libspero Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 One of the common complaints on the forum is that modern housing consists of a badly constructed slave box, perched on a grassy postage stamp with no parking space. Which got me thinking.. imagine if we lived in a world where we actually built the type of housing we wanted (and the land was purchased at agricultural rates), what should developers build that people would like to live in? My "dream" house would be as follows: Garden, 50m² (preferably south facing) Drive with ample room for 2 cars Street parking for two more 3 or 4 Bedroom, master 20-25m², kids/guest 12-15m² 1 reception room 20-25m² 1 Kitchen 12-15m² 1 Study / sittingroom 12-15m² 2 Bathroom Decent south facing conservatory.. properly designed into the house. This is perhaps a bit lavish.. but still much smaller than the average American house which comes in at 210m² The build cost would be around £120 -£150k excluding land (fun build cost calculator available here ) Say £50k for the land (again, purchased bulk as agricultural with utilities and street furniture supplied). Total cost £200k for a house I would happily mortgage my life away for. What would you have? or what would you consider bare minimum? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rxe Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Dream house? 30 acres, no neighbours for half a mile for a start. Not too big/lavish - 4 bed farm house (trad style) would be fine. Nearly there - only got 6 acres. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Piddle Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 I would happily settle for a 2 double bedroom house with a roof, walls, front door, heating & hot water, garden (min 30ft) and 2 paring spaces But most of all AFFORDABLE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattW Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 My ideal house would be a detached 2 or 3 bedroom bungalow. Having now lived in 3 flats I rather enjoy the single storey living. Detached so I can play my music without worrying too much about the neighbours. Nothing too large - don't want to spend too long having to clean it. Don't want anything too ornate or fussy in interior decor terms. Should have a good sized front garden area for off road parking + a garage. I hope to get a collection of older cars one day. Back garden a reasonable size for entertaining, fairly low maintenance. Separate kitchen from lounge. None of that fancy 'open plan' nonsense for me. Carpeted flooring in the hallway, lounge and bedrooms and tiled flooring in the bathroom and kitchen. Bathroom must have a full sized bath in it - with either shower over bath or a separate shower cubicle. Must have gas central heating with energy efficient combi boiler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ollya Posted October 13, 2011 Share Posted October 13, 2011 Hey I can join in, I've thought about this waaaaaay too much. Downstairs Kitchen diner, bright, sizeable, probably leading onto a conservatory, plenty of worktop space. Small utility room Downstairs WC (possibly with a shower) Plenty of space for shoes and coats in the hall Good size lounge to seat 5 in comfort. Upstairs 2 large doubles with plenty of storage - one ensuite. Bathroom, not that fussed about separate shower cubicle but it would be a nice to have Study / guest bedroom big enough to open out a sofa bed. Outside South facing non-overlooked garden Large double garage with pitched roof secluded from road so the chavs can't see the motorbikes and tools in there. Parking for 3 cars. Location 30 mins from Waterloo other Central London station by train Max 30 mins walk to pubs Budget - up to £350K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garf Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 All I want is a room somewhere, far away from the cold night air, with one enormous chair ... Oh wouldn't it be luvverly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
right_freds_dead Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 2 bed terrace with a coal fire at the edge of some small town. garden a bonus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chronyx Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 Not all that fussed by the house, I just want land/space. A real fire, big garage and big/functional kitchen would be nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomandlu Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 http://simondale.net/house/index.htm or a nice Dutch barge... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silver surfer Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 Found it a few months ago after looking for five years since STRing in 2005. Victorian detached. Lymington on the south coast. Walking distance to the town's amenities and to the marina. Sunny, private garden. Off street parking for three cars. Very large 80 sq metre garage/studio for conversion to a workshop. Great kitchen/diner with room for a sofa. Window seats galore in bay windows, lots of original features. Wood burning stoves in two rooms. Four bedrooms, three bathrooms. Got it at about 20% under comparable properties for an ultra quick cash sale from a failing developer. Was STRing worth it? Not really, as I sold a place in London which had continued to increase. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuckmojo Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 Easy. Old converted pub. Leave the bar where it is. Leave the kitchen where it is. Half of the hall becomes a double garage Ample bedrooms upstairs Leave snooker Leave dart board. Ivy outside Parking lot converted in garden with winter grape vine for grappa and icewine making. Sorted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ollya Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 Victorian detached. Lymington on the south coast. Walking distance to the town's amenities and to the marina. Sunny, private garden. Off street parking for three cars. Very large 80 sq metre garage/studio for conversion to a workshop. Great kitchen/diner with room for a sofa. Window seats galore in bay windows, lots of original features. Wood burning stoves in two rooms. Four bedrooms, three bathrooms.. That sounds great, bit over bedroomed for me but I like the area down there a lot, if only I could drop my