Buying a flat where the bedroom has no window - what are the rules on this?

Thrugelmir

Smoke is the killer not fire. Hence why there has to be a door to partition off the bedroom. No worse than all those properties with open plan stairwells to the top of the house. 

lookstraightahead

SavingPennies_2 said:

I couldn't bear to live somewhere with just one window!! Even a kitchen or bathroom with no windows is a no go for me but then I love natural light, seeing the sky, the birds, noseing outside at comings and goings, it can't be healthy to live in that environment, apart from the fire risk aswell. Since you won't be buying do you have a link for our curiosity?

I suppose it depends where you live. You can live in a huge house with a zillion windows on a housing estate next to a main road. What fire risk? It's no different from having a studio flat.

SavingPennies_2

lookstraightahead said:

SavingPennies_2 said:

I couldn't bear to live somewhere with just one window!! Even a kitchen or bathroom with no windows is a no go for me but then I love natural light, seeing the sky, the birds, noseing outside at comings and goings, it can't be healthy to live in that environment, apart from the fire risk aswell. Since you won't be buying do you have a link for our curiosity?

I suppose it depends where you live. You can live in a huge house with a zillion windows on a housing estate next to a main road. What fire risk? It's no different from having a studio flat.

No it doesn't depend where you live to me, you can still have natural light and see the sky living on a housing estate! I live in a city I always have the curtains open to let the light in and like to look outside when I'm washing the dishes or in the bedroom. When I lived in a studio flat it still had 3 windows. Maybe personal choice then but studios can be hard enough to sell on as it is. 

southernorth

SavingPennies_2 said:

lookstraightahead said:

SavingPennies_2 said:

I couldn't bear to live somewhere with just one window!! Even a kitchen or bathroom with no windows is a no go for me but then I love natural light, seeing the sky, the birds, noseing outside at comings and goings, it can't be healthy to live in that environment, apart from the fire risk aswell. Since you won't be buying do you have a link for our curiosity?

I suppose it depends where you live. You can live in a huge house with a zillion windows on a housing estate next to a main road. What fire risk? It's no different from having a studio flat.

No it doesn't depend where you live to me, you can still have natural light and see the sky living on a council estate! I live in a city I always have the curtains open to let the light in and like to look outside when I'm washing the dishes or in the bedroom. When I lived in a studio flat it still had 3 windows. Maybe personal choice then but studios can be hard enough to sell on as it is. 

On that point about difficulties in re-selling, would you recommend avoiding studios? And always aim for at least 1-bed? I would be a solo first-time buyer so a 2-bed isn't a possibility. 

Doozergirl

southernorth said:

Doozergirl said:

southernorth said:

Doozergirl said:

This rings bells of the Hampton Wick flat that was posted about on here a few weeks back. 

It was a conversion under permitted development rules that would never pass proper planning.  It's a loophole of sorts but it doesn't make it at all safe.  

Mortgage lenders weren't happy.  I think the person that posted was the third potential buyer. 

Very interesting, I've had a read through that thread. Seems the building plans were approved for no windows, but perhaps that was wrong now? Certainly a grey area.

Here's the floor plan of the flat if it's of any use.

It is 'wrong' but a few years ago the government in their infinite wisdom allowed commercial buildings to be converted into flats without 'proper' planning permission. 

Is 'yours' a conversion?  Because it simply wouldn't/shouldn't be allowed under building regulations and looks to me like one of these conversions too.  

Imagine living with one small window in the place where you live.  Imagine that in another lockdown.  

Imagine if you were in bed and a fire broke out in the kitchen.  How would you get out?   

It's petrifying.  Leave it well alone.  

Thanks for the advice. Yes, 100% going to avoid this one now. I hadn't thought about the issue in such an important situation. 

The development is part of a large office building that was converted to flats, with 2 new additional floors added on top of the original structure. This flat was in one of the new upper floors. 

So yes, they've managed it under Permitted Development.  Would never pass 'proper' planning which is just ridiculous that these things are allowed to slip through.  

You think Grenfell is an issue.  This is just as bad and yet they are allowing them to be built.  It's utterly disgusting.  

A block will go up in flames and someone will die as a result of these and we could very well see ourselves in the situation again where certain types of flat are rendered valueless - except you can never put a an external window on an internal wall.  

Doozergirl

Thrugelmir said:

Smoke is the killer not fire. Hence why there has to be a door to partition off the bedroom. No worse than all those properties with open plan stairwells to the top of the house. 

They don't build houses like that now though.  If they do then they have to have proper sprinkler systems installed.  

Doozergirl

southernorth said:

SavingPennies_2 said:

lookstraightahead said:

SavingPennies_2 said:

I couldn't bear to live somewhere with just one window!! Even a kitchen or bathroom with no windows is a no go for me but then I love natural light, seeing the sky, the birds, noseing outside at comings and goings, it can't be healthy to live in that environment, apart from the fire risk aswell. Since you won't be buying do you have a link for our curiosity?

I suppose it depends where you live. You can live in a huge house with a zillion windows on a housing estate next to a main road. What fire risk? It's no different from having a studio flat.

No it doesn't depend where you live to me, you can still have natural light and see the sky living on a council estate! I live in a city I always have the curtains open to let the light in and like to look outside when I'm washing the dishes or in the bedroom. When I lived in a studio flat it still had 3 windows. Maybe personal choice then but studios can be hard enough to sell on as it is. 

On that point about difficulties in re-selling, would you recommend avoiding studios? And always aim for at least 1-bed? I would be a solo first-time buyer so a 2-bed isn't a possibility. 

Your market is at its very smallest with a studio.  I think most will opt to go for a  (proper) 1 bed in a cheaper area than a studio.   The 1 bed at least gives you a bit of flexibility.  

SavingPennies_2

I agree with Dozergirl and go for a proper 1 bed if you can. Studios take longer to sell, and youre more likely to want to move on sooner if you tire of the (lack of) space.

SavingPennies_2

Thrugelmir said:

Smoke is the killer not fire. Hence why there has to be a door to partition off the bedroom. No worse than all those properties with open plan stairwells to the top of the house. 

Only because the smoke kills you first, it's not that the fire wouldn't kill you too! Hence the need for more than one escape route or a fireproof door to wait behind (sliding door?). Not the same as a house with an open plan stairwell, because if a fire starts in the kitchen downstairs you can still escape from the bedroom window.

lookstraightahead

SavingPennies_2 said:

lookstraightahead said:

SavingPennies_2 said:

I couldn't bear to live somewhere with just one window!! Even a kitchen or bathroom with no windows is a no go for me but then I love natural light, seeing the sky, the birds, noseing outside at comings and goings, it can't be healthy to live in that environment, apart from the fire risk aswell. Since you won't be buying do you have a link for our curiosity?

I suppose it depends where you live. You can live in a huge house with a zillion windows on a housing estate next to a main road. What fire risk? It's no different from having a studio flat.

No it doesn't depend where you live to me, you can still have natural light and see the sky living on a housing estate! I live in a city I always have the curtains open to let the light in and like to look outside when I'm washing the dishes or in the bedroom. When I lived in a studio flat it still had 3 windows. Maybe personal choice then but studios can be hard enough to sell on as it is. 

Fair enough, when I've lived in cities I've found it terribly noisy so I moved to the country where I could leave my windows open all night (even in the snow 🤪)

just saying I would prefer no window in a noisy environment. 

My daughter in her twenties loves a studio flat layout. I suppose it depends whether you like open plan or not. I don't like dining rooms so our downstairs is all open plan, which I know wouldn't please everyone.