Bungalow in village or house in countryside?

[IndecisiveRabbit]

Just looking for some opinions. We have 3 kids (9, 6, 6 months), DP works from home, and I work at the school my kids go to. We live in a very expensive village and are looking to buy our first house. We've seen a bungalow in the village that needs LOTS of work doing, 3 beds, amazing garden, partner and I could do lots of the work, could cycle to school/work. For the same price, we've seen a 4 bed house in the countryside, needs no work, great views, much bigger rooms, but 10 minute drive from school. Would you go with the closer, smaller bungalow or further, bigger house?

Definitely bungalow. Being able to walk to places rather than being dependent on a car is good for everyone's physical and mental health.

If wiring and plumbing are solid in the bungalow, all other work can be done in stages.

You say you are looking to buy your first house. So are you in rental at the moment? Would you be able to stay in the rental while you do up the bungalow?

I live in a village, but teen DD's school, clubs and friends are all 10 - 15mins drive away in the next town. It's a short drive, but a pain in the arse. You'd be tripling that to drive three kids to friends and activities. I'd go for the bungalow, sort anything with electrics, plumbing and roof/damp and then do the rest as you go.

Definitely bungalow from what you've described in later posts. The amount of work doesn't outweigh the advantages of being in the village. People can say it's only 10 mins but that's a drive every single time any one of your 3 DC go anywhere. MN is full of people lamenting their kids having to walk down unlit country lanes with no pavements as if they didn't make the choice to live there. You're wise to factor that in fully now. The amount of time you spend liking how a house looks from the outside vs the sheer inconvenience of living out in the country is a no-brainer to me.

You have three children so ideally would have a minimum of four bedrooms that makes rural house better. Do you have mix girls and boys? Are the eldest two or youngest two same sex? If say eldest and youngest girls and middle child a boy then separate bedrooms even more important. I see you could make bungalow 4 bedrooms but what’s timeframe for that? If speedy may change my view.

I would still go for the bungalow as the one thing you can't change is the location. I'm assuming their friends will also live in the village so your kids will be able to walk to their friends houses as teenagers.

But unless the bungalow is modern I'd assume it probably needs more updating than new carpets and decorating!

Everything can be solved with some money and hassle, so I'd still buy it, as long as you have some room in your budget.

The survey is helpful but the surveyor will usually only comment on what they can see. And there will be lots of caveats "in good condition for the age of the property" etc.

For me, for the children to be able to have some independence as they grow, to walk to friends and school would be ideal. But it depends if you can really afford it and to get on with the work in good time. Building work is ok to live with if its moving forward and not drifting on for years.

It was built in the 50s or 60s, solid walls and roof, just a bit decrepit internally!

Yes we're renting, we have a lovely private landlord who is very flexible, so we would definitely have some overlap.

We DO have 2 girls with a boy in the middle. However, the 2 eldest currently share very happily, they get on really well, so I think we've got another year there. It shouldn't be too big a job to make 4 beds, my partner can do that, pretty straightforward.

Bungalow. Otherwise your children will not have autonomy until they can drive. I've lived in the country with kids and it was crap. It's so much better for them to become independent in town/village.

That's a good thing to think about thanks, luckily it's a thriving village, really popular and currently expanding.

Yes it is habitable, once the carpets have had a clean- everything works, it's just not all up to current regs (ex electrics/ceiling tiles), so we can do it all as we go along.

The fact that you can make it a four bed without major works helps a lot. Sounds like it has a lot more pro's going for it. Feels more viable lifestyle-wise with 3 DC.

If you can do it financially then I’d be inclined to get as much renovation work done before you move in. Get the electrics done and ceiling tiles done before you entertain new carpets or painting. And there will certainly be something you don’t know needs doing.

Thank you everyone for your comments, some great points and lots to think about, it sounds like the bungalow is winning slightly...we need to have a good chat and work out all the costs.

As your children get older , location is the most important, is there a bus route etc
rural living is great but omg the main thing in life becomes being a taxi driver
and it makes the days shorter, things like family meal times become more difficult etc

Your bungalow to be sounds like mine! I had the electrics and plumbing/boiler checked and they were fine. I decorated the bedrooms and I've nearly finished the lounge. I'm now converting the garage.

Having the bedrooms nice has made this process so much easier. I've got a lot to do and I'm never doing it again but I love it here!

Bungalow. Don’t get stuck in the driving trap.