PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING
Hello Forumites! In order to help keep the Forum a useful, safe and friendly place for our users, discussions around non-MoneySaving matters are not permitted per the Forum rules. While we understand that mentioning house prices may sometimes be relevant to a user's specific MoneySaving situation, we ask that you please avoid veering into broad, general debates about the market, the economy and politics, as these can unfortunately lead to abusive or hateful behaviour. Threads that are found to have derailed into wider discussions may be removed. Users who repeatedly disregard this may have their Forum account banned. Please also avoid posting personally identifiable information, including links to your own online property listing which may reveal your address. Thank you for your understanding.Would you buy a maisonette?
Options
Comments
-
-
You can't discount a flat or maisonette just becasue they're not a house. Some houses can be worse for noise, neighbours, privacy, being overlooked etc than some maisonettes or flats are.
In pasrts of London (even Belgravia) there's thousands of flats and masionettes that sell for millions!
Just cos a house is a house doesn't mean to say it's better. You can have bad next door neighbours who make terrible noise night and day, they can usually see into your garden from their top windows, and some houses are actually leasehold believe it or not.
It's not a good idea to buy a short leasehold but, although some leases are simply peppercorn rents of a few quid a year. The current owners have the right to buy the freehold so I suggest you ask them to that - they can buy the freehold to the whole property if the neighbour isn't interested in buying.
Upstairs or downstairs maisonettes are usually quiet due to the building layout. Very often you won't hear the people upstairs or downstairs at all. Providing you have good solid doors, insulation, double glazing, carpeting etc you shouldn't hear a sound. You occasionally hear about neighbours from hell, but most neighbours are considerate you'll find. You can have awful neighbours living next door to you, or fab ones, and that applies to flats and maisonettes. You'll find most people in maisonettes don't want to cause trouble and reap the repercussions and they want a quiet life as much as you do. Buyers are usually much more aware of this than renters are, but as I say, next door neighbours can be loud, play blaring music, rev cars, shout, bang doors ets...it's much rarer for civilsed people sharing the same building to behave that way.
Some maisonettes and flats sell for more (proportionately) than houses do. For example, a 3 bed maisonette in the same street as a 3 bed house may fetch, say, £390 while the house will only fetch about £430. In real terms maisonettes are actually dearer.0 -
Yes, some flats are better than houses. In my area, there are 2-bed flats that sell for more than some 3-bed houses, but those flats are shared freehold.breadlinebetty wrote: »You can't discount a flat or maisonette just becasue they're not a house. Some houses can be worse for noise, neighbours, privacy, being overlooked etc than some maisonettes or flats are.
..
Some maisonettes and flats sell for more (proportionately) than houses do. For example, a 3 bed maisonette in the same street as a 3 bed house may fetch, say, £390 while the house will only fetch about £430. In real terms maisonettes are actually dearer.
If there is no dire shortage of average or good freehold properties for the same price, why would anyone buy a leasehold? Perhaps some buyers do not understand all the complications. For me, the potential headache is worth about 20%
0 -
I agree that flats and maisonettes can be much nicer than houses on at the same price but thats because in my opinion, to some degree they are not entirely yours. You would have to check the details but certainly in the flat I used to live in I was given so many rules and regulations about parking, when to change windows and how they must look and even the flooring that I was allowed in my own flat. The other thing is when you come to sell the process is very much more complicated and long winded and even more out of your control than a normal house sale.
I am not saying choose the house over the maisonette but I do think you would be better off being fully informed about what it can mean so you can make the best decision for you!0 -
Hi i used to live in a 3 bed maisonette and have to say it was much bigger than normal 3 bed houses. We had an elderly man below us so never hreard a thing but you should find out who is below you..it is a bit like living in a flat.
Also from buying a town house and having the stairs to contend with i would think of the difficulties of moving certain things in? ours is new so the doors are bigger than standard due to disability rules and fine apart from our huuuge fridge! but something to think about.
Lease? again you need to find out.
I liked ours though and like i said big, i would certainly look at buying one though.
