Add value? Carriage driveway or 1/2 drive & 1/2 front garden?

Martin_Knott-Lewis

Your thoughts on this one please....

To add value and convenience to an ordinary/nice house in the suburbs, quite good area but with parking restrictions.

Would you prefer:

1. A carriage driveway to drive in and drive out in a semi-circle.
This would fit two cars that could be drive in or out independently. The semi-circle would contain the planting/garden area.

or

2. A forecourt parking space, namely a straight strip of drive leading straight to the house.
This would fit one car in depth but could be widened in an arc shape to fit a second car side by side. But you have to pull one car out to get the other out. The rest would be garden.

Would you prefer the car parking area to be:

a) hard-standing, like brick or

b) something loose like gravel or shingle

c) one of the new mesh supports that allows grass to grow through the spaces.

Your preferences and why would be interesting.....;)

silvercar

1. A carriage driveway to drive in and drive out in a semi-circle.
This would fit two cars that could be drive in or out independently. The semi-circle would contain the planting/garden area.

Definitely gets my vote. When I'm in a rush to get my car out, the last thing I need is to find the way blocked.

I always think brick looks smart.

shirlgirl2004

For me a carriage driveway is much preferable. They look nicer and driving forwards is easier than reversing so if you can why not? I prefer brick because gravel goes everywhere and gets caught in the soles of trainers etc. Not sure if planners allow brick now though. I guess it depends on how much planting is left.

Mozette

Carriage driveway definitely. I hate block paving, but quite a few folk by me have concrete that is coloured and marked to look like stones and I think it looks great. And no flipping weeds! Wish they'd done it on my drive.
It is nice to have some area of plants & greenery though, else it looks too dull; or some nicely planted tubs.

brit1234

Seriously you won't add value as the market is set to downturn masively.

You have to factor in the cost of the improvements with the falls in property values coming.

Is it worth it?

Doozergirl

brit1234 wrote: »

Seriously you won't add value as the market is set to downturn masively.

You have to factor in the cost of the improvements with the falls in property values coming.

Is it worth it?

If someone actually wants to live in the house rather than count wooden dollars, yes.

Doozergirl

Mozette wrote: »

Carriage driveway definitely. I hate block paving, but quite a few folk by me have concrete that is coloured and marked to look like stones and I think it looks great. And no flipping weeds! Wish they'd done it on my drive.
It is nice to have some area of plants & greenery though, else it looks too dull; or some nicely planted tubs.

It looks nice until it starts cracking up. Which it does. I haven't seen a drive of any age that hasn't got stress fractures. You would need planning permission for that now also, I should imagine as it's non-permeable.

As far as I am aware, block paving can be carried out under permitted development now.

I would like to be able to manouvre my car off the drive independently. I wouldn't want the material that allows grass to grow through because the grass simply won't grow where the car wheels go. It will never look particularly good.

I'd opt for block paving - without any patterns or initials in it, please!

SailorSam

Another vote for having two gates to drive in and out.
I hate people trying to back out into a busy road.
I think i like the idea of some sort of system that will allow grass to grow through it, this also means the rain can get back into the ground, thus reduces flooding.

Martin_Knott-Lewis

We have one opening already, with hard-standing for one car.....but it's that dreadful cracked concrete look....the one with the weeds growing through too!

We are not planning any gates...just an opening (or two) in the front wall. Our road has too much traffic to allow us to pause for gates.