Which of these 3-bedroom houses would you purchase? Edit to include option C?

diystarter7

diystarter7 said:

Hi OP

Do not, never go for a mid-terraced house. You will get sounds of people/etc from both sides and the possibility of complaints from both sides. Also, no side access to take out trash, garden rubble, move in out larger items through the bigger back doors etc,

Nosie at night time is even worse especially if one neighbour is quiet

Avoid at all costs.

Thanks

Btw, add to that communal gardens and 100% next to a public path as it trouble

Wehd friends living in london, EoT house, a pre-1900's house - garden was slighlty elevated giving them a bit more privacy but at times they had cans of drink thrown over, bottles and and what they were saying mocked by the trash that happened to be passing. Avoid public paths, corner settings and com garden at all costs. Yars ago we were sitting in their gaden on a summers day a Sunday I recall it vividly, and these yobs started mockig the language we were spekaing in softly and then when their son told them off they came back 30 mins later and lobbed two eggs. This is years ago before the advent of cctv being very common.

Thnaks

SarahB16

Thank you so very much for the replies so far and if there is anything that is unclear I can answer those points.  

From the very helpful advice so far it would appear that house B is the clear favourite due to concerns with the footpath.  I would agree.  Whilst I don't anticipate any issues and expect the footpath to mainly be used by dog walkers why take the chance.  

I have therefore added another option and that is house C.

Looking again and at the proposal and I actually think the road might even be 5 mph max but no cars will be able to be driven along the footpath.   

Again I would be really grateful for your thoughts as it may be that house C would be better than house B as even further away from the footpath.  



Thank you again for your replies.  

silvercar

Little to choose between B and C other than being further from the path. I don't think that is a significant difference.

elsien

I don’t see the point of saying B over C  because they’re pretty much the same really. If the path is as quiet as you think I would actually go for A because I’m only having the neighbours on the one side and as already said which ever one I chose I’d want proper high fences. Low fences would be the dealbreaker for me rather than the Footpath.
Because people could hoik over from the footpath into any of the gardens so being further away from it doesn’t make it any more secure. 

The problem for the path of me would be a nuisance from passing noise. If it’s as quiet as you think it’s going to be that’s not going to be an issue.

SarahB16

MalMonroe said:

Hi, I have lived next to a public footpath before and wouldn't recommend it. It tended to be a gathering point for teenagers from miles around most evenings - even in winter - and not just the ones who lived nearby. At weekends we had the added treat of people who'd had one too many at the pub loudly using the path and sometimes also using our wall as a public toilet. And the area was considered to be a good one at that! I was glad to get away and yes, it did affect the price we got.

Mid-terrace may also be a bit warmer, having properties on each side? I lived in a Victorian terrace once and it was a lovely, large house but we could still hear neighbours on either side. But I think that new builds have better insulation and so hopefully neighbour noise wouldn't be a great problem.

Nothing else would depress me as much as having that footpath at the side though.

P.S. Please don't assume that you are going to be unable to move around or get up and down stairs when you are older. I'm 73 now and although I live in a flat at present (but am considering moving to a house), I'm still able to use stairs, as are all my similar-aged friends - some of whom are older than me. One of my neighbours will be 93 this year and her flat is upstairs (we are all in blocks of two and I'm on the ground floor so no stairs right now) and she puts me to shame with her sprightliness. She scoffs at the idea of a stair lift and says that it's the stairs that are keeping her fit. 

Thank you @MalMonroe for your reply as really great hearing from somebody slightly older and getting your perspective.  Thank you so very much. 

tizerbelle

What are the internal layouts like?  Do all the houses have their front door, hallway and stairs on the same side of the house so you have a "sound-break" between all the living/sleeping areas or does it alternate, so a mid terrace could be lounge-lounge with one neighbour but hall-hall with the next?  

p00hsticks

SarahB16 said:

By way of background I live on my own and when the house is built and ready to purchase I will be approximately 54 years old and this will likely, I hope, be my last home so I need to think ahead to living there in my sixties, seventies, etc.  Try and imagine yourself as a sixty year old woman when living there please.   