Good luck x0 -
Hi i used to live in a 3 bed maisonette and have to say it was much bigger than normal 3 bed houses. We had an elderly man below us so never hreard a thing but you should find out who is below you..it is a bit like living in a flat.
Also from buying a town house and having the stairs to contend with i would think of the difficulties of moving certain things in? ours is new so the doors are bigger than standard due to disability rules and fine apart from our huuuge fridge! but something to think about.
Lease? again you need to find out.
I liked ours though and like i said big, i would certainly look at buying one though.
Good luck x
Thanks for your post gabyjane!
It is indeed a very generous size. The door frames look standard though and I too have reservations about moving in furniture but currently it is fully furnished and the fridge in the kitchen is huge! So they had to get it in somehow - hence I should be able to also.
I have in fact met the downstairs neighbour - a very lovely middle-aged lady who lives there with her husband.0 -
No, nope, never. Have lived in one, know several people who own them, and it takes one noisy downstairs neighbour to ruin your life, plus you have to haul shopping upstairs, and with kids it's hard to keep an eye on them. Go for the semi and extend/convert a garage later if you have to.They deem him their worst enemy who tells them the truth. -- Plato0
-
We live in a big 3 bed Victorian maisonette and it's fab.
We have a large private garden accessable from our kitchen down a flight of stairs, a large master bedroom and 2 smaller ones. Massive open plan kitchen and a large reception room with lovely high ceilings and fireplace.
Our neighbours downstairs are lovely, and we never really hear them. Maybe the occasional voice if they have people over.
Our lease is over 950 years too, so effectively a share of freehold.
I suppose we've been lucky, but from my experience here, I'd recommend it. It's certainly larger internally than a lot of our friends houses.Metranil dreams of becoming a neon,You don't even take him seriously,How am I going to get to heaven?,When I'm just balanced so precariously..0 -
Believe or not I did had this exact thing happen yesterday!! I phoned to ask about a house I'd previously offered on, but it got refused at the time as my house wasn't on the market yet. And yesterday I asked if they had much interest since and the woman said "No, we've had no interest at all, I'll just check" and shouted over to someone else who replied "None whatsoever, oh no actually we had that one girl with the house...". I pointed out that was me. Ha ha ha. Mind you, this is the same estate agent who got in his car to drive off without locking up a vacant property I'd viewed AND then accidentally forwarded on other peoples offers to me by email.... yep, never heard an estate agent saying "it's been on months and i can't get rid of it.."
0 -
Metranil_Vavin wrote: »We live in a big 3 bed Victorian maisonette and it's fab.
We have a large private garden accessable from our kitchen down a flight of stairs, a large master bedroom and 2 smaller ones. Massive open plan kitchen and a large reception room with lovely high ceilings and fireplace.
Our neighbours downstairs are lovely, and we never really hear them. Maybe the occasional voice if they have people over.
Our lease is over 950 years too, so effectively a share of freehold.
I suppose we've been lucky, but from my experience here, I'd recommend it. It's certainly larger internally than a lot of our friends houses.
Thank you very much - it is good to hear positive feedback.
The maisonette in question does have a pretty good living/dining room and a large garden. On the downside, it is close to the main road so you can hear the noise all the time when in the garden.
The current lease is 78 years as I posted earlier and the EA is asking the owner if they will be willing to pay to have it extended.
It is a share of freehold but apparently, not just with the downstairs neighbour but also with 5 other properties nearby. So 6 more people will have a say in what I can do with the maisonette (in case I do want to do anything of course).
I would not describe this maisonette as fab - it is fine, I suppose. The internal area is bigger than most houses but then it is more expensive than many houses I have viewed.
My husband didn't like the fact that it is in fact a flat - he prefers to be the only one responsible for his house and his land. And doesn't like having neighbours downstairs. And the noise from the 70 mph main road being very close to the house (even though it is in a cul-de-sac).0
This discussion has been closed.
Categories
- All Categories
- 343.2K Banking & Borrowing
- 250.1K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 449.7K Spending & Discounts
- 235.3K Work, Benefits & Business
- 608K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 173.1K Life & Family
- 247.9K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 15.9K Discuss & Feedback
- 15.1K Coronavirus Support Boards