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We're currently viewing houses.... Well, not right this second, but certainly 5 this weekend.
What's the consensus on new builds now ? One of them is a Charles Church build in Lydney.
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/162073670#/?channel=RES_NEW
But interested to get perspectives on the new build thing
When I see my colleagues on Teams calls wearing a t-shirt in their new build houses, whilst I'm in multiple layers in my 'characterful' stone cottage, I can see the point of new build...
My main concern would be if there are ongoing management fees for maintaining communal areas etc - seems be a more common thing for new builds, sometimes baked into the deeds.
And, for some reason they get extremely hot in summer!
I'm sure you can build a new house that's well built etc etc, but overpriced identikit boxes built to the lowest quality they can get away with on endless overcrowded sites. no thanks.
mate of mine lives in one in swindon and I have to use the sat nav to find my way in and out of his estate.
I can see why they appeal (but they're not for me).
First thing that strikes me from your link above is the downstairs space isn't big enough for a four bed house. There's nowhere to get away from one another.
Ooooh me, me.
So we moved into a Persimmon home just over 2 years ago. This was from a Victorian semi. Made sense as it had 5 bedrooms and meant kids could stay in their current school.
Overall it was the right move at the right time for us but we'll be selling in a couple of years time when the kids finish school.
It's definitely not a house we're in love with.
The benefits are it's warm, has a drive and garage and enough bedrooms.
Estate living isn't for us. The general quality on the house is okay but we had an extensive snagging list, PM me if you want me to send it over to give you an idea.
Also nothing is included. Had to get flooring fitted and I turfed the back and front garden.
Finally the rooms on paper look okay size wise but the ceilings are quite low, so it feels pokier than it is.
Since we've moved in I've done the following...
- replaced the bath after one of the kids slipped in it and ended up putting their knee through the fiberglass one. Is now a steel bath.
- replaced the kitchen. They can't change the design but they will charge you a fortune to put lipstick on it. Google Symphony kitchens to get an idea of the quality.
- repainted the bathroom and shower room as the paint started peeling off. Even though extractors were run and windows open.
Like any new build it depends on the quality of the trades in and how many shits the site manager gives.
I think houses are like parachutes. It's better to know someone has had success with it first.
4 years living in new build on estate of 40 ish houses with small developer. Some normal niggles (mostly plumbing) but no regrets. Warm in winter. Not too hot in summer. Coming from 60's houses absolutely love the massively insulated floor slab, decently insulated walls and no damp. Heat pump just works and (surprise to me) wouldn't ever want to go back to a gas boiler.
Now prefer sorting minor builder issues to undoing decades of wallpaper, bodges, asbestos worries etc.
Lack of mould is a good shout. And being detached means I've been able to buy a sub.
One other thing, lots of houses on our estate withr the integrated garage have had it converted to living space. Well I say lots but enough to notice it. Think there are about 160 houses on our estate.
I can see why they appeal (but they're not for me).
First thing that strikes me from your link above is the downstairs space isn't big enough for a four bed house. There's nowhere to get away from one another.
I guess you could turn the garage into an extra living space easily enough, but then you wouldn't have a garage.
2 ensuites and a bathroom in a 4 bed house seems a waste of space to me though, you could lose one and make bedrooms 2 and 3 a much better size.
Simple answer to the garage is, it'll be remaining a garage. No debate on that at all.
Another of the houses being viewed at weekend is an 1840s build. So we're not set on the new build idea.... it's one of a few ideas
2 ensuites and a bathroom in a 4 bed house seems a waste of space to me though, you could lose one and make bedrooms 2 and 3 a much better size.
Yep - they seemed designed for the instant Instagram appeal when selling and not practicality.
The jack and jill en-suite robs at least one of the bedrooms a wall to put a wardrobe against.
First thing that strikes me from your link above is the downstairs space isn't big enough for a four bed house.
I thought that as well. The car (or junk room) gets more space than the family. I visited a few places like this when looking at houses last year. I finally decided that if there wasn't enough space to put a Xmas tree up then it didn't work as a living space. I'm not sure why I decided on a Xmas tree, because it was mainly spring and summer when I was looking, but it's as good a measure as any. 😀 It could have been .....Is there space to have a pet? Is there somewhere you could put a record player without everybody knocking it walking through the room. Is there somewhere I could leave a guitar in its stand without it being damaged.
Simple answer to the garage is, it'll be remaining a garage. No debate on that at all.
Check you can actually fit a modern car in while you are viewing! Don't take the developers visuals as being to scale! 🙂
Edit - EG the lounge is showing as 5.05m long (and that will be into the window recess) - so the garage is shorter than this. A typical BMW 3 series is 4.7m long so would barely, if at all, fit into that garage.
