Dormer bungalow - between two stools?

sunlight1

I'm interested in buying the above but have read that I may struggle to sell in future since dormers negate the appeal of true bungalow, single-storey, living to the target market (generally older) and families are less interested in them since effectively you're competing with two-storey houses. I may also have to rent it due to work in future and would also worry about it's rentability for the same reasons. As against that, the property would be fine for me as a single person and is well-priced.  

Scotbot

Depends on floor layout, if there is a bedroom and bathroom downstairs as well as plenty of living space then people looking for a ingle s torry living may well buy it. Upstairs can be the guest bedroom. The biggest problem with dormers is poor insulation so upstairs cold in winter and too hot in summer.  Not sure renters would care 

Weathergirl_76

Hi, I am selling a bungalow at the moment, and out of the dozen viewings I have had, only 3-4 were from the ‘target market’. I have had lots of young first time buyers view, which I was surprised about. I haven’t sold yet, (that’s another matter), but surprisingly the people who have viewed have been of all different ages. 

Weathergirl_76

PS - I can vouch for dormers, my old property was a dormer bungalow. It was roasting in the summer (so much so, it caused my hoover to overheat and cut out!). The winter was freezing up there. I used it as a spare bedroom. I hung a heavy curtain to stop some of the draft, at the bottom of the stairs,  and I remember when it was cold, it would puff up like it was a sail!  I don’t think it was done properly up there, luckily I didn’t use it much and sold with no issues. 

sunlight1

Thanks so much for these replies, really helpful! Scotbot - yes, there is a bedroom and bathroom downstairs, then another bedroom  and spare room upstairs.
Weathergirl - really interesting, thanks. The upstairs would similarly be used as a 'guest room' since I would sleep in the downstairs bedroom, but I did wonder about this hot/cold issue and draughts...do you mean the cold air would snake downstairs and affect the temperature there as well as upstairs? Did closing the doors upstairs not make a difference?

Weathergirl_76

The stairs to go up was right in the middle of the main hallway. It didn’t have a full length door, they put a stable door type partition at the bottom of the stairs. I could feel the cold air in the hall from upstairs (this was when it was very cold) so put a curtain rail and heavy curtain to try to stop some of it, it did help a bit.  It wasn’t done properly, I think the couple that sold it did it themselves. So I would check you don’t have the same issue if you can. It wasn’t a huge problem for me as it was a spare room so didn’t get much use. It was sold as a 3 bedroom, and being a  bungalow the rooms were big. This is the advantage you will have against other small new build type properties, IMO obviously... Good luck! 

Doozergirl

sunlight1 said:

Thanks so much for these replies, really helpful! Scotbot - yes, there is a bedroom and bathroom downstairs, then another bedroom  and spare room upstairs.
Weathergirl - really interesting, thanks. The upstairs would similarly be used as a 'guest room' since I would sleep in the downstairs bedroom, but I did wonder about this hot/cold issue and draughts...do you mean the cold air would snake downstairs and affect the temperature there as well as upstairs? Did closing the doors upstairs not make a difference?

They're talking about insulation in the roof.  It where most heat is lost.  Depending on when it was built/converted, the loft will have varying levels on insulation.  No one here is in a position to comment on what may or may not be on your build. 

It could be no insulation at all, or it could exceed the current regs. 

Soot2006

Generally, I'm seeing loads of converted bungalows on the market as family housing. I think their status has changed a lot in recently years, with many offering good space options. I am biased as I bought one in 2019 - it's like the Tardis. Looks quaint and cute from the road, then enormous inside. The cost of converted bungalows in my neighborhood is comparable to a same-bedroomed house, yet you seem to get more actual space with the bungalow as their ground floors are (around here) more sprawling!

AdrianC

When my mother was looking to downsize to a bungalow in her mid 70s, a few years back, she was quite happy with dormer bungalows - but wanted to have the option for single-floor-living as and when stairs became an issue.

I can't imagine that's a unique view.

Skiddaw1

I grew up in one. As has been said, upstairs (large bedroom, en suite shower room and two attics) was freezing in the winter and baking in the summer but that was an older style, 60's built bungalow. I'm sure a modern dormer conversion would be quite different.

Soot2006

Skiddaw1 said:

I grew up in one. As has been said, upstairs (large bedroom, en suite shower room and two attics) was freezing in the winter and baking in the summer but that was an older style, 60's built bungalow. I'm sure a modern dormer conversion would be quite different.

Modern insulation definitely makes a difference. Winter is fine - warm air rises and seems to stick around so we're always toasty. In summer however ... last year was the first time I've ever considered buying an air conditioning machine!  Since we have more bedrooms than people, we just moved downstairs for a few weeks and then the great British summer was over again.