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House and home

Old to new and loving it.

(51 Posts)
Sago Mon 09-Jun-25 09:28:00

We are nearly a month in our new home, it’s a 3 year old house tucked away in a lovely village.

I didn’t know how I feel being in a modern house, we took a leap of faith and put most of our furniture, art and even garden pots to auction.

We love it!

I don’t miss any of the things I thought I would, it’s all mod cons, everything works and it’s a lot easier to clean.

Come winter we will have underfloor heating and a huge wood burner so hopefully lower bills too.

I’m now just wondering what took us so long.

At 62 and 69 it wasn’t too much physically, I would urge anyone thinking of ditching a creaky old pile for a shiny new one to just do it!

NotSpaghetti Fri 13-Jun-25 14:40:45

BluebellGran

Flats are leasehold, not a good move. Annual service charges are often thousands of pounds!

Unless they are a share of the freehold, surely?

FranP Thu 12-Jun-25 19:32:18

Usedtobeblonde

Oh how I long for a new small house with no major repairs in my lifetime.
But at a couple of weeks off 88 it is a pipe dream.
My house is far too big but I do have two family members here , maybe temporarily, maybe until I die.
The kitchen needs updating, one bathroom needs updating and although I can afford it the thought of the hassle involved is too much to contemplate.
I thought briefly about it when my H died 6 years ago but advised to wait at least a year, by then it was too late for me.
Do it while you can if you are waiting, don’t leave it too late.

Tell them how you feel, and start looking

Grandmabatty Thu 12-Jun-25 13:48:15

Leasehold isn't a thing in Scotland really

BluebellGran Thu 12-Jun-25 13:34:27

Flats are leasehold, not a good move. Annual service charges are often thousands of pounds!

Chaitriona Thu 12-Jun-25 09:15:33

I am on holiday in Kirkcudbright. It is a beautiful historic town with some 17th century buildings. However I am staying in a rental in a fairly modern development of bungalow type homes on the outskirts. I have never lived in a house later than Edwardian. But this is so comfortable. Warm, bright, with a simple and rational layout of space and beautiful views. Easy to clean. We have had hot sunny weather but on the one day when it was rainy and windy, we were totally insulated here but could still look out on the world. I might be tempted to try a more modern house if I had more time. But perhaps it would come to seem characterless. Our own home is the ground floor of a late Victorian villa in Edinburgh, close to all services which is not unsuitable for an elderly couple and has beautiful features but is listed, has no double glazing, huge windows, very high ceilings etc.