Simple answer to the garage is, it'll be remaining a garage. No debate on that at all.
Check you can actually fit a modern car in while you are viewing! Don't take the developers visuals as being to scale! 🙂
LOL who cares, it'll be full of bicycles/workshop.
I wouldn't look at that one based on the jack & jill bathrooms - no need for it. Location not great either, there's only one way in and out of that estate by car though you can walk into Lydney at least. Rooms do seem VERY small 🙁
LOL who cares, it'll be full of bicycles/workshop.
A better designed house and a decent shed would be better though! 🙂
Why buy a garage that massively robs you of living space.
This one is better - and cheaper!...
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/167638187#/?channel=RES_NEW
Check you can actually fit a modern car in while you are viewing! Don't take the developers visuals as being to scale!
It looks like it's 3m x 5m. My Dacia Duster is 2m x 4.3m so there's not much space to actually get out of the car or lift the boot. And a Duster isn't huge by modern standards. Also, garage door opens to the outside and not into the house, ie no direct access from the house, so
LOL who cares, it'll be full of bicycles/workshop.
will be burgled while you're in bed
LOL who cares, it'll be full of bicycles/workshop.
A better designed house and a decent shed would be better though! 🙂
Why buy a garage that massively robs you of living space.
Well that particular one is only one of their development.
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/152571203#/?channel=RES_NEW
That one for example has the garage externally.
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/153525500#/?channel=RES_NEW
As does this one.
Check you can actually fit a modern car in while you are viewing! Don't take the developers visuals as being to scale!
It looks like it's 3m x 5m. My Dacia Duster is 2m x 4.3m so there's not much space to actually get out of the car or lift the boot. And a Duster isn't huge by modern standards. Also, garage door opens to the outside and not into the house, ie no direct access from the house, so
LOL who cares, it'll be full of bicycles/workshop.
will be burgled while you're in bed
Thanks for the optimism. why would it be burgled ?
When I see my colleagues on Teams calls wearing a t-shirt in their new build houses, whilst I'm in multiple layers in my 'characterful' stone cottage, I can see the point of new build...
and the friends who seem to have what I like to call 'a life' at the weekends whilst I patch our lump of 'character' together again.
I don't want one with all my heart...but my head sometimes thinks differently.
Thanks for the optimism. why would it be burgled ?
I wasn't all that serious - that's just what I thought when I looked at that design in real life. What's the point of sacrificing space in the house for a garage that you have to go outside to access? You can't carry your shopping directly into the kitchen, you will get wet doing it. The burglary bit (in my head) is just that it's only as secure as an external shed.
Integral garages are less likely to get burgled, as the penalties are stiffer than for external ones.
That's what the bizzies told me after my external garage got burgled years ago anyway.
They are lower quality than some older houses, but they are cheaper than the equivalent characterful stone cottage IMO. And whilst the execution is poor, the spec to which they are built is higher than ever. For example you get way more insulation than in older houses, BUT you get bodge jobs and shortcuts by builders. In our house, they'd drill a hole through the wall for an extractor fan but didn't seal around the hole on the inner wall so wind blows through the soffits, through the holes and into the gaps behind the dry lining. It's not that difficult to seal them up, once you know what you are looking for, and is a damn site easier than e.g. fitting a new roof like my sister had to do on her old house. Another was the hole in the floor to the cavity under the house where the kitchen drain holes came in. Big gaps there let in cold air and also slugs into the kitchen waste bin. It was easily fixed by removing the kickboard and spraying foam in the hole, but still. That said, old houses have plenty of issues, sometimes with the original build but often decades of cowboy tradespeople, bodged DIY or just age.
So I would (and I did) but I'd go prepared, particularly with a can of expanding foam with one of those lance nozzles for squirting into gaps.
Just for reference, I had a heat pump fitted in May with no extra insulation required, it cost me £3k or so after the grant. It runs at super low temperatures because the house is well insulated, so far we've spent about £20 on heating this month. It would be a different story in an old house without significant upgrades.
We have a whole bunch of new builds near us and I often walk through the new streets with my dogs. I have noticed some really shoddy workmanship – several with guttering that has partially fallen off (I noted that many houses seems to have some missing supports so I assume in heavy rain, the weight is pulling them away). A roof partially blew off one house (ironically the show home) in a storm, lots of the the boundary fences have also been affected by wind (not a surprise as they all just have 3 inch posts rather than 4 inch). Also, due to poor design and limited parking on drives/garages, the roads are littered with cars parked all over.
