As the UK government begins its net zero strategies, they are committed to building 300,000 new homes each year until 2025. This leaves you in a great position if you are looking to buy a family home as you will have a huge range of new build houses to choose from, as well as existing properties, but what should you look for in your new family home?
Room to Grow
If you are looking to expand your family over the next few years, you probably don’t want to be buying a home that you’ll have to move out of due to a lack of space in the future.
Ideally, if you are a family of four, you should be looking for a three-bedroom house. The optimum space required by each person in the UK is 355 square feet, so you may want to take this into account when looking at buying your new family home.
Having extra room also means that you can create your dream home. You may need a separate office space if you work from home or find that you want to create a playroom for the kids to avoid every room being messy!
Convenient Location
Paying attention to nearby amenities is important when looking for a perfect family home. Usually, you should be looking for convenient grocery stores and shops, proximity to public transport such as train stations and nearby entertainment such as parks and other amenities.
The location of your home to schools is also an important factor to consider. You can check this online and take into account exam results, Ofsted reports and financial information to ensure that your children will be in the catchment area of good schools.
Safe Neighbourhood
Keeping your family safe is top of everyone’s priority list so you should ensure that you are living in a family-friendly area if you have kids, especially young ones. You should have a look around the local area and may want to speak to neighbours about their experience of living there to get the full picture of the neighbourhood.
You can also check the crime rate of your potential new postcode online which may help you make your decision.
Outdoor Space
Outdoor space is a must-have in a family home. Providing your children with space to run around and explore has a huge amount of mental health benefits, as well as physical. Young children should get at least 3 hours a day of physical activity so having a garden space or a nearby park is essential for your children’s well-being. You could also look to involve your children in gardening and tend to your plants as a family which is a great bonding experience for all.
Space for cars is also something to look for. Carrying the family shop from the car to the house can be a workout in itself, so you may want to look for somewhere with a garage or driveway rather than only street parking. If the house doesn’t already have this if there is land outside the home you could look into making this your driveway which makes your home much more accessible.
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