New build boring houses

firstaspect

They are cheap to build and people still buy them. Definately not a fan myself but if people want to live in bland houses then let them, leaves some houses with character on the market.

MobileSaver

When_is_the_reset? wrote: »

Surely it wouldn't hurt to make the windows a bit bigger

I'm gob-smacked at how tiny those windows are and how little £270k gets you in that area.

As someone else said, the good news is that the fact people do buy these type of properties means that the really nice (and older) ones get left for the rest of us.

mundibananas

I think some people have been watching too much Grand Designs !
I moved from a 1 bedroom flat in a 1890 regency house with period features to a newbuild 3 storey mid-terrace townhouse - and it wasn't until I moved I realised how dingy and squalid and unpractical my flat was. Now I have a garage to put my dull kayak, my dull road bike and my dull mountain bike for my dull activities and a I have a garden, with terrace decking leading out from my open plan kitchen and family room where I can continue to lead a dull existance. Upstairs I have a decent size lounge (where I can continue to watch my dull programs) and guest bedroom, then upstairs again I have sizeable bathroom, office (3rd double bedroom) and my master with ensuite (where I have my dull dreams).
Yes, it's still magnolia as I have been told not to paint for a few months whilst the house is settling in. I don't have a feature wall, I have framed art that is meaningful to me (but probably dull to you).
I find it's best not to pigeon hole people or label with broad sterertypes - but that's just boring old me.

Orpheo

dannymccann wrote: »

I on the other hand love my new build (March 2010). I have a 3 bed mid terrace 3 storey, I have a large master bedroom with ensuite on the top floor, bathroom to the middle with another great size double and small double room (and a lobby area for my second set of stairs) and then my kitchen and living room on the ground floor with a cloakroom loo. Parking for 2 out the front and a decent sized garden - no point us having a massive garden at 22 because we arent retired so dont really need more space. It costs £40 a month for gas/elec/water because unlike your old house the windows dont leak and I dont have holes in my walls, I have proper size doors and a nice new GCH system.

And yes, we drive a silver Vauxhall Astra Diesel, and yes, the laminate in the kitchen and bathroom's is very practical :beer: :T

Ah. The honeymoon period. Tell us about your quality new-build in 3 years time.

Be careful when you step out of the shower on to your "practical" laminate, wouldn't want to slip and dash your brains on the porcelain.

You are right about the insulation, but that's nothing that can't be done to most older houses for a relatively inexpensive cost. Less than the difference in the premium that you paid for your new-build.

Davesnave

MobileSaver wrote: »

As someone else said, the good news is that the fact people do buy these type of properties means that the really nice (and older) ones get left for the rest of us.

Thinking about it, the developers provide a blank slate and people believe, sometimes wrongly, that they will have little trouble with something new. It's all very safe.

In 2006, I was refurbishing a bungalow next door to a brand new estate. At first, I thought I'd give it a 'wow factor,' but apart from the garden, which is my speciality, I ended up making it very bland. Unlike many folk on Beeny's prog, I realised that putting my mark on it wasn't the right thing to do.

That bathroom in the example house is nearly identical to the one I 'created.'

Orpheo

I have no problem with the principle of new-builds it is the quality of them that falls way short. The things that they do to cut costs are then twisted into selling points.

Open plan? No thanks. I want my kitchen separate, preferably with a door (remember kitchen doors?) I don't want display shelves, glass cupboard doors or trim around the top and bottom of the kitchen units. I want my kitchen to be easy to clean and not have nooks and crannies that harbour grease and dirt. I also want kitchen walls strong enough to hang wall cupboards. I also want a sink big enough to fit an oven shelf in it. Ever embarrassed a kitchen salesman by removing the oven shelf from the oven in their show kitchen and trying to place it in the designer sink, asking them, "so, how am I supposed to clean that?" I have. Most kitchens in new-build houses are not fit for purpose, unless, as I suspect, the purpose is to re-heat ready-meals in the microwave and to serve up take-aways. Everyone in my family can cook.

En suite? Ok, if it makes you feel posh. But personally I can't see the attraction of having my bedroom set up like a cheap hotel room.

Lounge-diner? You'll squeeze a small drop-leaf table in if you're lucky.

Kitchen-diner? You'll squeeze a small drop-leaf table in if you're lucky.

Breakfast Bar? We're either too cheap to fit cupboards here or the walls won't support them.

Downstairs Loo? No problem with this. But I'd rather have the storage space and large hall like I had in my 1930s semi.

Storage Space? In a new-build? Forget it.

Garage on your new-build? Car won't fit in, well not unless you climb out through the boot. Best us it fo the storage space that we haven't got elsewhere.

