 30 years when I think about it!

We downsized, because I’m not a massive fan of cleaning and we didn’t need a big house any more.

Location- I hated where we lived before, which became more and more unpleasant.
Detached with driveway parking.
Quiet location.
Local basic shops and easy access to a bigger shopping centre.
South facing garden.
Schools aren't a consideration.

I find this post so interesting as we are selling and buying. We found a house that was a very good location, average size rooms but enough space, parking for two cars on drive and detached. The downside was small garden split into decking at the back and small enclosed front garden. At first we almost didn't view because of the garden but now we've offered as we feel like something has to give, we don't have the budget to have it all and maybe a smaller garden is ok because there's so much near the location to do outside.

But if we saw a house with a bigger garden, semi-detached, bigger rooms and slightly less desirable but still ok location we would probably still go for that too. It's a balance for us!

You can make a list as long as your arm but it is unlikely any house is going to meet all the requirements unless you have a large amount of money.

Most people compromise on something or other.

Location is the main factor: Public transport one of the main factors, easy access to supermarkets plus other essential facilities, friends, social spaces etc. Villages are lovely to look at, but what about access to other places if you have teenagers, elderly parents etc? If you buy a property with only one toilet can you add another? Look at other properties in the vicinity, are they well kept, are there issues with crime, parking, flooding etc?

Good location for me is always number one now, having made a mistake of size over location previously.

Detached and a big garden in a nice area. We bought a small house on a big plot and eventually extended to make it the house we wanted.

We're just pondering this equation. We're 70 and don't need so much space, but DH is 6'5" so a cottage is out of the question. We'd like a more urban location where everything is in walking distance, and a decent medical infrastructure.

i would prioritise school catchment and driveway