Would you rather a flat in nice area or house in rough area?

[Weaselgoespop]

First time buyers, limited budget. Can get 2 bed flat in "nice" area however means no garden...

Alternatively, can get a 2 bed terrace with garden in less affluent area...

Interested to hear which others would choose? We have a 2 year old DC who I would prefer to have a garden but not sure if that's reasonable enough to risk the less nice area!?

At this moment in time those are our only options! Only alternative is to continue renting just now (throwing money down the drain really) and trying to save up a larger deposit but that would take ages!

Rough

I haven't heard any immediate tales of violence/crime in regards to the area but have seen a lot of drunken garden parties etc when walking through the area in the height of summer and also see a lot of kids swearing/shouting etc when out playing. It's very much heavily built up concrete jungle with not a lot of green spaces so really the garden would be little ones main source of outdoor play whilst small.

I would stretch to a small rough house in the nicer area. I would never buy a flat although you say it has freehold so thats better than the others I suppose.

Like every area there are good and bad but I have to say a good 50% of the homes would be the former rather than the latter.

The house im interested in however is an end terrace and the way it is there is no public path directly passing the house, just path for people to access their own home to so there wouldn't not be a lot of footfall passing the house and this makes me think the garden etc would be OK? As in it would be relatively peaceful... but I would be realistic that my child would not be playing out in the streets when older.

I had this decision to make in 2007 - just before the crash!

I went for the flat, and really pleased I did, as ended up in it far longer than I'd planned. My daughter spent all of primary school in our flat, but it was fine for parties and having friends around. Other kids on the estate played out together on the shared green area, and we had a good park near by. No feral kids, good neighbours and sense of community, it was great.

You could end up living in your home a lot longer than you're planning to, you do not want to bring your child up with feral kids in the neighbourhood.

I currently rent a mid terrace and have been lucky with neighbours so far...

The house we have our eye on is an end terrace so would onky be the one neighbour that would be a gamble

I’ve lived in both sorts of areas, and I’d go for the less affluent every time . My neighbours were wonderful, went above and beyond making us welcome. The whole community had a lovely atmosphere. Plus a house with a garden is better if you have children.

Yes exactly this. Also how others will perceive you could affect your dc's friendships. Many people would not be happy for their DC to go for playdates in an area that is known for drug addicts and feral.childrem roaming around.

I think this could be very difficult to deal with. You are trying to get your child to sleep and hear pie head down the road mouthing off. No.

If sound insulation is good, it might not be a problem.

I'm feeling flat the more you post.

I’d probably get the flat, but it probably also depends on how long you’ll be there and how realistic the move to the next property is. Whichever you choose you’ll want to be able to be there for at least 5 years, because even if the housing market tumbles, which t sometimes does, houses generally don’t fall in value over 5+ years. In the past we opted to rent when out choices were tiny flat or house in rough area, and crap as renting is, being stuck in a house that doesn’t work for you is also not ideal.

Thank you for your input, very informative and a lot to consider.

For what its worth I myself grew up in flats, I never lived in a house until I was an adult and I turned out fine lol! But I want better for my child than what I had, if I reflect on my childhood I was very shy and so did not go out playing in the street etc with other kids a lot (my brother on the other hand did). I spent a lot of time indoors and I do question if I had had a garden maybe I would of spent a bit more time outdoors, knowing I was still safe in the confines of the home area and near my mum etc? Maybe I'm looking way too deep into this 😂

I’m a flat person and don’t want to live in a house. But I live alone and don’t like to garden

Also awful neighbours are the worst, so I’d also want to consider the house/flat next door, we’ve had awful neighbours in ‘nice’ areas and lovely neighbours in ‘rough’ areas. I’d visit at different times to try to get a feel.

The problem with the less nice area is the neighbours, particularly as you have a child. She will want to play out with the neighbour kids - and how do you stop her?

She may well have quite different rules than neighbouring kids re homework, bedtimes, screen time etc, which could cause a lot of tension in your home, and between her and her local friends.

Even if she doesn't play out with them, they'll see her out and about, and if you end up staying longer than expected due to a negative equity caused by a recession, or one of you losing your job, or illness, that's where you could all end up living for years.

@Weaselgoespop your happiness and well being as primary carer ( who clearly is invested as a mum) is virtually the most important thing when raising a child. Yours.

Think about how you feel with each option. How could you feel in terms of well being and satisfaction. Considering potential risks of course.

This is nice 🙂. I have to say I do also question if living in a flat limits neighbour relations? Like I imagine it would be harder for dc to be-friend other kids as with a house you tend to see then in the garden or running in/out the front door but flats are a bit more withdrawn?

I'd go for whichever area had the best schools (around here, they are always in the nicer areas). And maybe consider moving once they were settled in the place. That's what we did, move to the same street of an Outstanding primary in a small 1 bed flat so dd1 could get a place (and secure a sibling place for dd2), then moved out to a house after Reception year (only 20 mins walk away but much cheaper area). Our neighbours are a bit rough, but dds socialise mainly with friends from school and they are all nice kids. We find we're not really affected by living in a rough area as we are either inside at home or just passing through it to get to other places.

With a kid I'd definitely go for the better area. You don't want to be worrying about safety when you're out and about. If you're in a nice area walking to the park would be enjoyable in itself.

I need a garden. I've lived in a flat twice, at college and once when I left my ex and hated it.

I feel like I'm going crazy without outside space. I get depressed and miserable. It doesn't need to be much, room for a couple of chairs to sit in the sun, but outside space is essential for me.

I'd move county, job, everything rather than live with no garden. My home environment is fields and woods. I'm not good at living in towns.

It’s not about the property it’s what the neighbours are like .

Then I’d go for flat in nice area. Go talk to the neighbours first, see if they seem ok.

What are the schools like in the 'rough' area and the 'nice' area. With a young child, this is an important consideration. You might plan on this not being your forever home, but circumstances can run away with us and flats can take time to sell. You might end up there longer than you planned.

I live in a ‘rough’ area, but it is actually really friendly and with lots of community networks.

It is scruffy, but not unsafe.

So, it depends on the area.

Go by the school for sure. Your child will be starting school before you can blink. Hard to move them when you can afford somewhere bigger