Decent sized garden? In a new-build, pah! Postage stamps. Even the 4 bed detached new builds have piddly gardens. What's below the 3 inches of topsoil? The rubble and waste that the developers didn't want to pay to dispose of. You couldn't see the end of the garden in my aforementioned 1930s semi.

Walls. Paper. Hanging a picture is potentially disastrous.

Laminate. Usually it is really chep laminate, really cheap. I once viewed a house and the EA decided to point out the "really lovely" new laminate in the lounge-diner and then he asked me what I thought. "It's crap. It is cheap and nasty, poorly fitted and edged exceedingly badly. How many thousands were you expecting it would and to the value?"

Roof on a new build. OK for the most part, but have you ever compared the type and size of the timbers between a new-build house and an old house? On the upside the roof is likely to be watertight, insulated and dry.

mundibananas

Orpheo wrote: »

I have no problem with the principle of new-builds it is the quality of them that falls way short. The things that they do to cut costs are then twisted into selling points.

Open plan? No thanks. I want my kitchen separate, preferably with a door (remember kitchen doors?) I don't want display shelves, glass cupboard doors or trim around the top and bottom of the kitchen units. I want my kitchen to be easy to clean and not have nooks and crannies that harbour grease and dirt. I also want kitchen walls strong enough to hang wall cupboards. I also want a sink big enough to fit an oven shelf in it. Ever embarrassed a kitchen salesman by removing the oven shelf from the oven in their show kitchen and trying to place it in the designer sink, asking them, "so, how am I supposed to clean that?" I have. Most kitchens in new-build houses are not fit for purpose, unless, as I suspect, the purpose is to re-heat ready-meals in the microwave and to serve up take-aways. Everyone in my family can cook.

En suite? Ok, if it makes you feel posh. But personally I can't see the attraction of having my bedroom set up like a cheap hotel room.

Lounge-diner? You'll squeeze a small drop-leaf table in if you're lucky.

Kitchen-diner? You'll squeeze a small drop-leaf table in if you're lucky.

Breakfast Bar? We're either too cheap to fit cupboards here or the walls won't support them.

Downstairs Loo? No problem with this. But I'd rather have the storage space and large hall like I had in my 1930s semi.

Storage Space? In a new-build? Forget it.

Garage on your new-build? Car won't fit in, well not unless you climb out through the boot. Best us it fo the storage space that we haven't got elsewhere.

Decent sized garden? In a new-build, pah! Postage stamps. Even the 4 bed detached new builds have piddly gardens. What's below the 3 inches of topsoil? The rubble and waste that the developers didn't want to pay to dispose of. You couldn't see the end of the garden in my aforementioned 1930s semi.

Walls. Paper. Hanging a picture is potentially disastrous.

Laminate. Usually it is really chep laminate, really cheap. I once viewed a house and the EA decided to point out the "really lovely" new laminate in the lounge-diner and then he asked me what I thought. "It's crap. It is cheap and nasty, poorly fitted and edged exceedingly badly. How many thousands were you expecting it would and to the value?"

Roof on a new build. OK for the most part, but have you ever compared the type and size of the timbers between a new-build house and an old house? On the upside the roof is likely to be watertight, insulated and dry.

my oven tray fits in my sink
In my flat it was dinners on trays - in my new build it's 8 people around my dining table for proper cooking - I don't own a microwave, I have a 5 ring gas hob, and a double oven with grill
My open plan kitchen allows me to cook a feast for guests, whilst being able to spend time with them. Not only is it big enough for a dining table, I also have a 3 seater sofa and 32" TV - so that blows that theory about just about fitting a drop leaf table (whatever that is) I've put my 42" tv with full surround sound in the lounge - my 2nd reception room.
As well as the 6 kitchen cupboard units, I also have a breakfast bar
Loads of storage space - a stand-up cupboard in the kitchen under the stairs and the same in the lounge - it's marvelous
Downstairs loo - very convenient - it houses the gch unit so it's a great place to put the clothes airer when it's raining outside as its lovely and warm
Garage - agree it's not the biggest - before I loaded the garage with all my toys - the car did just about fit - but since I've had 3 kayaks and 2 bikes it in - I'd rather those stored away safely if you don't mind - rather than clogging up in hallways or left outside to detoriate. The car is a company one that is renewed every 2 years so don't care about that!
Garden is approx 20meters long - suits me just fine thankyou
The walls are just fine - I don't even know I have neighbours and I'm mid-terrace - my pictures look lovely!
I put my own flooring down

BitterAndTwisted

My sister and brother-in-law bought a house not totally dissimilar to that one the OP linked to although it's not a new-build now, it's over thirty years old. It has a tiny, pocket-handkerchief-sized garden and is only about two feet away from the house next door. Luckily for them they have a separate kitchen and a dining-room. I HATE KITCHEN/DINERS TOO! Who wants to sit watching telly in a miasma of this evening's cooking smells? Not me.

