Living next to a motorway - good or bad?

Well the missus desperately wants to move to another area and today we found the perfect house, perfect in everyway (especially the double garage). However the next door neighbour is the M20. Literally right next to it.

You can't really hear it indoors, but outdoors it is quite noisy...

So what to do?

What would you do?

Summer would be a nightmare with the windows open, which I guess is the reason a few house had air-con condensers outside.

The garage was sweet!

not a chance in hell skip it.

We have a dual carriageway behind us (down a 25 foot bank, other side of trees and a 6 foot fence) and after a while you don't notice the noise, we even sleep with the windows open.

I have a friend right next to the M1 and shes lived there for 20 odd years and shes fine with it , although I notice it when I go round.

Jenns mum lives well out in the country and now when we visit, we find the silence really weird.

I'm guessing that the house will be cheaper than anything else of a like for like comparison?

It's up to you really, trade off the noise with the standard/cost of the house.

Originally Posted by zsv650

not a chance in hell skip it.

Especially if anyone in the household is asthmatic.

Good luck selling it back on when you decide to move on.. I wouldn't buy any house next to a noisy 24-7 motorway.You may find it'l be on the housing market for quite some time, and you'll need to drastically reduce the asking price to get it shifted..

[Sid Squid]

Good question that I couldn't answer directly.

But a friend of mine lives next to a railway, they don't even notice it anymore, to the extent that in summer when the windows are open, they break conversation when a train passes and take up again when it's gone and apparently don't even realise they do it.

When we were kids we had a railway at the back of the house, but it was 140 feet plus an alleyway away, the M20 would be about 20 or 30 feet to the side...

Originally Posted by krhall

When we were kids we had a railway at the back of the house, but it was 140 feet plus an alleyway away, the M20 would be about 20 or 30 feet to the side...

Might be a bit too close for comfort that


Go round a couple of times at different times of day and see what the noise is like.

Don't forget, when living in a house, you spend most of the time there indoors but its always nice to be able to use the garden.

[dizzyblonde]

Well you could live at Stott Hall farm

Slap bang in the middle of six lanes on the M62!

[timwilky]

The M6 is about a mile from me. I cannot sleep with the windows open for the noise. It has been getting steadily worse. 20 years ago I couldn't hear it. I already have hearing trouble and 4 nights out of 7 there is a low continuous endless rumble that really gets on my tits till the window get closed. summer is hell.