And, on top of all that, I agree with comments about small rooms and low ceilings.
Wouldn’t touch one on a big estate, but one of the ones on a small development? Yes. I’ve had both, though to be fair the one I’m in now was 10 years old when I bought it. Put together extremely well with at least double the insulation required by law and thoughtfully wired / plumbed.
Also meant that I could swap straight from the oil boiler to ASHP with minimal work (in fact the only radiator change was to make one of them smaller).
Only weird aspect is that the developers massively fell out with the landowner on one side of the house and in a fit of pique built the house as close as possible to their land, to the extent my garage has a bend in the middle to follow the boundary.
An aside. When I finished uni (design course) a friend's first job post degree was working for a company that specialised in making furniture for show homes. All a little bit smaller than normal in really sneaky ways - like a sofa that was just a bit too shallow to sit comfortably to give the illusion of a more space in the middle of the room and beds a foot shorter than normal. Wasn't just uniformly shrunk but subtly tweaked.
The crafty bastards.
Wheres the garden? It might not be the case with these but I don't understand 'large' houses with small gardens. I'd much rather have a smaller house and a massive garden.
Might just be me though...
Bedroom storage? seems to be a lack of in your new link
Bedroom storage? seems to be a lack of in your new link
Might just be me though...
Suspect it's all about the bottom line. A house of fewer bedrooms, more storage (I noticed the floorplans in the OP's first link had two small storage spaces and no wardrobes modelled in any of the bedrooms - inconceivable many families of 4/5 could live like it's being presented) and more space around it would be much nicer to live in and potentially hove more longevity....but less profit in the here and now for the developer.
Arguably though - if all houses were built as most of us would like to live we'd need to be using a lot more greenfield land to accommodate the amount of houses needed.
Wheres the garden? It might not be the case with these but I don't understand 'large' houses with small gardens. I'd much rather have a smaller house and a massive garden.
Might just be me though...
As long as the garden can fit a table and chairs i'm happy. The rest is not really my thing.
However, for example, this is the garden on another place we're viewing, the rear garden is bigger than that as well.
Thats more like it.
I get you though, I'm not a gardener, my wife likes gardeneing though, I just like space outside.
As above thought regarding builds, heating etc, the one with the 2 pics is 1840s built, so i expect likely to need 'stuff' as well as the garage being bhind those 2 sheds further up the hill, so pretty away from the actual property. The plus side is, I've not actually worked out how to get the car to the garage at the moment so it may be tough for thieves to even find it 😀 😀
Arguably though - if all houses were built as most of us would like to live we'd need to be using a lot more greenfield land to accommodate the amount of houses needed.
yep! our housing density (incredibly low by european standards) is yet another driver of out costly housing
Weeksy - I see those photos in your last post and unless there were some massive compromises (or a huge difference in price) I couldn't conceive of buying a new build over that.
Weeksy - I see those photos in your last post and unless there were some massive compromises (or a huge difference in price) I couldn't conceive of buying a new build over that.
Well, at the moment i'm not going to link to the other property as that's a private seller rather than a corporate. So wouldn't sit right with me. It's a lovely if a little weird place lol. But in some ways that one for example is top of my list currently. Waiting for confirmation on viewing time for that one.
However, for example, this is the garden on another place we're viewing, the rear garden is bigger than that as well.
I've just found that listing - buy that - don't even think of the new build!!! 🙂
Sticking to the important bit 🙂. Lathams doors are your first solution to detached garage security. But after that you need to look at access via the roof and how that can be beefed up.
If using as a workshop then the detached garage will be also be a cold single skin and uninsulated / unboarded trussed roof. Depending on exposure and brick type, you might find rain pushes through the walls in winter which quickly turns tools rusty. I've fixed ours with a generous coating of Stormdry masonry cream which works very well but £££.
With the integral garage you just need the doors.
However, for example, this is the garden on another place we're viewing, the rear garden is bigger than that as well.
I've just found that listing - buy that - don't even think of the new build!!! 🙂
LOL lets all not go finding or posting the house please... I wouldn't feel right doing that with a private buyer...
It's deffo on our list for this weekend.. But it's a pretty long list 😀
LOL lets all not go finding or posting the house please... I wouldn't feel right doing that with a private buyer...
I won't link - but it 1000% looks like a home already rather than a bunch of bland rooms.
