How important is a garden when you are renting

Icecold_2

Hi

A bit of a survey really. We are looking at purchasing a BTL property, we are in the SE and looking to buy a one bedroom house with good access to the airports (we are local to Heathrow) and links into London .....what I would like to know is...some of the one bedroom starter homes have no back garden and some do....how important is a garden? Is it an inconvenience that just needs maintenance or is it the general feeling that having some outdoor space is a priority for summer BBQ or just to sit and chill etc etc (if summer ever comes )

Many thanks to anyone who takes the time to respond :T

Thrugelmir

Why is access to the airports important?

englishrose19

Icecold wrote: »

Hi

A bit of a survey really. We are looking at purchasing a BTL property, we are in the SE and looking to buy a one bedroom house with good access to the airports (we are local to Heathrow) and links into London .....what I would like to know is...some of the one bedroom starter homes have no back garden and some do....how important is a garden? Is it an inconvenience that just needs maintenance or is it the general feeling that having some outdoor space is a priority for summer BBQ or just to sit and chill etc etc (if summer ever comes )

Many thanks to anyone who takes the time to respond :T

Hi!

I rent a flat at the mo with no outside space and it drives me crazy! Drying clothes is a nightmare etc. Garden (or outside space such as a balcony etc.) was top of our list and thankfully we have found somewhere with a good sized decked (low maintainence) garden

It doesn't bother a lot of people though.

Icecold_2

Thrugelmir wrote: »

Why is access to the airports important?

Hi

Not majorly important just that where we are most places are pretty close to Heathrow so guess its just naturally on the list, lots of employees there are in rental accommodation....really I suppose I was just kind of trying to give a picture of the type of property we are looking at

Lilith1980

I currently rent a property with a yard, and am moving to a house this weekend with a patio and small lawn area - I can't wait!

I think it's personal preference. I wouldn't want a high maintenance garden, but one where it is nice to sit outside in the summer and which attracts a bit of nature (we'll be putting bird feeders in our garden).

Even a small patio area where a person could put a small table and chairs might be nice, rather than trying to find something with a substantial garden.

Icecold_2

Thanks Lilith and Englishrose really you have echoed what I was thing somewhere to sit with a glass of wine and to pop a washing line etc ....just a small spot for a table and a couple of chairs

scubaangel

I've lived in a house with a small garden - just about big enough for a patio table and chairs and a washing line which was lovely but I've since moved to a flat with no garden of its own but a decent sized and fairly private communal space which has washing lines.

Personally as long as there is some outside space available I'm not too worried about it being 'mine' although I am lucky that my neighbours all seem lovely when I see them outside.

englishrose19

Icecold wrote: »

Thanks Lilith and Englishrose really you have echoed what I was thing somewhere to sit with a glass of wine and to pop a washing line etc ....just a small spot for a table and a couple of chairs

That's the one! Will come up on more people's searches too.

Good luck x

grifferz

We currently rent a one bedroom flat in Feltham which is only a couple of miles from Heathrow, and it has no garden. We've been here more than three years; it was a compromise we made in order to get a large flat. So that's probably very much like you describe.

For me the worst part of not having a garden is having nowhere to dry clothes; we do have to be careful to not create damp conditions which could lead to mould etc.

My partner is more of an outdoors person than me and she misses having a garden a lot more than I do. Every time she looks out of our windows and sees our downstairs neighbours using their garden she makes some remark about it!

So when all is said, having a garden is something we miss but it was something we were willing to compromise on for a rented property. We would never buy a property with no garden.

Only you can decide how important it is to you.

benjus

My partner and I live in London Zone 3 (Blackheath). This is our 3rd flat in the area (our landlords have an annoying habit of wanting to use their flats) and each one has had some sort of garden. We have always said that if we were to move closer to central London we would compromise on the garden, but we really want one if we're living out here - my partner is from Argentina and can't survive for long without a BBQ.

Our current arrangement isn't ideal - a communal garden without direct access from the flat - but it's nice to know it's there and we can use it whenever we want to.

mrsbb_2

I've just moved from a one-bedroomed flat in Edinburgh to a 2-bed house with a garden and it makes ALL the difference - I absolutely LOVE it! I guess it depends whether you can be bothered with all the grass-cutting in the summer, but I wouldn't be without a garden now. Even just to have a quick drink outside after work on our bench and get some fresh air is wonderful. I'm not green-fingered (at all...!) but I love to see spring coming through - that is something that I wasn't expecting to enjoy.