They bought it for all kinds of reasons but the actual look of the house wasn't one of them. It had much more to do with ease of access to their jobs, being in the catchment-area for really good schools and located in a quiet cul-de-sac off the main road so their young kids could play outside safely. Not my taste in property but I don't have to live there!

penguingirl

I live in a 15 year old semi and it is very similar to a lot of the new builds. Yes in an ideal world I would quite like a large victorian house or possibly something a bit older. But we're 24 year old first time buyers and strangely our budget didn't stretch to that.

In reply to your post Orpheo-
Open plan- ours isn't open plan at although we do have glass double doors between the lounge and the kitchen diner which is great when people come round. Our rented flat prior to this had open plan kitchen/diner/lounge (in an L shape) and I wasn't a huge fan.
En suite- we do have this, but wasn't fussed either way when we bought the house. However I know lots of people (mainly with kids) who insist on having one. And I think they exist just as much in older houses...
Lounge-diner- didn't see this in any of the new builds we looked around. Although I did in some of the older houses.
Kitchen-diner- ours is pretty spacious thanks. I do proper cooking every night and we can sit 6 round our dining table. And I saw plenty of older houses that had much smaller kitchens and I like having them as one room. In an ideal world I'd like a seperate dining room too, but I'd rather have a kitchen-diner than a dining room I don't use and eat my tea in front of the telly in the lounge
Breakfast bar- I'm not quite sure what you mean about the walls not holding cupboards here as a breakfast bar sticks out into the room so there is no wall! I personally don't like ours and am going to get rid when I do the kitchen next year as I want my kitchen diner to be more open and not have a divide in the middle. But again I think they can be found in lots of houses of all ages (I remember my parents ripping one out of their big, characterful 1920s house when they moved in in 1989).
Storage space- we have tons. We have a massive cupboard under the stairs (person before used to park her pram in it) and we also have a really good cupboard above the stairs in our bedroom which is the full width of the stairs and is handy. The loft is also easily accessible and provides more storage. Oh and and there's a big airing cupboard.
Garage- don't have one. Neighbour has built one and it is pretty funny watching him get out his people carrier via the boot.
Decent sized garden- ours is big enough for a conservatory, a patioed part (with shed) and a nice bit of grass, but tbh I wouldn't want much bigger. We have a small field at the end of the road (where the kids play football) and we have 2 playgrounds further along.
Walls- they're fine for hanging stuff up.
Laminate- we have this in the kitchen and main bathroom and I hate it. But it's not just new builds that are guilty of it, lots of old houses are being 'done up' with it and I personally don't like it.
Roof- it keeps us warm and dry and that's all I care about!

It seems to me Orpheo is that there are lots of things you don't like in houses, but they're not all restricted to new builds at all. Things like small kitchen sinks- that's a fault of the kitchen designers, not new builds. And just as many new kitchens are going in old houses.

In favour of new builds I'd say ours was incredibly functional- I feel like every bit of space in our house has been thought about and used properly. Also the sound insulation is really good. We also have plenty of space on the drive to park 2 cars. Yes it's not my ideal house character-wise, but it was never bought to be our forever house.

Mum_of_3_3

Orpheo wrote: »

I have no problem with the principle of new-builds it is the quality of them that falls way short. The things that they do to cut costs are then twisted into selling points.

You really don't like new builds do you? :rotfl:

Can I just point out that the garage we had when we lived in a 1930's place was tiny , you couldn't even get a car in there, let alone open the doors. Anyway, I don't know anyone who parks their car in their garage, even friend's I have with double and triple garages even park outside of them, because the garages are so filled up with stuff.

Most of the period houses in my town have teeny courtyard gardens.

I'd rather have a downstairs loo for my kids and guests to use than a massive waste-of-space hallway.

We've got an en-suite and believe me we ain't posh Before having a en-suite I never saw what all the fuss was about, now I've got one the next place we move to definitely has to have one. In fact most people I know don't 'get' en-suites until they have one.

My parent's have good quality laminate in a couple of their bedrooms and their house was built approx 150 years ago. The reason they have laminate? The floorboards underneath are shot, so many of them have been sawn through to fit plumbing, central heating etc that the are very bitty and don't look good.

What I suppose I'm trying to say is that don't tar all period of houses with the same brush, there are some pretty new builds out there with big gardens, good square rooms and decent garages.

On the other hand not all period houses are ideal; some are dark, pokey, with strange layouts, tiny courtyards and no parking.

Each to their own I say, but I do agree that more thought needs to go in to the majority of new build design and into the design of the estates they are on so that there is plenty of variety in the houses. A mix of houses with different garden sizes would be good too, after all not everyone looking to live in a new-build wants a garden big enough to house a plant pot and not much else.

M_o_3