TerriBull Wed 11-Jun-25 14:38:16

We've gone from old to newish in a roundabout fashion. Our first home together was an early Victorian 2 up 2 down workman's cottage, which one local estate agent pretentiously described as a little lane of mews houses. It was cute but with limitations. However it did have a very long, but not particularly wide garden, broken up by a pond in the middle with fascinating pond life including toads, I was always worried my cat might try and catch one because I gather they're poisonous but thankfully she had no such inclination. The cottage had its charms, lovely fireplace, where we exposed the brick work, but also its drawbacks. I remember at one time having fitted a new kitchen we wanted the walls tiled and we got several tilers come round to quote. The first one did that whole sucking his breath in and shaking his head, "not easy with these walls, I'll let you know" by the time we received his quote, some weeks later we'd had the job done by another tiler who didn't regard what we wanted as something insurmountable. We had the original sash windows, and when Concord went over everything shook and the frames reverberated. We moved from that house to a larger and later Victorian house with the classic bay window, oh so perfect for the Christmas tree. Again we did that one up, and like the previous house we had some exposed brick work, my late father in law in his very own obtuse way, was prone to repeat his mantra of "you ought to get that wall plastered" they the parents in law also hated the original panelled doors which we'd had stripped and the original Victorian tiles around the fireplace. In fact when we moved from there they told us they hated that house and Victorian houses generally, maybe because they'd grown up in them and their preference was to get rid of any original features particularly doors and window frames, they kept urging us to get aluminium window frames nooooo! By the time I was expecting our 2nd child, we needed more space and bought a house, almost around the corner our removal van didn't have to go far. We were moving up the timeline, this one was late Edwardian, well later than that really probably 1920s but still retaining much of its character. I loved that house, far from perfect, it was prone to be draughty, but it had everything we required for our family a good sized garden with trees at the end, two reception rooms, my other half likes a separate dining room, plus a large kitchen and breakfast room,. We added a loft extension for us with an en suite and moved up to the top floor, so our children both had the large two bedrooms on the first floor and the smaller one we turned into a home office. That being our third move in just a few years, we did stay there for about 13 years. Then we moved to the other side of town near their senior school, near the station, near our very large nearby town, very walkable along a tow path. This was a 1980s town house on three floors, it had a small courtyard garden and magnificent communal gardens that went right down to the Thames in fact some of our neighbours had moorings. The people that sold us told us "we take our boat up to the nearby town, moor at John Lewis and Waitrose to do our shopping". I thought they were kidding but they weren't. I did kind of love it there, our kids still lament the fact that we sold up and moved after they'd left home, in fact one said, tongue in cheek, when we told them we were selling "don't do it think of the children" No sorry, you're 30 and 34 grin They're always telling me that they had very fond memories of that house. Straight across the river was a pub and a rowing club, one of my sons got into rowing briefly until winter time and early morning practice was required and he couldn't face getting out of bed in the freezing cold. The pub across the water always put on Village People's YMCA at chucking out time so that was often blasted across the water. Some of our maddest neighbours, we had a few, in the height of summer took it upon themselves to swim across the river to the pub shock Mad fools Weil's Disease shock The Royal barge, The Gloriana also came floating by our grounds at the time of the Diamond Jubilee or it might have been 2012 Olympics, great photo opportunity, as well as David Walliams doing his swim along the Thames, but he became quite ill soon after he passed our part. My late father in law when he visited in his inimitable prophet of doom mode said "you won't stay here for long, too many stairs" well we were there for 19 years so yah boo! but he was dead by the time we moved and it was the stairs that did it, so he was half right grin Our living room was on the first floor, kitchen and dining room on the ground, in the end the configuration was too inconvenient and we decided it was time to leave London for a quieter life. So here we are 4 and half years on, we moved in the height of Covid, not a good time, but are very settled in our mid 1990s build, old to new for us. It was a bit of side size, square footage we have more, have gained a bedroom and a utility and a larger garden, a work in progress, it my husband's passion he loves being in the garden almost as much as golf. We've made a few changes, had it redecorated, put a new en suite in and have had a new patio laid, I think we thought we pretty much wouldn't change anything it was up to date, loved the kitchen with island unit, but we realised once in there are the inevitable teething problems. We love it here, about 30 miles from where we used to live outside the M25, just into Sussex, a mile or so outside a largish market town with just about all the shops and facilities we require, a John Lewis even, an Everyman Cinema, plenty of coffee shops restaurants and I can see the Surrey Hills, Surrey is the county of my birth so I retain an affection for it.

Anyway good luck to those who are moving or about to I wish you all the best in your new homes.

Grandmabatty Wed 11-Jun-25 14:15:18

I moved to a semi detached bungalow which was built in the 80s. I have always lived in fairly modern homes except for once and it was a money pit. Having lived in detached property for a very long time, I was dubious about a semi, however it's great. My neighbour's front door is on the far side of their house and our bedroom are adjoining. No noise at all. I'm lucky as I have really good neighbours around. I did up the bungalow when I moved in, both inside and out.

M0nica Wed 11-Jun-25 14:14:45

MooM00

I am trying to sell my house a grade 2 listed building, too big for me. I can’t wait to be in a nice cosy, easy to maintain new build.

I keep saying it. New does not mean easy to maintain, at least not in my experience. Nor does old or listed mean being difficult or complicated to maintain.

My experience is the reverse.

cc Wed 11-Jun-25 13:48:49

We moved from a 5 storey Georgian house to a maisonette a couple of years ago. The Georgian house was very well maintained but the maintenance cost us a fortune and needed doing all the time. The maisonette is purpose-built, less than 50 years old, and the outside maintenance and heating systems are done for us by a management company organised by the freeholders. This still costs us a lot but we needn't worry about getting it done or having unexpected bills.
A brand new house could have been nice but might have had much smaller rooms than where we live now.