Finally the rooms on paper look okay size wise but the ceilings are quite low, so it feels pokier than it is.
what’s quite low? Standard for new build is 2.4 as that is a plasterboard size. Our self build we managed 2.45 on ground floor and 2.35 upstairs (had an overall height limit on the building) and that works well for our room sizes. Feels pleasantly cozy in the bedrooms.
my sister is in a red row new build and the ceilings were surprisingly high - maybe 2.5 downstairs which actually felt a bit high for the size of the rooms.
Not sure to be honest, but coming from a high ceilinged Victorian house and being 6' 5" tall they feel low.
Ooooh me, me.
Me too!
We moved in Jan 2021.
Previous house was a 70s semi, I'm a keen competent DIYer and did the whole lot - Garden, kitchen, bathroomn, rewire tc and made a few quid on it.
I was always a new build nay-sayer. I remember my parents new build house in 1994 being absolutely shockingly bad (ironically, this is now a 30 year old house that people would say is preferable to a 2024 build). Wasnt even considering it.
Looked at loads of projects and detached houses of similar age to ours, which would all require the same jobs to be repeated. Eventually went to see a house that was about 3 years old and was really surprised how much we liked it... we missed out on it by a matter of days to another buyer who sold first.
But that then lead us to - maybe not 'all' new houses are terrible... And we found the one we bought: Corner/end plot. No overlooking in the garden. Open aspect to the West (late sun). Lots of parking. No shared driveway. No council/affordable/rented houses next door.
On an estate of around 250 houses, there is ours, and maybe 3 others I would have considered.
The price was about the same as equivalently sized homes in the village. All of which would have required some serious initial, and then ongoing spend in various formats.
In fact - we also considered buying a house the exact same as my fathers, on the same row as him, about half a mile away. 1901 Terrace. Picture Rails. Open fires. High Ceilings. Cellar. Range. Beautiful glazed doors. Character bleeding through every crevice. Same price.
It was a massive leap of faith but for us, its turned out to be the absolute perfect move. Will we stay forever? Course not. Would I love a beautiful old house one day? Course I would.
But as busy parents/growing family, I dont have time to be constantly chasing repairs and upgrades. I love to do it (as evidenced by my previous house) - but I love to do it on my own terms, not when enforced.
Our bills, are genuinely about a 1/4 of what my Fathers are in the beautiful character house we nearly bought. It is 100% entirely stress free. Each corner is 90 degrees. I know where every single pipe and wire goes exactly - I watched them be installed, and I have copies of the full build drawings.
We chose the kitchen and bathrooms to exactly our taste.
It is incredibly well insulated. It stays warm and quiet in winter. Cool in summer. Everything works perfectly. Everything is clean. Nothing damaged or broken or worn out. All the doors shut 'just so' an latch perfectly. The floor is entirely flat from front to back. I have ultras fast fibre broadband. Every single roof tile is perfectly aligned just as the day it was laid. All the garden walls and fencing are brand new, straight, matching. Every window opens and seals correctly with all the same keys. We didnt have to 'upgrade' all the locks and doors to the latest security standard - thats how they came.
We have barely even decorated. We just touch up with a bit of white if we get a sticky fingerprint somewhere. Its blissfully easy.
Forget the 'new builds dont have soul' nonsense, the soul and character of the place comes from the fact its our home, full of our stuff, our pictures on the wall, where we come home to and feel safe.
Was there snags? Course there was. We had a plumbing issue that meant we got a load of the kitchen ripped out and replaced. But thats kind of the point - it was all done for me, I even got a rebate for the extra electricity used whilst the team were on site.
On an older house, a burst pipe means your on your own, even it its 5 minutes after you exchange!
As I said - its not for everyone. But for us, at this point in our lives and when we need predictability, efficiency, safety, security and comfort, its perfect.
You just have to really, really make sure you find the right plot. Most are crap - but there are good ones out there, a handful on every estate.
Move into a new house and you'll spend the time worrying about whether it's likely to fall down due to cut corners. Move into an old one and you'll spend the time wondering which bit has been close to falling down for the last 50 years.
To me it's primarily about the location. Where do you live now? Newish estate/flat/country pile/small village etc? Are you happy with that?
I couldn't live where some of my friends live, they couldn't live where we do.
Our choice was between large new 4 bed house, standard garden, in a suburb, and small 3 bed old cottage in a poor state with a massive garden in a small village. I don't regret the latter for a single second. Not even when I'm chasing yet another roof leak, weird wiring issue, or ridiculous Victorian bodge.
Move into a new house and you'll spend the time worrying about whether it's likely to fall down due to cut corners. Move into an old one and you'll spend the time wondering which bit has been close to falling down for the last 50 years.
To me it's primarily about the location. Where do you live now? Newish estate/flat/country pile/small village etc? Are you happy with that?
