Would you buy a house that backs onto railway ..

[Locationvshousevsgarden]

Just that really! Looking to love and finally found something we like but the railway is 6 metres away from back garden boundary... mature trees but you still hear and can see a train every 20 mins. I am not sure so looking for advice... do you live in a similar house? Do you regret it? Would you buy a house backing on railway ? Help !

Number of what? Is this a typo?

That's 3 posters now calling out rats... why ?? It Is a main artery into waterloo yes . What's the issue with rats there ? Ugh

Our home backs onto a train track, trains every fifteen minutes. However, we have a long garden and the train line is down a slope so we cannot see the trains at all (unless you got to the very back of the garden and stand behind a shed) and very rarely hear them. Sometimes the odd steam train goes past and it’s very exciting 😁

Don’t understand why rats would be more prevalent on a rail track. Are they warmer there maybe?
I like to hear trains if not too fast and not overlooking. Wouldn’t bother me. DH would love it. DD lives in Battersea and the planes are really loud!

@Locationvshousevsgarden we've had rat problems in our neighborhood a few times over the past 5 years and we're nowhere near a train line. We leave poison down almost permanently which seems to resolve any issues pretty quickly so I wouldn't worry about that.

About 35 years ago I used to live in a maisonette that was that close to a railway. We were quite close to the station. Didn't bother us really. I now live on a main road and it's a huge PITA.

The set up you've described sounds ok. My only concern, if it was me, is that there are usually more rats around railways. I know they're everywhere, but stations are a frequented location due to the rubbish often found nearby.

Me too. There are no known fertility issues associated with living near train lines, though.

You'll be fine. Modern electric trains are quiet, and there's very little overnight freight traffic in that area. Sometimes you'll have overnight engineering work, but Network Rail go to great lengths to keep noise to a minimum, and they're very good at communicating in advance to nearby properties when work takes place.

I live fairly close to a main line with at least eight trains an hour for most of the day, and it's barely noticeable.

Do you have any data to back that up?

I am actually wondering if we have been considering the same house as there is a house for sale near us that backs onto the mainline for Waterloo. And I’ve said we can’t live in it because our son has ASD and one of his issues is train noises (he needs to wear ear defenders). The house is fab and I would move there if it was just me. But I lived in halls at uni next to a train line that wasn’t really a major line and the sound was awful in the summer so I think you need very good AC to manage.

I would, I don't mind trains and it's a pretty frequent situation in London. No overhead wires going into Waterloo I don't think. DC third rail.

Hi OP. I'm 8 to 9m from the east coast mainline and 20 minutes north of King's X. One house between me and the line.

A few things...1. Electrified trains are loud. Granted, quieter than steam. Its also 2026 so minimal steam.

1. What day and time did you view the house? I viewed on a Sunday morning. I should have viewed during peak commuter times to really understand the noise and frequency.

1. Within one month of moving into my house, I replaced my bedroom windows with acoustic glass because I felt like I was on the train.

1. Trains run ALL NIGHT. I get a couple of hours between 2-4am. Freight trains are long, heavy and loud. The house vibrates a lot.

1. Does the property back onto a rail access point, or is there one with 25-50 meters? My garden backs onto an access point and there's another on the other side. Workers can be noisy, vans and line work (we get notice in advance but still).I'd suggest looking into things a bit deeper. I love my house and it was affordable for my budget. I don't regret my decision. But, if I could have spent a bit more to not be by the tracks, I would have.

My first thought would be rats, so no I wouldn't buy it.

We didn't, then about 5 years later the local steam fanatics restored it 😟.
So far we've been OK, but people further up the road have had hedges, sheds etc. burnt down.

What annoys me sound wise is the bloody magpies squawking.

I do, it’s the second house I’ve bought that backs onto a train track. I’m five minutes from the platform and it’s great.
never hear the trains now and only ever the doors opening if the wind is blowing the right way.
makes my commute to London so easy

The noise wouldn’t bother me so long as the trains don’t run through the night. However, I’ve got friends who live near a train line and they’ve got a persistent rat problem. This would definitely put me off.

Ours does- we have a long back garden (150ft-ish). You have to pay attention to be aware of the sound of passing trains (ie they are not in any way intrusive). If the house is right this need not be a problem

I lived mainline to London Liverpool Street and also container trains to Harwich port went through at night , so yes it was busy .
I moved in with my partner and he'd already bought the house . It kept me awake at night initially and I also heard them during the day for the first month or so but you soon learn to forget about them .

I wouldn’t even view it.

You also need to consider that, if it is as busy a line as you say, the railway tracks will require a lot of maintenence. You may have regular crews of railway workers in the night outside of your house. They can be quite noisy too.

Wouldn’t bother me @Locationvshousevsgarden and I hate noise generally. Planes and trains are fine. Noisy neighbours/road - not fine! I don’t think rats would be any different there. Edited for typo.

DH grew up on a house with the railway line that close and when we were buying refused to buy similar. I barely noticed when we were at his family home and would have happily bought one!

My parents had a house like this for 15 years. It was fine.

Yes, but I like trains 🤣