How to recognize an ex council house?

Mrs_Arcanum

These are all Housing Association houses.

cattie

Well, here are a few to start and they are what I'd say are the really obvious type.

Usually a great big St Georges cross flag hanging out of a front window is a big giveaway!

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-36644408.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-22784856.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-30946249.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-33162385.html

toby3000

Do you mean how to spot them generally?

Bear in mind they were mainly built from the 50s-70s. They tend to be modern in design, with non of the awful 'mock' business that became so popular with new-builds from the 80s onwards.

Obviously there are the tower blocks. The housing ones tend to be in terraces, often brick or rendered. Sometimes they have the more 'experimental' quirks from the period, like flat roofs or 'butterfly' roofs, or very shallow roofs. Some are built of concrete blocks or pre-fabs of sorts.

They're usually in estates in cities, or on the outskirts of villages.

It's hard to describe really, because they really do vary a lot in style but somehow you can often guess if you are British.

bluedrop

Thanks for the responses! I still see no fixed recognizable pattern

Anyway, do any of these look like ex council ?

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-33423925.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-22361487.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-32883136.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-37527200.html

Mrs_Arcanum

bluedrop wrote: »

Thanks for the responses! I still see no fixed recognizable pattern

Anyway, do any of these look like ex council ?

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-33423925.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-22361487.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-32883136.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-37527200.html

All but the last quite possibly (1 & 2 are similar to SiLs former council place the 3rd is reminiscent of my place). Worth bearing in mind council places are solid well built places with good size rooms & gardens.

DannyboyMidlands

Yes, all of them.

toby3000

If you're buying a house from the 50s-70s then surely there's a very high chance that it's ex-council - wasn't a third of the population in council housing in the 70s? If you consider that there was virtually no public housing provision before the 1920s then most of the post-war stock must have been council built?

totallybored

Doors. Look at the doors of neighbouring properties. Council houses (or at least they used to when I was growing up) all have the same style doors, sometimes the same colour, sometimes not depending on if the council were trying to brighten the place up with several colours, same letter boxes and same style door numbers. They often had weird glass in them with a sort of metal criss cross running through them but that was in the 80s so I imagine that doesn't exist now!

Dunroamin

cattie wrote: »

Well, here are a few to start and they are what I'd say are the really obvious type.

Usually a great big St Georges cross flag hanging out of a front window is a big giveaway!

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-36644408.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-22784856.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-30946249.html

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-33162385.html

I don't think that the first two look like ex council properties at all!

BobQ

bluedrop wrote: »

How to recognize an ex council house? Many of you seem to know it by just looking at it? Can u help me learn the trick? Links to some obvious ex-council properties will help!

Why would it matter to anyone but a snob?:)