head or heart?

Grimbal

@SC: I think they do too ! I'll post a link after this weekend if you don't mind - don't want to jinx it !

@TB: I very much agree, which is why I suspect that the place hasn't sold for a while. The quirkiness comprises:
1.non-standard layout to the kitchen/breakfast/conservatory
2. 2 "double" bedrooms made in roof space of attached garage, so with very low eaves. Makes getting out of bed trickier than usual Having no kids, we'd knock the 2 rooms into one, making more space with a decent head height
3. not a bog standard exterior to house due to long stairway window

@Geoffky: exactly. I'm guessing that these rooms are precisely the reason that the vendors want to move. I can't explain just how low and oppressive those eaves are. It wouldn't matter to us - having no kids means that we can adjust these 2 rooms to make a sensible one

harz99

Grimbal - beware of letting your heart rule your head. Put aside the quirky/unusual frontage and look at the other aspects of the quirky house.

Difficult to sell - yes, for very good reasons. Whatever you do to the rooms over the garage, it will still end up as a very awkward space to use which will become more so the older you get.

The small kitchen may also be an issue, are you used to a large kitchen or kitchen/diner? Do you entertain, if so how will a small kitchen work out? Is there enough room for all the mod cons, or are some of your appliances going to end up in the breakfast room?

Traffic noise & parking - how is this compared with your current house - will the position of this house expose you to noise and disturbance you are not used to?

I would go for a quiet cul de sac every time, over a road with through traffic. You can always make your house more personal or quirky to you, but you can never change it's location.

Whatever you decide though, good luck with it all.

Grimbal

thanks harz99. I'm probably underselling the quirky house/ overemphasising it's negatives. It's just that neither of them are "the dream home" as it were. One is tatty and needs work, but even when redone wouldn't be anything that rocked my boat. Whereas (for all of the issues that the other one has (smallish - not tiny though)- kitchen leading to breakfast room leading to conservatory, and those 2 bedrooms) the other one makes me feel happy. We don't need to use those two rooms, and when they're knocked through to one it will be vastly improved. The master is lovely, and there's another spare proper double anyway. 3 dbls & 1 single is more than enough for just the pair of us, I think it's just that there are "issues" there that's troubling me, rather than that they will affect us on a daily basis

I've really tried to work out whether it's just the interiors that are making me feel this way, but I'm not sure it is. For all of the downsides of the house, I still love it. I've always been a head person when it comes to buying property: first flat & then first house was bought for location & layout, second house for potential to rent a room. Now this house comes along and I'm being all emotional about its potential purchase & it's thrown me completely !

harz99

Grimbal wrote: »

It's just that neither of them are "the dream home" as it were.

In which case with my "head" hat on, I think you need to keep looking.

Grimbal

harz99 wrote: »

In which case with my "head" hat on, I think you need to keep looking.

even though I suspect we're not being realistic in thinking we can afford our "dream" home: surely buying is always a compromise if funds are finite? We've been keeping an eye out for the time we've been on the market (been a while as ours is a difficult sell), and these two are the nearest we've come to finding that elusive property. Hmmm, a tricky one if then the exactly perfect place then comes up...!

ETA: please don't think I'm disregarding your points, they're actually the very ones that hubby and I are going around in circles over ! I wanted to expand the discussion a little, hence the further question

supercat92

If every decision in life was ruled by your head then it would be very dull. If you have fallen in love with the second house-go for it. U have to live in it long-term. Id rather live in a house that i had affection for than one that ticked all the right boxes but wasn't right for me.;)

harz99

supercat92 wrote: »

U have to live in it long-term.

That is precisely why I urge caution.

I don't think I am wrong in guessing that grimbal intends this to be their last house, so getting it right is paramount, and as I said before, good luck.

Grimbal

harz99 wrote: »

That is precisely why I urge caution.

I don't think I am wrong in guessing that grimbal intends this to be their last house, so getting it right is paramount, and as I said before, good luck.

almost: last but one. The one before we need a bungalow/care home:D. We're late 30s, so would be looking at a good (hopefully!!) 30 to 40 years in this place before we need something lower maintenance

beccad

Like you Grimbal, we're (DH and I) looking at two houses on Friday, second viewings, and one is a 'head' house and the other is a 'heart' house. The latter currently has an impractical layout, but has loads of potential and would require a great deal of work, but neither of us can get it out of our heads (hearts)! The work we would do will take it from a slightly impractical house to a long-term house.

The other house is a practical choice, and we've seen lots of them, but I walk in and think "What a practical house." and that's all I think about it. The practical houses have plenty of redeeming features, and are lovely houses, but I just am not excited about them.

harz99

Grimbal wrote: »

almost: last but one. The one before we need a bungalow/care home:D. We're late 30s, so would be looking at a good (hopefully!!) 30 to 40 years in this place before we need something lower maintenance

Thanks for sharing that; in fact it only strengthens my belief that you should exercise caution, as many things can happen after you reach the age of 50, both healthwise and family wise, which you will never consider at present. 30-40 years hence is a heck of a long time; would you really want to face the same trials as your vendor has in trying to find a buyer for their "quirky" home?