How important is the Sun?

john_white

what about the other rooms?

We have a south facing garden (top of the OH list). But, in reality we spend little time in it due to full time work etc. The only time we really use it is when gardening (get a sweat up anyway) or on a really hot day, which I suspect all gardens would be the same.

That said you do get the sun longer in the evening which is nice. The downside, our living room faces north and always seems a bit darker and colder ...

puddy

our garden is north west facing and is small. i like the fact that in summer the kitchen never gets too hot and that afternoon and evenings the sun is at the back of the house by the back door where we have put our chairs etc

in contrast even on dull days the living room (south facing) is always bright and sunny and in winter is warm. its all white, with white furniture to emphasise this more, sometimes its too bright and hurts my eyes. we coloured the kitchen red and wooden and it has a cosy look. interestingly its never cold in the kitchen but im not sure why.

our bedroom is at the back, i cant stand a hot bedroom and it also means im not woken in the summer mornings as early as the sun is at the front.

but these are all personal things i like, so im happy with it. i also agree with consideration of being over looked being more important that where the sun is, we are not overlooked at the back as the street behind us has bungalows, so they cant see us. at the front are other houses the same as ours, so the back feels v private

mjm3346

My small back garden (35ft long) faces north and midwinter the sun will only reach the end of the garden. This time of year it gets a little over halfway to the house and mid summer it just about reaches the back door.
Don't find it a problem as the times of year I might want to sit outside the sun is there although it would not be a good place to add a conservatory.

LisaLou1982

Our new house (move in a week today!! ) faces North.
The garden is a good size and on going to the property at 6.30pm this summer, the sun was still on the garden - admittedly though, it was only on a small part of it by this time.
Ive lived in North facing properties before and not had any problems - its quite refreshing to not have a room thats unuseable due to it being far too hot and uncomfortable

Horasio

We live in an area where there are a lot of trees and get some sun but they do block it out even though it is west facing at the back. We have had two lousy summers here and haven't noticed it till this year. There are areas where we get sun but they are overlooked.

It is also a colder house due to it being darker so takes more gas to heat.

Some houses nearby look permanently dark even on the brightest days due to the trees. We would hate that.

My mother has south facing windows and it is very bright but she has vertical blinds to stop the glare. It also gets warm which costs in air con but her heating bill in winter is really low.

I would go for privacy and sun.

mysparrow

I think it depends on which parts of the day you will be at home & also are you an early bird or a evening person.
My garden faces NW & it suits me perfectly as from Mon-Fri I am out to work from 7 am & don't return until around 6pm. My bedroom is at the front which means I get beautiful sunny mornings to wake me up (& the bottom of the garden gets sun too) & the room keeps the heat all day. The sun hits the back of the house at around midday in summer & stays there all evening until sunset. For me this really works as when it is light in the evening and I get back from work the sun is still on my deck - great for summer evening meals & the odd glass of wine! My previous garden faced South & the sun had usually disappeared from the garden by the time I got home. I'm also more of an evening person than an early one (& at the weekend I tend to lie-in a bit!).
How about visiting the house late afternoon/ early evening to see where the sun is exactly? It'll give you a good idea of what to expect over the year (& also ask the sellers - I always told my viewers this info whether they wanted it or not!).

sunshinetours

Think it depends on so many factors its difficult to answer. Plenty of previous threads on this if you search aswell.

Things to consider are proximity of other houses around you blocking light and overlooking, is the land flat or hilly, how big is the garden, what rooms in teh house would you use most of the time that daylight is around, do you like gardening and wish to grow veggies etc (south may be too hot with full sun, north too shady etc), are you liekly to have a conservatory out on the back (again south may be far too hot without blinds, air con etc)

Our garden is quite long at about 80ft and slopes upwards about 5/6ft or so and is north facing. Garden gets good length of sunlight throughout the year except the immediate rear deck from the conservatory in winter which stays shady. No problem with growing veggies and fruit trees etc and we have a second deck at end of garden with a cabin which gets all day sun. lounge is on front and is south facing so a lovely sunny room

Good luck

Carrie_Bloomy

The sum is important for me too.

pimento

It's funny. My wish list was a south facing garden and not on a busy road and the house that grabbed me by the doobries and screamed "BUY ME!" has both a north facing garden and is on a busy road.

Our garden faces north east but is 100' long so gets the sun anyway. The fact that the front faces south west gives the front room and our main bedroom all the light and sun you could want.

My advice would be don't let the direction of the garden be a dealbreaker if you love the house.