I couldn't live where some of my friends live, they couldn't live where we do.
Our choice was between large new 4 bed house, standard garden, in a suburb, and small 3 bed old cottage in a poor state with a massive garden. I don't regret the latter for a single second.
We live in a small leafy picture perfect village in West Berks. Loads of STWers will have ridden near here or even through here as it's just off the Ridgeway. The house is a close/cul-de-sac of 15 houses or so, 1980s build. It's been ace for 10 years but we're moving for the boys work. (well that and the riding i can get 🙂 ) Amongst other reasons.
We're more than happy with small village, but some more local things may be nice too. We're about 7 miles from the nearest supermarket. (only 100m from pub, but we go there twice a year tops)
I'd say you need to give serious consideration to the location then, that's a big change. I don't know how old your son is, but he probably won't be living with you forever.
My son isn't a huge fan of his relatively small bedroom, but he could be gone in 6 years or so, he loves the garden, and loves the surrounding area. He's a nervous mess at my sister's house in Levenshulme.
I'd say you need to give serious consideration to the location then, that's a big change. I don't know how old your son is, but he probably won't be living with you forever.
Oh 100% mate, but only some of this decision is for him. Some of it is very much for me... Arguably less of it is for Mrs Weeksy, but she gets a bigger house with more space which is something she wants. I'd have happily stayed where we are for the next 30 years till i'm carted off to housing or the loony bin 🙂 But circustances mean that this move makes sense to all of use. But honestly we've weighed this up for quite a while now and the why/what/where's of it all
There's other reasons i don't really want to massively get into on here in public too 🙂
If you do go for a new house, get a professional in to do the snag list before you move in. There's a guy on Insta who does it and some of the shite he shows is deplorable.
Opening windows is free, heating oil isn't
Tell us you live halfway up the Matterhorn without telling us you live....
Opening windows on a hot summer day here in the plains is a disastrous move
Have you considered over the border, Monmouth way? Possibly a bit more for your money, nicer town, riding nearby is brilliant with a good riding scene.
Have you considered over the border, Monmouth way? Possibly a bit more for your money, nicer town, riding nearby is brilliant with a good riding scene.
only a bit, the boy needs to get to FoD daily and I worry the route over gets pretty busy? In truth there’s not much difference in price from what we’ve seen. But we’ve not counted it out.
one of Sundays viewings is just a bit NE of Monmouth
Also, garage door opens to the outside and not into the house, ie no direct access from the house,
I believe that's a building regs thing and has been for several years now. You won't find any new builds with a door into the house from the garage. Security risk or some such.
I will tell you in a fortnight - we exchanged today.... Buying with Bellway in Stirling. We had not set out to get a new build, buut I dragged mrs_oab out to see one as a 'wet Sunday, let's be nosey, you never know'.
We landed on a plot that had fallen through the day before, and was already wind and watertight. It faces a large open paved and road area - so no peering across a street at someone else in their lounge, we are 30m of area to the front. To the rear it faces very tip of a new public play park and small wooded hill which is too steep to build on, so no over looking and nice greenspace. We did not get to chose things to upgrade, but the developer had already upgraded kitchens, tiles, lights etc. The only thing missing is a shower over main bathroom bath - but I can sort that. It is in a corner and has an extended drive - we can squeeze 3 cars on a flat driveway, and have parking on the 'square' we overlook as well. Annual charge for greenspace maintenance is £180 guaranteed for 10 years. t is a almost flat, south east facing garden. House is a fairly boggo 4 bed / 2 ensuite and main bathroom 'white box'.
The development is 80 houses on edge of a much larger (650+) Persimmon development, with new primary school out the ground already, three shop units and a 'village green' area betwixt the wee park we over look, the primary, the shops. Due to have a small park and ride direct into town and the CityLink and Ember buses direct to Edinburgh and Glasgow. IWe are having to move into Stirling, but the location is a hop and a skip up some lanes to North Third for riding and walks, or we have the Bannock Burn and some local greenspace.
But, our old house is 1970's semi at the bottom of a north facing old railway embankment. It gets no sun from November to February. The garden is ridiculously large and steep and north facing. House needs a new kitchen, bathroom, 6 windows, new (steep) driveway, new patio, new steps up garden...The layout is awkward with a downstairs bedroom. Two of my boys have rooms 6' across - not ideal when one of them is 6'3".... There are some right shonky extensions on the house which are cold and damp. It is however in the most lovely place to live - Dunblane - with ridiculously good greenspace, walking riding, transport and community (particularly our neighbours who are all a delight in the cul-de-sac). But even if we ploughed ££££££'s into the place, we still would have a grey 1970's semi with wonky floor levels, little insulation and a 10 year old boiler....and mrs_oab who is ill still could not handle the garden any more.