Chocolatelovinggran Wed 11-Jun-25 09:38:36

I've never lived in a new house, but have always bought property on the mantra of Location, Location, Location.
My 1930s semi is minutes walk from the town, the station, the doctors, the beach and the parks.
There are some lovely new builds, but here, the most convenient places are already built on, so they tend to be out of town.
Some beautiful new - build retirement homes have failed to sell, and I suspect that this is the problem ( although it may be the service charges , of course!)

Franbern Wed 11-Jun-25 08:36:29

crossstitchfan karndean/amtico flooring comes up in so many colours and designs. So, in my kitchen and en-suite, yes it is great to match the fittings there, in bathroom white and silver to match there. For the rest of the flat, hallways, living dining room, spare bedroom it is golden oak tiles, with a dark brown border.. Extremely warm looking (and it is not cold underfoot).
I kept the older carpet here for the first year, making up my mind. This was finally totally made up when I accidently spilt a milk shake in my dining room. Despite using steam cleaner, vacuum, and electric carpet cleaner, took me over a week to get rid of the stale milk smell there. With my golden oak Karndean, anything like that I spill just takes a quick mop to clear up.

MooM00 Wed 11-Jun-25 08:22:30

I am trying to sell my house a grade 2 listed building, too big for me. I can’t wait to be in a nice cosy, easy to maintain new build.

Luckygirl3 Wed 11-Jun-25 08:17:48

Sara - it didn't feel right for me, but I had no choice (needed money for OH nursing home) and I now find it is the best thing I ever did. As long as you pick your new home wisely and check out things with care, there are some good new homes to be found.

Sara1954 Wed 11-Jun-25 08:05:44

To move or not to move?
I don’t want to move, I really love my home, it works really well for us, and there’s plenty of space when we have big occasions.
But it is too big for us, we don’t need all those bedrooms and bathrooms, and the garden is always a bit out of control.
Also, yes, something always needs doing, it eats money, and I always seem to have tradesmen underfoot, the latest project started last October and isn’t finished.
But I still don’t think I could live in a brand new house, never have done, it’s tempting but it doesn’t feel right for me.

M0nica Wed 11-Jun-25 07:16:16

CariadAgain

M0nica

Hmm, we are leaving a very big well-maintained old pile, for a smaller very run down old pile, which we intend to turn into a smaller very-well-maintained house.

We did look at a very pretty 1930s house, but both of us had to admit that we preferred houses with beams.

However, the big attraction of our new home, is Location, Location, Location. It is in a back street, close to the centre of a small buzzy town and every thing we need will be within a walk of 100 yards or so, Lidl, Iceland, M&S Food, Waitrose, doctor, dentist, Cinecentre, Optician next door but one, podiatrist at the end of the road, off road parking for 4 cars.

We are both 81. I might add I hate underfloor heating. That is personal, I know many who love it, but I do not.

Ooh - is envious of that location. Waitrose too.......#where is the crying emoji? I'd be in Waitrose and M & S Food frequently there - neither of which I've got any longer.

A nice attractive park or too or a river - or, better still, both and generally quiet enough location - and Job Done.

Yes, river and park, so close to river it is considered high flood risk, but it hasn't flooded since 1947, not even after all this year's rain, because of more sophisticated flood defences and river managemen tso we will fit flood proof external doors and the property is surrounded by a brick wall and hope for the best

singingnutty Tue 10-Jun-25 23:16:14

Ours was built in the 50's and we've done loads to change and update it since moving in 30 years ago. We could do this because it had generous sized rooms and was very well built initially. We've added an extension which we were able to do whilst still having a reasonable sized garden. We hope not to move when we can no longer manage the stairs by making a shower room in a space downstairs and making the original lounge at the front of the house into our bedroom. Fingers crossed this plan works out!

Petula Tue 10-Jun-25 22:05:21

Please, where is this? I am looking to move short and would love all these facilities close by!

