Have you ever lived above a shop?

cherryblossomzel

Or other commercial property like offices?

I'm looking at places to buy and I almost definitely don't want to buy above a high street shop, even though I've seen some that actually look really nice on the inside and are certainly cheaper (for good reason, I'm sure!)

I was just wondering if anyone would advocate for it? Living above some kind of office that's open only in the day time might be OK, I guess, if parking and noise isn't a problem. But how easy is it to convert an office to a smelly restaurant or similar, how does planning permission work?

Just curious really.

csgohan4

if you need a mortgage, some lenders don't lend if it is above commercial premises


They are usually cheap for a reason

cherryblossomzel

csgohan4 wrote: »

if you need a mortgage, some lenders don't lend if it is above commercial premises

I wasn't aware of that, good to know, thanks.

AnotherJoe

cherryblossomzel wrote: »

I wasn't aware of that, good to know, thanks.

Yep, that's essentially why they are cheaper, not so much because of disruption, noise or whatever.
As to change permissions from say office to take away there's too many variables to come up with a blanket answer.
I think you'd be better advised to look further out or save a bigger deposit rather than buy a first property which may be difficult to resell.

Doozergirl

I've lived above shops twice.

I didn't mind it at all. It was interesting to look out of the window and see people's comings and goings and my neighbours were shopkeepers. Always someone to chat to and it was handy for the shops.

I didn't enjoy the stairs up to the flats nor not having a garden. But the shops never bothered me.

I like comings and goings and I choose to live on a main road now.

Owain_Moneysaver

You need to be aware of planning classes and what they can be used for.

To convert to a restaurant would be a separate planning class, with separate consent again required for hot food takeaway. However, a bakery or sandwich bar falls under the same class as a shop, and can still have ovens and extractors.

datlex

I rented a flat with a couple of other people above a shop years ago. It was ok. Not too noisy as was in a village setting. The shop being in use during the day was an advantage for us being at work as there was always someone about.

diggingdude

Back in my early student days I lived above an Indian restaurant. for the first week the smell was amazing, after that I decided to never live above a commercial premises again. please think long and hard about it

cherryblossomzel

diggingdude wrote: »

please think long and hard about it

I was 99% sure I didn't want to do it, but was interested to see if there was some amazing benefit that I hadn't thought of. Most responses have confirmed my thoughts.

Doozergirl - it sounds like you're a bit more of a social person than me. I think I would have liked the comings and goings when I was younger, but now, not so much.

cattie

I lived above office premises for about 3yrs & although we were close to London Bridge, it was perfectly quiet during evenings & weekends. Also as part of the land in front of the premises was privately owned, parking was not a problem during evenings & weekends either.

Fen1

It's not only food outlets that can cause problems, but the type of trade and their clients.
The unit now might be a nice little wool shop run by a sweet old lady who is as quiet as a mouse. She retires in 6 months time and is replaced by a motorbike repair shop. Music blaring all day, the smell of grease and fumes drifting up. And the mechanics noise.
This happened to someone I know. The petrol fumes drifted up through the wall vents and lingered 24 hours a day. It was nauseating. In the end they moved out as they couldn't open the windows all the time in winter, and the smell made them feel really ill.