A quick poll. Which is better new (warm) estate house or old (draughty) and characterful?

[MrsSeanBean]

I was always an 'old house' fan, but I am having my head turned by all these new estate developments. They are so nice and shiny/new and warm. I have gaps in my floor and draugts.

Would you sacrifice your love of old and antique for warmth and modernity?

We have insulated the loft and the cavity walls, had a new boiler installed last year and the house is still freezing. This is because we have the original wooden single glazed sash windows which we couldn't afford to replace, and big gaps everywhere in our quirky charming Victorian house. It is absolutely no contest. New new new. Character is nice but it doesn't keep your children warm.

Thank you for this thread!

We are in the process of selling an extremely well insulated, warm house and moving to a Georgian Farmhouse which is in need of complete renovation!

We have to rent somewhere for six months while the main work is done, so hopefully by the time we move in, it will at least have a roof, windows, radiators and a boiler.

Our first purchase for the house will still be thermal underwear and electric blankets for all of us.

New build. So much less maintainance.

suppose it like high heel v trainers one looks good but is painful the other not quite as good looking but alot more comfy

I would sacrifice many degrees of warmth for beautiful feature fireplaces and high skirting boards, don't know why.

Im a new build gal - much prefer knowing the past of the house and that no one has died in it, been murdered in it or haunts it. I love going round brand spankers but find like a car they seem to lose value as soon as you drive them off the forecourt...although not always - we live in a new build type we bought 2nd hand so all the ebnefits, a bit cheaper and 10 yr old at the time and a bit mroe but old enough to know the history of the last 2 owners - yes im scared of ghosts (can you tell!)

Also the plots seem to be getting smaller and smaller round our area so sticking put in my larger plotted new buildish lifeless box

old. Dislike new-builds but would have to be able to afford to heat the old and draughty. I hate being cold. We compromised and have a 1930's biggish house but needs new windows on middle floor and the 1930's kitchen is 2m x 2m so tiny

Until last year I'd have said old, but after this winter, we are moving to a new one.

Our lives have been taken over by the maintainance of this old place and we are all sick of being freezing in th ewinter even with the heating going full tilt.

We will get our old-buildings fix with the National Trust cards.

Does it have to be either? I have a soft spot for non mock tudor 80s houses, low and wide and always patio doors. Also the 3 storey 70s townhouses with the garage downstairs so you get a living room with a view.

But after 10 years in victorian houses, no more for me.

old cold and decrepit every time for me. dh tried to persuade me we would be better in a new build a few months ago and sent me off to view a few. it has totall yput me of forever. I LOATHE new houses. bleughhhh

otoh if i had a masssssive plot of my own to build a house to my requirememnts and specifications i could prob deal with it. have hankered after a huf haus for aloong time after an early Grand Designs show. it was lush and i was mightily

The ultimate would be an old house BUT with a complete renovation inside with lovely new kitchen/bathrooms, re plastered walls, carpeted with 100% wool, well insulated etc, but keeping the fireplaces, ceiling roses, picture rails etc.

We have a 100 year old house now and much prefer it to the new build I had previously, iespecially the 175 ft garden.

However, I do hanker after the new builds BUT hate estates, the fact that everyone is piled on top of each other, no garden to speak of, and the fact that most of them seem to open up straight onto the street. What happened to front gardens?

Completely OT but some estates can send school catchment areas a bit crazy too, as they attract young families. I am going to rent my sister's (oldish) flat off her soon. Most people on the new estate will have to pass their nearest school on the way to the school they will have been able to get into. These are secular schools BTW, as I know that happens to a lot of people anyway.

nope - I couldn't face a modern estate - far too uniform and planned for me.

But I would probably go for an older maybe pre-war house that could be reasonably well insulated.

I would love an ancient beamed house - but would find it too dark with the small windows. I also love the Georgian houses with the lovely big windows - but would find them too draughty and expensive to keep warm probably.

I wouldn't want anything from the 70s/80s - build quality seems dodgy for those - at least new houses I think are built better now.

old house deffo

Our house is Victorian and used to be freezing, but have taken up all the floors and insulated underneath, laid underfloor heating with wood flooring on top and installed new wooden double glazed sash windows. It cost an absolute fortune but definitely worth it - we've still got the high ceilings, cornicing, stained glass, picture rails, mantelpieces etc, but it's also really warm.

Our last house was also Victorian, with stripped wood floors and single glazing everywhere, and it was absolutely freezing downstairs, even with the heating on almost all the time. So I'd say Victorian, but you have to try and find the money to bring it up to modern standards if you want it to be as comfortable as a newbuild.

Never lived in a newbuild but PILs have one. It's very warm but the room sizes seem so small - and supposedly a three bed house but one of the bedrooms is triangular and most of the downstairs seems to be taken up with an integral garage!

I'm with you, nappyzone. I'm not scared of ghosts, I just don't like sharing space with anyone or thing who's not paying rent.

old every time for me. I would rather wear the extra jumper and gaze at my original cornicing.

Plus actually old terraces are often pretty warm if you plug the gaps and insulate the roof well. You inherit a lot of warmth from the people either side.

"By nappyzonecannotcycleuphill on Sat 28-Mar-09 19:38:26
Im a new build gal - much prefer knowing the past of the house and that no one has died in it, been murdered in it or haunts it."

Ah, but there's always the ancient-Indian-burial-ground let out for new buildings. Haven't read your Stephen King?

I don't believe in ghosts (can you tell?!) but if I did, I can't see why a ghost would be put off because the Victorian tenement they haunted had been bulldozed and a barret home built on the foundations. If anything I woudl think they would be more pissed

We chose a newish house on an estate because there were loads of kids ,main reason for buying tbh.

Without kids I would love an old house though.

on our v large new build estate there actually was some ancient remains found - we have recently explored moving within our estate and i have totally avoided this area (3 roads)

OP - never. Draughts are healthy (we have a lot of them - we're 1830s). I would wilt in a double-glazed house. Give me period features and a thick cardy any day!

some people can be very funny about new builds though, like someone i know slags off the fact new builds have small gardens yet she has a yard in a 2 bed mid terrace house. there's no garden at all!.

Some new-builds are nice. See here.
Warning: contains property porn!

purits wouldn't say no to that