Move or improve - living space v lifestyle

ciderwithrosie_2

Is there no option to extend? Go up into the loft? Get a landscaper to do something with your garden? I'd be reluctant to take on a mortgage again after you'd paid one off already. Your kids will grow up appreciating more the things you are able to do as a family rather than the size of their bedroom. As an aside, I thought the cheapest house example you showed was also the nicest (although the garden needed a bit of work).

Dunroamin

JodyBPM wrote: »

All the schools in the area are, I guess, OK, but I'm not particularly enamoured by any of them tbh, so they're not the biggest priority in our moving decision. We'd have to move significantly out of area (or become religious!) to get into any school that we'd really consider as being fantastic. Even though I'm not madly keen on the local schools, its generally a nice area, and the schools are doing OK, at above the national average. There's no innercity, rough, crime ridden schools to avoid IYSWIM, and they're all much of a muchness - reasonable, but nothing to write home about.

Then might this not be a good time to move out of the area to somewhere with really good schools if you can afford it?

peachyprice

How old are the children? Early primary or leaving for secondary soon?

TBH, as mentioned above, the older they get the less 'living space' they need. They have fewer toys, spend more time in their rooms and go out more.

Bearing that in mind I certainly don't see the point in stretching yourself beyond your comfort zone when in 8-10 years from now it will just be you and your OH rattling around in the house for the majority of the time.

I would look serioulsy at a loft extension, if you never have to move the fact that you won't make your money back is a moot point.

Person_one

If I were you I'd go up to the next bracket, the 100K house. I think you'd notice a big improvement in 'breathing space' without having stretched yourself too far or compromised your lifestyle too much.

Teenagers don't have as many toys spread all over the place but they do come with a much bigger 'bubble' around them, projecting their current mood or bad habit onto everything it touches! Teenagers that do art GCSE or play guitars or like to listen to Slipknot (or whatever the 2012 equivalent is) are easier to love and live with in less cramped surroundings!

The kitchen in the first link (the one like yours) made me feel claustrophobic just looking at it, I think you'd really appreciate a bigger one when cooking for four adult appetites, or if one goes veggie or on a trendy diet and wants to do their own cooking.

To be honest, just having an extra bathroom with two teenagers is worth 100K if you can afford it!

I know a couple who have lived in a tiny 3 bed semi since they were married more than 30 years ago. When their children were about 10 and 8 they paid off the mortgage but decided not to upsize as 'the children will be gone in 10 years, there's no point. Well those children are still living with them at 26 and 24 and its seriously overcrowded with 4 adults trying to live independent lives on top of each other. They now feel they can't take on a more expensive house as they're nearing retirement and wish they'd done it 15 years ago!


Edit: My perspective comes as someone whose parents upsized regularly as we were growing up and then recently downsized once it was clear we were well and truly not coming back! You don't have to pick the house that you'll have forever right now, moving again in 15 or 20 years is an option if its right at the time.

the_cat

I would stay and improve. It sounds as if you have a number of different possibilities to change your accomodation as your kids get older. As a parent of now teen kids, I would say that my priorities would be:

1. a private space for them to have friends over. Could be either a fancy shed type thingy in the garden if you can get a portion levelled, or change the layout of your existing to have a seperate lounge and a kitchen/diner. Ideally you could extend to the side too but this obv more expensive
2. extra bathroom. The long queue in the mornings gets irritating!!!
3. more space ideally for the ds in the 'box room' Nice but not essential, espec if the space for friends over has already been addressed elsewhere

Think your building quotes are very steep though. I too live in the South East and have been quoted around £11K for a flat roofed extension to the downstairs (about 12' x 8'). This is by a builder I have used before and trust implicitly, not a cowboy:D

At the end of the day, moving will cost you around £15-£18K in fees alone, which is dead money. You can improve where you are a lot for that amount!

fannyanna

My thoughts are:

Current House: I wouldn't want to raise two children in a house that size. The kitchen is small and the third bedroom is pretty much a box room. I don't think it's worth spending the money to extend.

£100k more: I like floor plans to get a good feel for a house (which this didn't have) but I can tell from looking at the pictures that it's bigger. I would recommend getting a "small" mortgage to up-size to a property like this.

£150k / £200k more: Well these do indeed look wonderful but if it would mean having to cut back on your lifestyle I wouldn't recommend these.

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

If it's feasible, I'd put the kitchen and dining room into one, French windows to the garden. If not, I'd redesign the kitchen - using wall units (IKEA are good) as floor cabinets makes one side narrower, gives a more open feel, more floor area but still a very usable space for storage, use lighter, more reflective surfaces, better task lighting, that kind of thing.


The bathroom is fine. I have two bathrooms (well, one bathroom and one wet room) and quite frankly, it's a waste of space. I would completely replace it and take advantage of a standard sized space to utilise the best quality possible. I can give you details of a superb company which specialises in a fantastic quality finish and I reckon they'd be quite happy to nip down the A23 to you.


It's plenty big enough for 2 kids. That's what they were designed for (well, actually, they were probably designed for nearer 4 kids). It could well be that your decorating choices aren't making the best use of the space, or that something as simple as slightly different furniture and window treatments could completely transform your impressions of the place.

A loft conversion is quite common in your area - the roof spaces are large in those properties, and very popular.


As far as the garden is concerned - a large garden is an asset these days, especially as so many are built on. It could be possible to have it terraced so that there are different levels, some for kids, football and the like, some for flowers, some for sitting and enjoying the sunshine.


So, as the kids are in a great school, almost every penny you earn is yours to spend after feeding yourselves and keeping the electric on (:)), secondary schools are fine, the area is good, the commute's simple and you like it there, why not use your money for making where you are lovely instead of putting yourself into debt again for the rest of your working life?

Emmarillo

If it was me I'd put a bedroom with ensuite into a loft extension, and probably move up into it with my husband, giving the children decent sized rooms. Then remove the wall between the kitchen and dining room to make the space more usable.

have you got room in the garden for one of those wooden summer house/ cabin things? They make a great studies or playrooms.

Bluemeanie_2

fluffnutter wrote: »

Generally speaking, studies have shown that the actual house you live in is less important than other aspects of your life, e.g. how much disposable income you have to do the things you enjoy.

People overestimate how happy their lives will be in their 'perfect' house and underestimate constraints on their time, e.g. they've moved to a bigger house in a different area but now have a far longer commute to work. They'd have been better off travelling less and staying where they were.

Food for thought I guess.

That is very true! I agree. Is your floor plan the same as the house you have put the link on? Is there any way you could turn the kitchen into a small bathroom and your dining room into a kitchen with a dining room table in it. Will save you cramming into the kitchen and create a useable living space where everyone can mix. Then you gain an extra bathroom and a downstairs loo. Most people I know who have seperate dining room just use it for junk and boxes!

Is there any room for a shed in your outside space?

zcrat41

Why not stay where you are for a bit and save until you see a house that you love enough to want to spend the money on the extra space.

I grew up in a massive house.

I now live in a similar house to what you're in.

If I could afford it I'd go for a bigger house every time (but not at the expense of kids education if it meant a worse secondary school). Far more space to play for the kids, socialise for you. And a bigger kitchen is a god send.

Good luck whatever you decide.

ZC