close to London criteria then I could start making silly offers all over the place 80sqm garage....mmmmmmmmmmmm......lathes...mills....motorbikes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinzano Bianco Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 <snip> This is perhaps a bit lavish.. but still much smaller than the average American house which comes in at 210m² The build cost would be around £120 -£150k excluding land (fun build cost calculator available here ) Say £50k for the land (again, purchased bulk as agricultural with utilities and street furniture supplied). Total cost £200k for a house I would happily mortgage my life away for. What would you have? or what would you consider bare minimum? I wouldn't say that is lavish at all. Mrs the.ciscokid and I would like the house we are renting. Small village, large garden, large kitchen (big enough for a table that can sit 4 - 6 people - we spend all our time in there), double garage with utility, driveway, great sized loft, 3 bed (reasonable sizes). There is a pretty good living room, dining room, office/ 4th bed, and a conservatory as well. It is also very well constructed (because it was not built by modern day building development companies. The only thing I would change is that we have oil heating. There is no gas in the village, so if I owned the place, I would invest in some alternative energy for the house. The owner paid £500k for it in 2007, so if any of the others which haven't been looked after quite so well come up, we would probably be looking to pay around £350 - £400 for one. The chances of that are slim though. The trick for us has been to gtfo of London, and find a location where there are jobs that require our skills. So far so good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bulboy Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 As a family with two kids I would go for a 3 double bed house influenced by the work of Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, better known as Le Corbusier. Big point is having a big garden for the kids to vent their energy. Ideal place would be a street where as in the old times everyone knows all their neighbours in radius of half a mile. Street where children can roam free and have fun rather than sitting glued to the blue/white/black screen. Garage/workshop to pursue hobbies, local shops around the corner similar to Tesco express but not Tesco, indipendents will do, thanks. Close to station and Mway with good link to all directions. on edge of town/city where additional services/amenities exist. Easy access to the nature: woods, hills, rivers... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SarahBell Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 The one I wanted was about £6m and sold the other year. It didn't have a proper garage though. *Which of course is the main reason I didn't buy it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Constable Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 Large warehouse style top floor flat in sympathetically converted warehouse/old office in Hoxton/Shoreditch, or a small period house near Highgate village. I think a kilo of gold should do it in a couple of years! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PopGun Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 Converted farm house, Small holding, North Yorkshire Near towns with pubs/shops etc. Strategically placed pillboxes with machine guns to ward off rustlers/riff raff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreeFall Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 Small 2-3 bedroom, passivhaus standard, decent sized workshop outside, 10-15 acres of land. Current plans will have us in that place approx 10 years from now - hopefully we'll still be fit enough to enjoy it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muggle Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 A place like this would be rather nice... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justthisbloke Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 I'd settle for the one we live in. Within walking distance of a village that is within cycling distance of a town with London-linked rail line. Detached, 1 acre. Ample interior space (inc kitchen with seating for 10; separate dining room). Woodburning stoves. Walking distance of beach. However, not sure what will happen when the children leave home. On the one hand, it seems sensible to retain their childhood home. On the other, it feels morally wrong to live somewhere which will be far bigger than we can use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butthead Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 Bring on the collapse of civilisation!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winkie Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 To me a house has four walls, what matters more is the suroundings, the noise and air quality around , the community it sits in, the local facilities such as a post office, local shops, bus and train services, the wildlife the work.....it is the people that live there that make a place worth living in, and their pride and values in what they have, their qualities, skills and experiences that they share with all those who wish to do likewise.....everyone has something to offer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blackgoose Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 I would like a huge palace in the centre of London. And it would be pleasing if one didn't have to pay for it oneself. Maybe the plebs can pay for it. They can also worship at my feet into the bargain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
libspero Posted October 14, 2011 Author Share Posted October 14, 2011 Parking lot converted in garden with winter grape vine for grappa and icewine making. A man after my own heart.. the only reason I'd love a south facing conservatory would be to use it as a pseudo greenhouse to grown vines and fruit trees that otherwise wouldn't agree with the climate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaintJay Posted October 14, 2011 Share Posted October 14, 2011 This is Cardwells Keep, near me. Its been carved into 8 flats, but I'd like the whole thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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