The cost to move is more compared to the cost to renovate - but it is less than £20k and one council tax band (and the loss of wonderful Dunblane) to get a house that is 30% bigger, warmer, drier, solar panels, 10 year warranty, sunnier, flat driveway, working everything...
So far Bellway have been very good. I can see that my snagging list will be quite long, but they have two weeks to sort some of it so maybe I need to sit and wait some more. The house feels much more solid and better thought out than the neighbouring Persimmon houses...
Also, garage door opens to the outside and not into the house, ie no direct access from the house,
I believe that's a building regs thing and has been for several years now. You won't find any new builds with a door into the house from the garage. Security risk or some such.
I suppose I understand that from a buliding regs point of view, but conversely, it makes having an integrated garage a totally pointless excersise/waste of space, too. lol, you may as well convert it into a second lounge or study or something.
Also, garage door opens to the outside and not into the house, ie no direct access from the house,
I believe that's a building regs thing and has been for several years now. You won't find any new builds with a door into the house from the garage. Security risk or some such.
That is obviously not the case.....here's a new build in Yorkshire with a door into the utlitiy from the garage. (I believe it needs to be a firw door and the garage level needs to be 100mm lower (min) than the house. Presumably to stop the fluid from a vehicle leak to run into the living space?)
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/166520084#/?channel=RES_NEW
Also, garage door opens to the outside and not into the house, ie no direct access from the house,
I believe that's a building regs thing and has been for several years now. You won't find any new builds with a door into the house from the garage. Security risk or some such.
The regulation isnt not that 'your not allowed a door into your house from the garage'.
But the garage needs to be at a lower level, and the door must be a firedoor, thus its quite complex to acheive on a modern house built on a single flat slab.
Sounds like your doing the exact same process as me a few years ago in my post up there. Try and visit the site during working hours over the next few weeks (the house, not the selling office!) and speak to the team working on the house, get a hold of any snags and jobs that are going to need doing. Be straight and honest with them, it wont be perfect but theres absolutely no reason why it wont get sorted to a good standard.
Like I said, it might feel a little sterile to begin with but the enjoyment and pleasure comes from all those things you've stated. Wait till you see how much your gas bill is in credit by March and you'll be happy!
But the garage needs to be at a lower level, and the door must be a firedoor, thus its quite complex too costly to the shareholders to acheive on a modern house built on a single flat slab.
FTFY! 🙂
Don't ever think houses were ever well made. Former boss of mine had a Victorian semi. It's one course of bricks taller at the front than the back (course disappears as you run backwards).
Some neighbours of ours dug down for footings and found running water under their integral garage. (1970s)
Other neighbours house apparently built on a pond, confirmed by a guy who used to play around here.
Someone installed a gas fire in our house and ran the gas pipe up the wall under about 5mm of plaster. Bang in the middle of the hearth too, right where you'd want to hang a picture on a nail.
We viewed a 1700s farm house. Top floor was distinctly noticeably wonky underfoot. "Character" was the phrase the estate agent used. "30-40 grand" was our friendly builder's opinion.
At least with a brand new one you've got a chance of snagging. And get that Welsh bloke out to call the builders tuna melts, cos he's hilarious.
Wheres the garden? It might not be the case with these but I don't understand 'large' houses with small gardens. I'd much rather have a smaller house and a massive garden.
Might just be me though...
As long as the garden can fit a table and chairs i'm happy. The rest is not really my thing.
However, for example, this is the garden on another place we're viewing, the rear garden is bigger than that as well.
On a nice summers day, where would you rather be sat ? In that garden, with that view, or in a non descript housing estate, surrounded by soul less boxes ?
Wheres the garden? It might not be the case with these but I don't understand 'large' houses with small gardens. I'd much rather have a smaller house and a massive garden.
Might just be me though...
As long as the garden can fit a table and chairs i'm happy. The rest is not really my thing.
However, for example, this is the garden on another place we're viewing, the rear garden is bigger than that as well.
On a nice summers day, where would you rather be sat ? In that garden, with that view, or in a non descript housing estate, surrounded by soul less boxes ?
To an extent there's a lot of factors in that question, like location, house upkeep, driveway (for motorhome + 2 cars and a van lol), then size, heating, neighbours etc.