CariadAgain Tue 10-Jun-25 21:23:59

M0nica

Hmm, we are leaving a very big well-maintained old pile, for a smaller very run down old pile, which we intend to turn into a smaller very-well-maintained house.

We did look at a very pretty 1930s house, but both of us had to admit that we preferred houses with beams.

However, the big attraction of our new home, is Location, Location, Location. It is in a back street, close to the centre of a small buzzy town and every thing we need will be within a walk of 100 yards or so, Lidl, Iceland, M&S Food, Waitrose, doctor, dentist, Cinecentre, Optician next door but one, podiatrist at the end of the road, off road parking for 4 cars.

We are both 81. I might add I hate underfloor heating. That is personal, I know many who love it, but I do not.

Ooh - is envious of that location. Waitrose too.......#where is the crying emoji? I'd be in Waitrose and M & S Food frequently there - neither of which I've got any longer.

A nice attractive park or too or a river - or, better still, both and generally quiet enough location - and Job Done.

Coconutty Tue 10-Jun-25 20:54:50

We moved to a much newer house. I love it. It’s so fresh.

PamandPix Tue 10-Jun-25 20:48:42

We are around the same ages and after 40 years in an old listed building - a townhouse with high ceilings and lots of space, we have just moved to a small modern house in a village.

We had to part with lots of stuff and give up lots of space but I love it!

Low maintenance, less to keep clean and a lovely little garden and patio. I really thought I'd miss my old place with all the memories it held but I've never thought of it once! It was hard for grown up kids to lose their childhood home but they are happy that we are happy.

Luckygirl3 Tue 10-Jun-25 17:03:42

I had lived in old houses/cottages for years - 5 years ago I moved into a brand new build. Now I am on my own it is perfect. It was built by a well-respected local builder and it has great character with stone cladding and is one of 7 similar, but not identical - 3 detached and 4 semis with lovely gardens looking out on fields and rolling Welsh hills.

I was slightly wary of buying a semi - I could not afford detached - but I need not have worried. The sound-proofing is remarkable - I do not hear a thing through the walls from my neighbours (even though they are a young couple) and they hear nothing from me. And our TVs are back-to-back on our walls.

The double-glazing is excellent - not that there's much more than cows outside to hear! - but it keeps me warm. The central heating is efficient and there is a biodigester in the back garden.

The only problem I had was that the garden was turf on rubble but I have got that sorted now. So if you are moving to new, make sure you specify what you want done with the garden.

NanaPlenty Tue 10-Jun-25 16:51:32

Three years ago we left our much loved 30’s bungalow which we had completely renovated. We thought it was our forever home. We moved to a different county to be near two daughters and the countryside. We absolutely loved village life from day one - have a small perfectly proportioned modern house with a smaller garden and we are both very happy. Can highly recommend it.

NotSpaghetti Tue 10-Jun-25 16:16:55

Apart from my family home (which my parents built) I have only ever lived in old or very old homes.

We rented a modern flat with a communal garden when we lived in America because we had a limited income and we knew the winters would be very very cold. We didn't think we'd be able to heat the old timber houses.

New houses now hold no fear
The ones I like are probably out of our budget but the ease of living in a centrally heated (and cooled) flat where everything works was truly amazing.

Something like that but with our own garden would be worth considering...

SO pleased you feel you have made the right decision Sago
I hope you have many happy and easy years there.
🏘

4allweknow Tue 10-Jun-25 16:13:39

In a 16 year old house since new. Have lived in early 1900s,1950s,60s,70s houses and found issues with them all. I do hope you don't encounter problems but I wouldn't count on it. Surprised it has underfloor heating being only 3 years old. 1960s house had that and I hated it.

haighsue Tue 10-Jun-25 15:55:31

At the age of 80 we moved to the centre of a small town. Y a river. We love old houses with character but didn’t want a fixer upper at our age. We came across the impossible - an old house full of character which had been beautifully done up, with under floor heating in the garden room. We didn’t think twice, made a decent cash offer and here we are. All mod cons and a small garden. We love it.