Tiny bungalow…..

[MinnieGirl]

We currently live in a 3-bed terrace in a not very nice part of a not very nice town. We are in the south east, and the area is the one everyone wants to avoid..
Both getting older, have mobility issues so stairs becoming a problem. Looked at flats but would miss outside space and don’t want leasehold and service charges. A bungalow would be ideal, but…there are very few for sale and they are either beautiful chalet bungalows that are way too pricey, or complete wrecks that need gutting.

So one has come on the market that is in our price range. Nice area, parking nice garden and two good size bedrooms. Kitchen is tiny but I think we could make it work. The stumbling block is the living room…. It’s very nice, double doors leading out to the garden… but it’s our only living space. No dining room, and not even a table. Current owners eat their meals on an occasional table.
The house itself is lovely. Modern, up to date, neutral decor. We could move in and do nothing. We could meet the asking price and it’s a much nicer area than the one we currently live in. But is that living room too small? We would not be able to move again as we would be using a lot of savings.

Do you need both the bedrooms or could you use one as a dining room/2nd living room?

My mum lives in a tiny bungalow and has something like this rather than a traditional dining table - https://www.dunelm.com/product/savoy-4-seater-dining-set-1000243716?defaultSkuId=30914259&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Dining+Room_Dining+Sets-PMax_%5BGOO-PLA-FURNDINE-DININGSETS%5D&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=19815178236&gbraid=0AAAAADGqyX1cDr8MG94bpgWmUJegLXvTF&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIs4vHh_T2jQMVgIhQBh39KCl2EAQYDyABEgLK-PD_BwE
She also has a very small kitchen and just one reception room.

I have mobility issues and moved to a tiny bungalow - best move I ever made. I was prepared to cull belongings though to make the move work as I was fed up falling down the stairs.

I knocked the wall down between kitchen and lounge to make the kitchen feel bigger - it was the size of a cupboard and I bought a smaller table.

If the garden is big enough and your funds permit could you put a small shed/office room with insulation in the garden and have that as a separate TV/ chill out room ?

That is one possibility we had thought of, and would solve all our problems! But we do need both bedrooms sadly.

I had seen that very set! We had thought something like that might work. I just wonder if having that in the living room will make it feel like a betsit…

It sounds like if it had a dining area you wouldn’t be able to afford it - I would go for it, you’re going to have to compromise on something.

To have the benefit of outdoor space it’s worth considering. Could a sofa bed in the living area work, the dining set suggested could also work

@MinnieGirl No, not at all. Mum keeps her table folded up in the corner with a couple of plants on it most of the time then sets it up for meal times. It’s pretty inconspicuous. Alternatively you could get a wall mounted table that folds down when not in use and a couple of folding chairs https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/1727041063/wall-mounted-folding-table-with-shelves?gpla=1&gao=1&&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopping_uk_en_gb_a-home_and_living&utm_custom1=k_EAIaIQobChMI1riijPj2jQMVpZJQBh2cyxDcEAQYICABEgLuI_D_BwE_k&utm_content=go_21811975140_169452891816_717564634493_pla-303628061699_m__1727041063engb_102858184&utm_custom2=21811975140&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21811975140&gbraid=0AAAAADutTMfJ1_ndCEjmqbKamsN9S1CoQ&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI1riijPj2jQMVpZJQBh2cyxDcEAQYICABEgLuI_D_BwE

Or even a tall breakfast bar with stools underneath.

If you go on Pinterest there are lots of ideas about how to make the most of a small space.

Can you put a conservatory on the kitchen or living room to provide a dining room?

Could you attach a photo of the floor plan? There might be a way to rejig the space.

I would go for it whilst you can afford it and then take the time to see what might work for your eating arrangements, whether it be a compact table and chairs, a pull down table or something else.

I think you should try to get it as you need a bungalow and it's in a better area.

I agree that the obvious thing would be to put a conservatory/garden room off the lounge in future. You might have to eat off the occasional table for a few years in order to save up to do it (especially to make sure you get one with a proper solid tiled roof, well insulated and with good blinds on the windows and doors so it doesn’t become a sauna in summer), but it’s what most people with small bungalows but pretty gardens seem to do in my rural area.

Having a “garden room” to eat in can be lovely - especially if it’s big enough to fit a couple of chairs or a small sofa in to relax too, as well as the dining table. Really helps make the most of a nice garden imo - I’ve always wanted one so I think they can be a selling point as well, as long as it’s decently insulated. You’ll probably use it more than the standard patio table/outdoor eating area in our typical British weather and they often don’t take up much more square footage than a patio, if the gardens on the smaller side.

I had similar in my small kitchen diner for many years. It worked a treat! If you didn't want to fold it down completely, you could keep it permanently with just one side raised.

I love gateleg tables with folding chairs that store underneath. Take up very little space but easy to erect and fold away.

What are the dimensions of the living room? @Herberty’s idea of knocking through at some point might work especially if it gave you some form of breakfast bar, if an extension not feasible.

Can you also look at Rightmove sold website to look at photos of similar properties to see if there any ideas you might not have thought of?

Thank you, that’s all very helpful

We could do, but we are both retired and living off pensions. We will be using up a lot of savings to buy this bungalow, as our current house is a lot cheaper. That’s why the house we buy has to be in pretty good condition. There are several bungalows near the one we are looking at that have added conservatories but I do think we would struggle to afford one.

Would there be any way to extend the sitting room or add a small conservatory onto it?

Here’s the floor plan

How small is small for your front room?

we have a 12’ x 11’ lounge with a very comfortable small L shaped sofa, a two/four seat dining table which once opened is a 4/6 seater dining table, our beautiful Welsh dresser fits perfectly too with everything and I mean everything 🤣 in it it on it.

We have a small beautiful heavy wooden box which is a coffee table and storage. That’s it.

im not sure how much a conservatory is, but friends that have them, never seem to use them except for drying washing.

The trick with smaller properties in my opinion, is storage. A very sturdy loft ladder into a boarded out loft with lights and electric is the best!

Build a conservatory to use as a dining room, much cheaper than a real extension. We bought a small bungalow and added a conservatory, years later we did do a proper extension, but the conservatory was excellent until we could afford to do the big extension we needed. Triple glazed roof and double glazed panels so it was well insulated, and big doors into the garden. I expect the insulation would be even better these days, that was a while ago.

Just seen the plan.

2 x billy bookcases(ikea) or similar for storage in the alcoves. TV screwed to the wall above fireplace.

sofa on wall opposite the fireplace and small dining table on the wall opposite French windows, with very comfortable dining chairs and keep the spare ones at your dressing table and next to the bed or in your well boarded out loft

it will be beautiful.

Last year, one of my neighbours had a garden room bolted onto the back of their house. It's lovely! It only cost about £12K, but their son is an electrician, so he was able to do the electrics for them which obviously helped to bring the cost down. It's used primarily as an office because the woman works from home most of the time. They originally got planning permission for a single storey extension but the cost was too prohibitive, so they opted for this instead. Definitely good value for money.

Honestly, usually when people have doubts about a house working I’d say look for something else. But a bungalow is a literal life saver. We have our table in our living room and i quite like it tbh. However if you want to seperate room, I know you said you need two bedrooms, could you put a day bed in one of the bedrooms, ikea has a nice one and make it look like a sofa until needed and then a small table?