I have no doubt that house is more idylic, hence why we're viewing it.... but whether or not the idylic one is the right one, well that remains to be seen yet. The one pictured above would be very quiet and secluded for sure, which ticks many boxes, but is a little way out of any town which may tick some less boxes for Mrs Weeksy. Until she views the areas and gets a feel for them, i can't really say. She only goes to a specific area here so doesn't know the whole region/area like i do, so it's harder for her to relate i think.
On a nice summers day, where would you rather be sat ? In that garden, with that view, or in a non descript housing estate, surrounded by soul less boxes ?
On a nice summer's day I'd be out enjoying the countryside, not thinking about cutting grass and weeding borders.
On a nice summers day, where would you rather be sat ? In that garden, with that view, or in a non descript housing estate, surrounded by soul less boxes ?
On a nice summer's day I'd be out enjoying the countryside, not thinking about cutting grass and weeding borders.
Yeah but there's only so much I can ride, there's limits, plus there's work as well, i can't do 5 hours a day 6 days a week that's for sure. But happily for me, i don't do the garden anyway 🙂 That's a pink job 🙂
To an extent there's a lot of factors in that question, like location, house upkeep, driveway (for motorhome + 2 cars and a van lol), then size, heating, neighbours etc.
Looking at the satellite view you may as well cancel that viewing for the house with a view then!
There's parking for one car, the garage and then the garden drops away so little scope for increasing the size. And with access down a private lane (so there would be upkeep for that too).
To an extent there's a lot of factors in that question, like location, house upkeep, driveway (for motorhome + 2 cars and a van lol), then size, heating, neighbours etc.
Looking at the satellite view you may as well cancel that viewing for the house with a view then!
There's parking for one car, the garage and then the garden drops away so little scope for increasing the size. And with access down a private lane (so there would be upkeep for that too).
Well you say that... but... You can park on the road outside, which would be fine for 2 cars. No worries there. If you look down the road about 400m on streetview there's a big field which seems to be caravan storage, so could see about storing the motorhome there. The transit would go next to the garage... So that would actually work OK.
New build? Not for me. A mate was chatting to the site foreman on a new build estate. He asked if they were worth buying. Reply contained a lot of swear words.
Anyway why Lydney? It is the arse end of nowhere. A fricking pain if you need to commute or go anywhere for entertainment. Getting through Chepstow is a mare at the best of times and will be a lot worse if they build the proposed new estate on the Army base under the bridge. This may have been cancelled until they build another Wye crossing downstream of Chepstow?
I'd look at renting before buying in (or near the Forest). It can be a bit 'Marmite'.
New build? Not for me. A mate was chatting to the site foreman on a new build estate. He asked if they were worth buying. Reply contained a lot of swear words.
Anyway why Lydney? It is the arse end of nowhere. A fricking pain if you need to commute or go anywhere for entertainment. Getting through Chepstow is a mare at the best of times and will be a lot worse if they build the proposed new estate on the Army base under the bridge. This may have been cancelled until they build another Wye crossing downstream of Chepstow?
I'd look at renting before buying in (or near the Forest). It can be a bit 'Marmite'.
It's unlikely to be Lydney now after some links from a mate showing some flooding there. But the need to head through Chepstow, i don't really get your question, why am i going through Chepstow exactly ? The only thing the other side of Chepstow is the M4. If i was going to saw BPW i'd just go north and then up through Abergavenny instead, which negates the Chepstow thing.
The Forest of Dean location is absolutely perfect for me in so so many ways. As well as the boy working there, it's perfect for getting to races, getting to BPW, Hopton, Llangollen, even Dyfi. Not to mention all the riding around Ross, FoD itself, even Malverns which are all really easily accessed. I can't honestly think of a reason NOT to move to FoD.
We don't commute, the wife doesn't have an office location, i go to the office 1-2 times a year. Entertainment, nah, not for me thank you. No interest in cinemas or gigs, anything like that in truth. A local pub for after ride beer, that'll do me nicely.
Well you say that... but... You can park on the road outside, which would be fine for 2 cars. No worries there. If you look down the road about 400m on streetview there's a big field which seems to be caravan storage, so could see about storing the motorhome there. The transit would go next to the garage... So that would actually work OK.
Which is great until someone else moves onto the road with 2 cars a van and a camper and suddenly you are fighting for parking space.
As me how I know and how I threw my toys out of the pram one Friday evening when I ended up miles away from my front door in the pissing rain with a load of shopping! 🤣
Ooo I can add my 2 pence to this.
Me and the mrs moved into a 2010 build in 2018, we were the 2nd owners of a 2 bed 3 bath end terrace (en suite for both bedrooms).
