Would you buy a house with a north facing garden?

ellie27

We currently have a south facing garden.

We are moving house and I have always had in my mind that we need a house that is at least S, SW or SE, but in the areas that we are looking at there are not many homes for sale, most being north or north east facing.

Any thoughts on north facing gardens, do they really get no sun?

I have heard west is good for late afternoon/early evening sun (assuming no trees etc to block it out!!)

boo2410

Probably not if I'm honest, unless the house was so fantastic and the garden was big enough that you could move around to get some Sun.

My old house had a north facing garden which was ok until about 5 ish then that was it. Which was pants when I got in from work at 5.30 and wanted to sit in the sun and chill for an hour!!!

jaylee3

I'm with Boo ^^^

If it was at least say, 50 feet long, then I would consider it, but if it's smallish (like less than 20 feet long,) then I would be reluctant. Basically the average house is 20-25 feet high including the roof, so if the garden is south facing, then you will get NO sun for about 5 months of the year, and only about a third to half of the garden in the sun for 5 months a year. Only around June/July will you get proper full sun, in virtually all of the garden for about 10 weeks, if you're lucky.

PasturesNew

After the summer we've just had I'd consider it, just to get out of the heat - although it also depends on what's outside of the garden area .... if it's endless fields beyond, then you'll get a fair chunk of evening sunshine still probably.

There's no "one answer fits all"..... it's not just the garden orientation, but the whole local environs issue too..... just a north garden, in a tiny/pokey plot, overshadowed by many other/close houses, no.

alberty

They do lightbulbs now you know. Wouldn't miss the chance to buy a decent size house in a decent area for a silly reason like this.

ed110220

Depends if you like gardening I guess. I do and many plants and especially vegetables will not grow well without sufficient sun.

If north facing, it depends entirely on how tall the house is and how long the garden is how much sun you'll get. To give an idea our front garden is north facing and the far edge, about 10 m from the house gets a fair amount of sun, but closer to gets progressively less.

sulphate

Our garden faces north west and it gets some sun, but we don't have many flowers - I guess it depends how keen you are on gardening. However we are able to sit out there in the summer and get sunburnt!

I can't remember the exact length but it's a reasonable size for our needs. Maybe about 40-50 feet. If it was extremely small I would reconsider.

On the flip side the lounge faces south east which was important to us, we like a nice light house. One of our previous houses' lounge/living area faced north which meant it was pretty dark and depressing. We spend more time in the house after all

maas

PasturesNew wrote: »

There's no "one answer fits all"..... it's not just the garden orientation, but the whole local environs issue too..... just a north garden, in a tiny/pokey plot, overshadowed by many other/close houses, no.

Yeah its not just the direction it faces, its the whole package.

Ideally we'd all want a south west facing garden with a private field behind you (or better still, a sea view!).

A good sized north facing garden, being large enough, without being too overlooked wouldnt be too bad a thing at all.

Conversely you could have a south facing garden in one of those new build developments, where all the gardens are squeezed in together, neighbours all looking down at one another, with tiny gardens. Then it doenst really matter which way it faces.

wiogs

alberty wrote: »

They do lightbulbs now you know. Wouldn't miss the chance to buy a decent size house in a decent area for a silly reason like this.

Your reasons for deciding on a house purchase may seem equally silly to others.

A south facing garden would be a big consideration for me but depending on a multitude of other things not necessarily a deal breaker.

alberty

wiogs wrote: »

Your reasons for deciding on a house purchase may seem equally silly to others.

Silly is unfair. To me and my unborn children and future wife I think living space and proximity to jobs will give them greater benefit in their development and opportunities than optimal garden direction.

Davesnave

Pastures New has it right, as usual, but there's slope to consider as well. Near the foot of a north-facing hill, with surrounding buildings, is about as bad a position as you can get.

This is not just to do with gardening; it concerns the amount of direct sunshine the house will receive, especially in winter. This can impact on heating bills and the mental health of the occupants too.

Just saying 'north-facing garden' isn't enough. I have seen some very attractive (longish) gardens with that aspect, all of them where the front of the house received plenty of sunshine. It's the whole package which counts.