Buying a larger than necessary house

[Deecizions]

After much searching have found a great house in the area I want. Price seems good compared with others similar though it has some issues like dodgy parking which doesn't matter to me. Only issue is it's a large house - 4 beds - and there's only me and the dog.

Realise I'd need more furniture and would be heating rooms rarely used. Also council tax. Yet I'm unlikely to find another house that ticks my boxes in this area which I'm set on as a smaller version doesnt exist and property rarely comes up.

Theres also the feeling that it's somehow wrong for one person + dog to live in such a large space. I'm fortunate thatcI can afford this and the ongoing costs but would I regret a decision to buy such a large house? Anyone in this position?

I very much believe you can buy any house you like if you can afford it. But it does sort of seem a shame to take away a large 4 bed house that a family might really need. Each to their own I guess

When we moved we actively tried to downsize from a four bedroom house but found two bedroom houses didn’t have parking for two cars or were too small. We ended up buying a four bedroom new build with an integral garage. Downstairs we have a lounge, kitchen/diner and utility room which is a perfect size. Upstairs the extra bedroom was useful when DS returned home when he was between properties.

How do you live? And what is the downstairs space like? A friend has a three bed with a largely open plan downstairs and then upstairs he has his study and the third room is a spare room (with the airers in it). It is always welcoming and feels lived in.
Another friend has - 4 bed with really small rooms downstairs so it always feels cluttered even with just her in it. A galley kitchen but with a table squished in so she has somewhere to sit and eat, a separate dining room but which is set up quite formally so I think it would feel odd to sit there by yourself, a narrow, quite dark sitting room with her hobby stuff set up at one end and then, as there is another reception room downstairs, that is where her study is. This leaves her with three spare rooms, one of which is set up as a guest room for occasional guests, one has nothing in it really and the other is a clutter room. It works for her but it just seems like a really inefficient use of space.

Definitely. Free will should prevail.

Agreed - but it does depend on the area, where I live salaries aren't amazing and sadly many families can't afford most of the 4 bedroom houses that come up round here. They sit on the market for ages and then more often then not sell to a solo buyer or a couple who are cash buyers.

Dog needs his own room!

Go for it if you think it's right for you. Four bedroom houses in decent shape tend to be beyond the budget of many of those who can fill them and who would it serve for the house to be sitting on the market for years? You don't have to rattle around in a big house, you can make it feel lived in and well used by having one bedroom as your guestroom, another as your office if you WFH, if you've got a lot of books and always fancied dedicated library space, now's your chance, etc.

If a family ‘really needs’ this house, they’re perfectly free to bid more than the OP and buy the house, surely? Or are we now selling houses according to who will make best use of the space, according to bedroom occupation?

Just make sure you can afford the ongoing costs including utilities for the long haul. Plus more to clean! Don't underestimate parking issues

IMO if you can't afford to heat it, you can't afford to buy it.

(either via bills or replacing central heating/windows/improving insulation etc)

Each to their own OP. I guess it depends what you like. Personally if I lived alone I'd want a 2 bed but that's because I feel a bit creaped out with empty rooms and I love to be warm.
If you are a lover of space though, then might be great.

While you might not need the "bedrooms" as such it's usually the case that a 4-bed house is much more spacious than a 2-bed (I'm talking about communal areas, kitchen, bathroom, garden etc). So I can see why it would work for you.

You don't say how old you are, but the only watchout is that you may in later life find somewhere smaller much easier to manage if your mobility or income reduces. I'm sure you're a long way off that!!

I live alone and would love that

Currently have 2 bedrooms
One is mine for sleeping
The other is a wardrobe/laundry drying/peloton/storage room
I buy stuff on offer or in bulk so have tall shelving to store toilet roll, towels, washing powder etc etc

4 bedrooms I would have

My room for sleeping
Wardrobe/laundry drying room
Gym room
Spare room for guests

Just here to say I've literally just asked a similar question on another thread! It'sca 4 bed detached and council tax band E 😬 EPC of mid D and estimated bills are a fair whack. But lots of potential, parking, amazing views, and the location I want. Struggling to find something smaller despite knowing they exist on historic rightmove sales. Wondering how long I keep looking and another house might not have parking or views 🤔 But mine needs updating and already a stretch.

Yes, I'm looking at a 4 bed to have an office to close off work, a guest room for family who live 6 hours away and friends who live 2 hours away, a bedroom, and a laundry/gym room or potentially an occasional air bnb to help with bills.

We’re a couple with 4 doubles and 3 bathrooms, I would say there are some disadvantages.

So much cleaning to do all the time. We have a cleaner for 2 hours a week but still have lots to do.

Constant maintenance, unless you can afford to do the whole house as you’d want it in one go, be prepared that there is always something to decorate/maintain.

It is great for hosting, although lots of people will stay over, they know we have the space, some times I’m envious of those that can just clean the kitchen/diner and living room, we have to clean all bedrooms and bathrooms and the washing machine is on for days with 4 sets of bed sheets washed and dried!

It’s not glutinous if you want it and can afford it, go for it! I always wanted a big home, now I’ve had one, I certainly would be satisfied with one less bedroom and bathroom! Good luck

Why not if you like it. Lots of folk have more room than they need. Unless there are drawbacks like affording the heating or keeping it clean and maintained them go for it.

I think it's a personal one. I would feel a bit spooked and lonely on my own in a 4 bed. But then I'm a scaredy cat anyway!

If I were on my own with a pet, I'd want a two bed probably.

I think it's a bit silly to furnish a house for the sake of it. But if it's the only house that will come up in that area then I understand why it may be the only option.

If you can afford it and it ticks all the boxes go for it. No one else's business but your own

Go for it,
yes it may have more bedrooms that you need right now but who knows what will happen in future, you maybe have visiting friends needing a bed for a few nights you clothes collection may need it’s own room or you may take in an exchange student for a few weeks go for it and enjoy it all

Look carefully at damp issues. A friend of mine bought a much-bigger-than-she needs home, and it pretty much turns out that it has to be heated throughout, because otherwise she gets damp inside the house; it isn't enough to just heat the rooms she is using. Heating costs are awful and she worries about what the future may bring (net zero, geopolitical madness driving up fuel costs etc.).

One thing I wonder about is the politics of resentment and "reshuffling housing space" - i,e, the possibility that the Powers That Be may start making life harder for those with more space than they "need," to encourage them to downsize. Not saying I agree with this at all - I think the UK should deal with its terrible housing crisis by building more. But building housing is politically difficult and practically challenging in the UK. I can imagine the government being tempted to try and pressure those with empty bedrooms to downsize via the tax system, as an easy and politically popular way of being seen to do something. We've seen this with second homes in some parts of the country already.

Finally, be carefully of "stuff" accumulation (or getting additional dogs!) to fill up the space. Sometimes stuff has a way of expanding to fill the space available. This makes it much more challenging to move if you were to decide to move later on.

If it's something you can live happily in then go for it personally I live in a very large house. It's on the market as after a number of years living here it's just far too big. I don't use most the rooms but still have to clean them and heat them. WiFi is a nightmare with the house being so big. There's lots to consider having a large property like maintenance. I have 6 windows in just one room as an example. My window cleaner loves it lol. However all I do is clean . It's no good just closing rooms off the rooms need airing and heating still whether they are used or notGas and electric costs are huge. I don't waste heating but my home is the size of three average homes and an older property. There's lots of things to consider and from my experience as an owner of a large home I am downsizing to a 3 or 4 bedroom home.