You don't mention that you have any health or mobility issues, so these days living there as a sixty or even seventy year old woman should be pretty much the same as when you first move in at 54!

 If your intention really is for it it to be your 'forever home' that you only leave in a box, I'd suggest that the internal layout is more important than whether it is an end- or mid- terrace as you move into old age, as in my experience people generally tend to become more and more housebound as they get into their eighties and beyond, as eyesight, hearing and mobility deteriorate. 

 You don't include a floor plan but you mention stairs so I'm assuming both properties are at least two storey and identical inside

 Key points I'd be looking for when choosing a property are

•  Lack of stairs, or alternatively, ease of fitting a stair lift
• No other steps inside or immediately outside the property, or if there are, do they have hand-rails
•  Toilet on each floor
• Wet room rather than bath / shower (or at least the possibility of a later conversion)

SarahB16

p00hsticks said:

SarahB16 said:

By way of background I live on my own and when the house is built and ready to purchase I will be approximately 54 years old and this will likely, I hope, be my last home so I need to think ahead to living there in my sixties, seventies, etc.  Try and imagine yourself as a sixty year old woman when living there please.   

You don't mention that you have any health or mobility issues, so these days living there as a sixty or even seventy year old woman should be pretty much the same as when you first move in at 54!

 If your intention really is for it it to be your 'forever home' that you only leave in a box, I'd suggest that the internal layout is more important than whether it is an end- or mid- terrace as you move into old age, as in my experience people generally tend to become more and more housebound as they get into their eighties and beyond, as eyesight, hearing and mobility deteriorate. 

 You don't include a floor plan but you mention stairs so I'm assuming both properties are at least two storey and identical inside

 Key points I'd be looking for when choosing a property are

•  Lack of stairs, or alternatively, ease of fitting a stair lift
• No other steps inside or immediately outside the property, or if there are, do they have hand-rails
•  Toilet on each floor
• Wet room rather than bath / shower (or at least the possibility of a later conversion)

Thank you for your very helpful and detailed reply.  A floor plan is not yet available but it is anticipated the houses will be very similar inside.  

I don't have any health or mobility issues and don't envisage any problems with stairs.  Yes, I am looking at this as being my forever home so not only viewing it as a 54 year old but also an 80 year old (hence raising the security aspects re the footpath/side front door entrance).   
  
The house will have a ground floor, first floor and second floor (the outside terrace from the second floor/master bedroom however I would not use that room as a master bedroom).  

There will be a toilet on every floor and a bathroom on the first and second floors.      

I agree your four bullet points are really good points to consider - thank you. 

ArbitraryRandom

Like others I don't see that there's much difference on paper between two mid-terraces without actually comparing the layouts.

I'm not sure if you're set that it has to be one of these specific houses, but if you live alone, then one of the things I considered when purchasing was what happens when I'm sick. I don't mean a serious illness, but if you get the flu. That might also be a question to consider with regards your concerns about getting older. 

Could you comfortably manage downstairs if needed (Can you fit a bed/sofa bed in the lounge) and where's the nearest local shop/ pharmacy/ doctor/ bus stop/ bingo hall ?

You have mentioned possible heat savings, but remember that if the insulation is superior at blocking noise then it will also block heat. With a three story house how easy will it be for you to reduce the heat getting to upper floors if you end up not using them as you get older (are they open stairways)?  

deannagone

Whether stairs will be an issue is a bit of a looking glass issue.  I have gone from walking miles every day and enjoying it, to having problems managing stair and I'm 58 (due to asthma and rh arthritis).  But obviously that will only be a bother to a small percentage of people.  You could always move if the stairs are a problem at some point.

However, having lived with a living room three stories higher than the front door, it was a complete pain having to rush down stairs because of the post man or a delivery.  I missed deliveries more often than I have/do in a property with quicker access to the front door.  It could be quite frustrating having to wait to collect a delivery next day or re-organise another delivery.

Depending on where the kitchen is compared to where you eat, getting food to that area can be a pain (unless you are a one pot family/person). In this three story place, the lounge was on the third floor, of course the small kitchen (no room for a table) was on the ground floor.

I wouldn't live like that again.