Construction of affordable housing near a house Im considering

FTBAngst

Saw a house last week that I like. Needs some work so I went 10k under asking, it was rejected and we met once the middle 5k under.

I’ve since done some digging and spoken to a neighbour and found out flats and houses, all affordable housing,
are being built right across the road. Planning permission has been granted but I can’t find a date for when this would start. I imagine it would go on for at least two or three years considering the size of the development.

I love the size and location of the house. Would anyone else be concerned/ should I be concerned about the development across the road? Would it be a deal breaker for anyone to not buy it? Affordable housing nearby doesn’t bother me but is it likely affect the prices in the area?

HampshireH

What is the/your preconception of affordable housing (which is never actually that affordable)?

Does the fact that someone may be a shared owner & only own half their home or had to use help to buy make them any less socially acceptable?

Or is it a perception that affordable means social housing & therefore of course all social housing tenants bring down local house prices (my tone here is sarcasm)

Only ask as have seen it a few times on here lately.

I know you say you personally don't have a problem.

I would be concerned about living on a building site for 3 years regardless of how the homes are funded on purchase or who moves in. Your homeowner next door could have 10 brats and an asbo & be untouchable. That would affect resale too.

FTBAngst

HampshireH wrote: »

What is the/your preconception of affordable housing (which is never actually that affordable)?

Does the fact that someone may be a shared owner & only own half their home or had to use help to buy make them any less socially acceptable?

Or is it a perception that affordable means social housing & therefore of course all social housing tenants bring down local house prices (my tone here is sarcasm)

Only ask as have seen it a few times on here lately.

I know you say you personally don't have a problem.

I would be concerned about living on a building site for 3 years regardless of how the homes are funded on purchase or who moves in. Your homeowner next door could have 10 brats and an asbo & be untouchable. That would affect resale too.

I in no way said I consider them to be less socially acceptable.

I’m asking IF there is a perception or even case of social housing affecting house prices and if this is something I should factor into the price I pay now. This is probably skewed by the number of posts about living near social housing and also when signing for her new build the sales person was obligated to inform my friend of how much and where the social housing would be and my friend had to sign to say she’d been informed.

Re: my perception of affordable housing- affordable housing is a very broad term, including buying via shared ownership schemes or renting from private companies or local authorities at up to 80% rental value. This doesn’t necessarily make it affordable as 80% of rental value in Bristol is still a significant portion of a low-middle earner’s income, especially if you consider single parent household who need the second bedroom but can’t get the second income.

Apologies if the question was offensive. I did not mean to be. I’m not asking because I’m afraid of ‘council estates’ (which I’m also not). I’m a first buyer and could have bought in my early
20s but chose not to. Now find myself rapidly priced out with house prices rises far faster than my salary. With house prices and rent costs rapidly increasing and very slow reforms in the private rental sector, buying is the best way to obtain the security I want. The question is if it is something else to consider among all the other things I’m considering before taking on the mass of debt. Similar to how I learned it would be very difficult to get a driveway and how heavily I should weight having a ready made driveway as opposed to having space for a driveway and being a few thousand cheaper. I’m asking if it is something to considered and if there is likely to be an effect on house prices

And yes, I know people who buy their houses via non-affordable housing way can be a nightmare. In this case the neighbours attached are a friend of a friend so we’re met before.

dwsjarcmcd

Personally, I would be more concerned about the building work going on for so long and particularly whether the houses (whether affordable or otherwise) obscured an open view which may have been a reason why you liked the location. Also, what would the impact be on, for example parking with the new houses?

FreeBear

Developers have just finished building a small estate of some 70 homes on a brown field site not far from me. Six months to demolish & clear the site, just one year to construct all the properties along with the road & landscaping.


Unless the OP's site going to have a massive skyscraper, I would have thought the developers would be done within a year.

theartfullodger

In my experience persons in social housing are usually much nicer than middle-class home-owning twits braying on about house prices.

Artful: Sadly self-identifyiing as middle class.

FTBAngst

dwsjarcmcd wrote: »

Personally, I would be more concerned about the building work going on for so long and particularly whether the houses (whether affordable or otherwise) obscured an open view which may have been a reason why you liked the location. Also, what would the impact be on, for example parking with the new houses?

I’ve looked at the planning plans. The building are low rise, five story tops, here’s already a 3 storey building next to it. It’s being build in place of an old warehouse so the view will probably be bette. I like the location for the amenities not the view. My concerns re: the new buildings would be increased traffic and some blocked light but those are minor consider the other new builds going up in the area. Parking demand in the area is high but the House does have a garage. The construction is a concern but I figured it will end eventually and the location of the house Will served me well in the meantime.

knightstyle

Affordable housing generally, IMO, attracts better neighbours than social housing and other rentals. So make sure the build is for buyers before buying. If the houses and flats are going to be rented run a mile!
For those who will castigate me for saying this, come look out of my window at the rented houses in this lovely close, neglected gardens with old furniture, toys, rotting rubbish, etc. overfull bins that never go out for collection and much anti-social behaviour in the school holidays.
In another part of town there is a row of very well kept affordable housing houses where my SIL lives, great neighbourhood atmosphere, wish we had bought there!

Beenie

I think it's a reasonable question, and nothing to do with snobbery. We for instance would not look at houses near schools, railway lines, busy roads or industrial sites. That made for difficult house-hunting at the time, but we didn't want noise, parking problems, traffic nuisance etc. Friends of ours found a great house next to a school; they only viewed at evenings and weekends, so were a bit miffed when the kids were out shouting and playing during the day.

As for affordable or social housing, I think it's a given that proximity can affect the prices of nearby housing, and I think it's sensible to take this into consideration as a FTB.

FTBAngst

Beenie wrote: »

I think it's a reasonable question, and nothing to do with snobbery. We for instance would not look at houses near schools, railway lines, busy roads or industrial sites. That made for difficult house-hunting at the time, but we didn't want noise, parking problems, traffic nuisance etc. Friends of ours found a great house next to a school; they only viewed at evenings and weekends, so were a bit miffed when the kids were out shouting and playing during the day.

As for affordable or social housing, I think it's a given that proximity can affect the prices of nearby housing, and I think it's sensible to take this into consideration as a FTB.

Yes! Thanks! I am just trying to gauge how much it could affect prices or others people’s experiences or would they think they should pay less for a house that next to an affordable development etc.

Murphybear

Come and live near us. There’s some lovely new housing. Average prices are £500k - £800k. I’m sure it’s affordable for someone :rotfl:

Ps. The road is known as the “best address” in the town. The older properties are very large, detached and stunning. Rare to have one that has an asking price of less than £1 million.