Moving from detached to a semi?

atw_uss

I'd be interested in getting comments on my dilemma

I've grown up and spent most of my adult life living in detached houses. Now OH and I need to move for work reasons and the new area is considerably more expensive, to the extent that we are seriously considering a semi-detached house, as there are some really nice ones in good areas that offer much more than the detached ones we could afford. TBH, many of these also have great character, with original fireplaces, etc. I have absolutely nothing in principle against living in a semi, but I am a bit noise sensitive and would dread living in a house where the neighbours' noise interrupted our own peace and quiet. I also like to put on my own music and would equally be mortified if I offended anyone else.

There seem to be lots of horror stories on the internet about noise through the walls from neighbours, but I realise that these are likely to be the minority and that the majority of folk living in semis and terraces are very happy. My only experience of sharing walls with neighbours (in a rented modern terrace and also a semi) was not good, but I accept that these were poorly built houses.

So, what I need to know is, what sort of questions should I be asking if viewing semi-detached houses? Are, say, Victorian ones more "solidly" constructed than post-war ones, for example? I realise new laws re. noise insulation came in during 2003, but apart from that I don't really know much. We're also interested in a barn conversion, but again, I have no idea whether it is possible to find out how well a house has been partitioned.

I'm not expecting total sound-proofing anywhere, as I realise that noise travels along joists and beams, and I can certainly tolerate some noise, but do some houses have a "quieter" construction than others? We're wanting to move for at least 10 years, so don't want to make an expensive mistake. I have plenty of friends who are very happy in semis and terraces, and I would love to be able to consider these, but need a bit of info on what I should consider / ask / avoid.

I realise that there are no cut and dried answers here, but words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated. Many thanks in advance

CLAPTON

get real, no use asking questions;

if you can afford it buy a detached

thegirlintheattic

Only ever lived in terraced houses, never had a problem with noise.

SailorSam

I think older houses are probably more solid, so quieter.

atw_uss

CLAPTON wrote: »

get real, no use asking questions;

if you can afford it buy a detached

This has been my opinion until recently too. However, I guess there is also the balance of quality of build, character, etc., to include in the equation. Balance up a solidly-built stone-walled terraced cottage and a detached new-build which is a couple of feet from the next house = very similar price on the market ... my husband grew up in a semi and has no issues at all. It's me, the spoilt detached home dweller

phoebe1989seb

Hi Judith

I can sympathise with your dilemma - the last three houses we had lived in were detached and my parents still live in the 1920s semi in which I grew up and I have bad memories of sound travelling through the walls from our neighbours' property. We therefore were also reluctant to move to a property that wasn't detached, but like yourself, a move to a more expensive area prompted us to look at semis etc. Reluctantly we decided that to get the size and space both inside and out and to retain the luxury of being mortgage-free (as we've been for four years) we would have to forego a detached house - unless it was a horrid characterless new build. We instead chose a four hundred year old stone built end of terrace - admittedly the walls are very thick and currently the adjoining property is empty, but it is very quiet, at 2000 square feet we have masses of space - more than we had in our previous character detached house - plus a huge garden backing onto a stream. We completed on the purchase last month and are a million times happier than we were in our detached home, but then the area we have moved to is better too, so it's not just the house itself that has made the difference..........it certainly wasn't the wrong move though!

Hope this shows that a non-detached house is not necessarily the wrong choice and good luck with whatever decision you make

Phoebe x

[Deleted User]

Also if u do feel interest in a semi detached house, u can visit it at a couple of different times before making a decision about whether to buy/the neighbours/noise levels.., and also knock on doors in the street and ask what the street is like and work you way down to the neighbours noisiness in the conversation!

I stay up late/early and am never sure if others can hear. To make absolutely sure i have good quality sennheiser wireless earphones. Not gonna bother anyone.

TrickyDicky101

Other peoples good experiences of semi and terraced living are entirely irrelevant to your decision in my opinion because of the sheer misery that would be caused if you end up with a bad neighbour experience. It doesn't matter if the neighbours when you move in are some sweet old couple who make no noise at all - you have no guarantee that they will be living there 1 year, 2 years or 10 years down the line.

I've said it before on another thread: I will never live in a non-detached property again. Go for detached every time.

Egg_custard_2

If you know you are irritated by noise from next door, it's probably not worth the risk IMO. Sound will travel through the sturdiest of walls. Whether your neighbours are noisy, thoughtful etc is out of your control.

I would imagine most neighbours would fit into the category that my previous neighbours were in... we didn't usually hear much from them. If they were arguing we knew about it, particularly when she locked him out of the house and he continued the argument from the back garden. The sweet tones of Red Red Wine always made them feel amorous.

poppysarah

thegirlintheattic wrote: »

Only ever lived in terraced houses, never had a problem with noise.

Because you have only ever had noise to deal with I expect.

Some houses are better than others. Until you've gone in and viewed and actually heard the neighbours (You might not even time your visit right to coincide with noise)

hcb42

I live in a victorian semi detached, having had three detached houses before that.

It is very rare that we hear noise from next door. THey have even had parties and we have not heard.