Is it a huge faux pas to change a house name?

[TwoDrifters2]

Currently in the process of house hunting, moving from London to the countryside. I was just wondering what the “done thing” is when you fall in love with a house, buy and move in, but you don’t like the current name of it?!

I know it’s relatively easy to change, just notifying the post office etc. but I was wondering whether it’s the kind of thing that other locals find irritating or would look down upon?

Sort of a “‘Hyacinth Cottage’ has been good enough for the last 18 owners, who do this lot think they are? Coming down from London and changing names…”

Especially if the name has a connection to the village or hamlet name e.g. “Anvil House” based in “Anvil Corner”.

Would this be a huge faux pas or am I overthinking this and literally no one except the postman cares what your home is called?

(PS - I don’t dislike either “Hyacinth Cottage” or “Anvil House”, I merely used these as examples!)

Depends on the name.
If it was built by people called Sherri and Lee and is called Sherilee- change at will.
If it's genericky Hyacinth Cottage/ Lake View/ Hill Crest blah de bland then whatever, nobody will care
If it's the name of the townland or Anvil House or GI's Fag End or some such then probably leave if it has history.

I was brought up in a house that had had its name changed by the owners before my parents from a fairly weird and specific name (think 'Old Bob's Forge House') to a generic (think 'Honeysuckle House') and everyone wanted to know as soon as we moved in whether the name would be changed back - I think the change to Honeysuckle House had irritated a fair few people and was held against the old owners.

So, that seems to suggest it might be worth treading carefully.

I think if it has historical significance to the house or village it has to stay. Otherwise change it. My only concern would be how you find out where the name originates from, it won't necessarily be obvious. E.g Norman's retreat could be that Norm bought it to retire to a few years ago and never integrated with the village or it could be that Norm was fouth generation villager war hero who lived there to recuperate while single handedly fundraising to finance every village amenity

We lived in a house with an unusual name had been that name for over 200 years, when the road was named it was named after the house, I could not imagine changing that. But if it is a modernish house as ours is now and for some reason called Rowmin Court, we just use the house number. No idea what the name means nothing to do with location.

I wouldn’t change a house name but in the area I live in plenty do and some don’t do it officially either and don’t have any issues

I would say it's fine to change it, unless:

• the current name has historical significance;
• the name you propose is naff or tacky; or
• your proposed name is overly grand. Eg if the current name is Appletree Cottage, and you want to change it to "[name of village] House, because that sounds more impressive.

I thought it was supposed to be bad luck?

Oh no, not bad luck. I expect gremlins will move into your woodshed, or summat.

In all the villages I’ve ever lived in this would have been a faux pas, yes.

If you really hate it, integrate first and then change it would be my advice!

Does it have a number as well? If so then the name probably doesn't date back that far and it's unlikely to matter.

If no number I would be v wary - would probably cause you admin hell and lost post for years.

@WinWinnieTheWay

I thought it was supposed to be bad luck?

That is boats I think.

Is it an old house or isolated? Delivery drivers will never find you if it is, nobody will know where they’re looking for. I regularly have to direct drivers to neighbours houses!

Is it a proper named house or does it actually have a number but the owners like to pretend its name matters?

Casa Bevron can be renamed without worry, I would expect.

You have to do it through your local council for a fee. Our house name was very rude if you put the emphasis on the wrong syllable, which everyone did. It had to be changed.
I would enquire locally first, you don't want to upset people when you first move in.

@justasking111

We lived in a house with an unusual name had been that name for over 200 years, when the road was named it was named after the house, I could not imagine changing that. But if it is a modernish house as ours is now and for some reason called Rowmin Court, we just use the house number. No idea what the name means nothing to do with location.

I wonder if Rowmin Court was first owned by Rowland and Minerva?

@BlackAmericanoNoSugar probably, which is why it is so naff. The word does not exist except as some kind of computer code from what I can make out.

On our road, we only have names, no numbers. A couple of houses have had name changed in the last 2-3 years by new owners. I haven't heard any comment, although one is a bit twee (IMHO). However both houses are only about 20-30 years old.(Very new round here) There might have been comment if the Old Workhouse or Village name Hall had been changed.
You do need to talk to the Post Office through, our house was new when we moved in and they needed to check that our name was not duplicated in the close proximity or cause confusion. Having said that, our neighbour managed to change their name to something similar to another local property. Think Red House and Red Tiles.

justasking111 I agree renaming boats is a big fat no.

My childhood home was named after an architectural feature, think Thatch Cottage and the new owners have named it something silly more grand sounding, think fortescue house.
I think it's a bit pretentious, and a shame because there was nothing wrong with its original name.

Like pp have said though, if it's something like dun roamin or fuckem hall then change change change.

Doesn't matter if you change it or not, round here the older locals may continue to call it by its old name which leads to some interesting conversations.

Turn left at "Honeysuckle cottage" - you know - the one at the top of the hill, (called Church View now... and for the past 30 years...) down Old Acre lane past Bluebell farm (nope nothing there any more) to The Manse (nope, now Sunnyfield estate) - drives me nuts...

A cottage in a neighbouring lane to us had its name changed when new people moved in about 20 years ago. Everyone here still calls it by the old name possibly because the new name is twee and cringy. For quite a while the people living their had difficulty getting deliveries so I don't think they had properly changed the name with the post office. This meant that for quite a while after they moved in poss 6 to 12 months we kept getting delivery drivers asking where xxx cottage was but of course we'd never heard if it🤣 Bathroom company, John Lewis lorry, kitchen fitters 🤣 we had them all🤣.

I think you would be a topic of conversation for quite some time and as a pp said, people will still call it by the old name.

I remember Casa Bevron

In a village I know, there are a fair few postwar, architecturally insignificant houses with weird sounding names which don't exactly trip off the tongue. Often they're bought by wealthy Londoners who demolish them and rebuild, changing the name when they do so.
But the locals know that the old names relate to the names of the fields on which the houses were built on in the 1950s and 60s and so are probably centuries old bits of local history and yes, it does cause resentment. It's such a shame to see these old names vanish from the village entirely, even if they don't sound very attractive.
So I would say do your homework as to why the house is called what it is. Ask around. Often it will reference some aspect of the house's history that might not be immediately obvious to you.

It would be a faux pas in the villages I’ve known and would cause admin issues forever!