Pros:
-Straight walls
-Everything still quite new feeling despite being original from being built, bathrooms, boiler, kitchen etc
-Community feel on the estate
-Modern wiring and plumbing was easier to work on/repair/maintain
-Warm in winter
-No asbestos or artex
-Nice solid concrete floor
-No creaky flooring/noisy stairs
-Garden was still a blank canvas
-Low maintenance, driveway, brickwork, fences, everything was little to no hassle, never had any major issues outside of a leak here n there from shower trays and a bad fitted mixer and one electric socket burning out
Cons:
-You're living on top of each other, we could be sat in the garden on a nice sunny afternoon and hear our neighbour squeezing one out with the bathroom window open, not sure what that bloke used to eat but imagine throwing a boulder into a serene lake, not nice to hear, equally even if neighbours not connected to ours, if they had music on and a window open you could hear it
-During our ownership things started to get tired, if we weren't actively saving for our dream home we would have 110% replaced all the bathrooms, kitchen and all flooring. Things that started to slowly fail: The fence, the driveway, the paving slabs, kitchen, flooring, bathrooms, some plumbing, conservatory sealant and flashing, some big movement cracks last year, bathtub cracked, shower leak etc.
-In summer it was a heat trap, even opening the windows didn't work, ended up with 3 fans, one for me one for the wife and one for the dog so she would stop panting and we could get some sleep
-The quality of the garden was shoddy, lots of rubble under the grass which meant the grass never grew well and when digging the beds you were always pulling rubble out
-Thin walls meant we could hear our connected neighbour watching tv or snoring
-Lack of privacy, all windows were overlooked as was our garden
-Lack of general space on the estate meant cars were always parked on roads every now and then we'd get our driveway blocked
-General shoddyness of materials used, cheap baths, cheap sinks, cheap flooring, cheap oven grill and hobs, cheap boiler, cheap toilets, cheap shower, cheap conservatory materials, cheap fence materials, cheap tarmac front drive quality like literally everything was done seemingly at a cheap cost and overtime it showed
-Stud walls and dot and dab everywhere
-It was small, 795sqft, we outgrew the space super quick
We moved July this year to a 1975detached build, yes its got artex that I've had to skim, yes no walls are straight, has a suspended timber floor I'm not a fan of, it has creaky floors, some weird DIY/Fixes done over the years that leaves you scratching your head when you come to deal with it, yes its got draughts and im sat here typing this now with a jumper on and some thick socks but it's quiet, has mature gardens with mature fruit trees, better quality driveway, has recently had a full rewire, new combi boiler and kitchen installed, has solid walls, cant hear the neighbours, has privacy, things that have been replaced have been replaced with good quality materials etc
If I had to move again I'd probably only consider 1970's-1990s houses, it almost always comes down to compromises at the end of the day though
We bought a new build when we got married 30 years ago and are still in it. It's only a 3 bed semi, but we've got a drive and a detached garage. It's on a development of just 12 houses. We have a field behind our house, so not overlooked.
My sister has a more recent new build, much bigger 4 bed, but the houses are on top of each other, and like most 'estates' with similar houses, and grown up children, it's full of cars and parking wars. Not for me.
of a 2 bed 3 bath end terrace
2 bedrooms, but 3 bathrooms? I don't understand 21st century life. Does everyone else spend more time in the bathroom than in their living rooms or bedrooms? And I'll bet there was no space for bikes, surf boards, three different varieties of tents, or even a wardrobe. 😀
We don't commute, the wife doesn't have an office location, i go to the office 1-2 times a year. Entertainment, nah, not for me thank you. No interest in cinemas or gigs, anything like that in truth. A local pub for after ride beer, that'll do me nicely.
Fair enough.
In that case I'd suggest a ride from the door location. Here you go:
Nice pub. Might even be some nice trails there 😋.
We don't commute, the wife doesn't have an office location, i go to the office 1-2 times a year. Entertainment, nah, not for me thank you. No interest in cinemas or gigs, anything like that in truth. A local pub for after ride beer, that'll do me nicely.
Fair enough.
In that case I'd suggest a ride from the door location. Here you go:
Nice pub. Might even be some nice trails there 😋.
Yeah Staunton is fine and dandy, that house however is really not. Flat roof and £20,000 needed to make it half repsectable to live in.... There's much better options than there. Despite it being next to the trails i'll admit.
£20,000 needed to make it half repsectable to live in
Funny how tastes vary. If we're judging purely on aesthetics I'd take that 50's gaff in Staunton over those new builds linked above, 11 times out of 10. I might spend £100 on white paint to cover up some of that wallpaper, mind.