Owning your own home

Lunch time stroll past a neighbours gaudy project reminded me to look up what it used to be like

Now:

Before:

Strange chimneys on the "before" - did the other half of the semi get bombed? But then hard to picture what the roof would have looked like.

Rough

alas street view doesnt go back to 1939

@Sumo its worse at night, so many external lights and also no window coverings on the massive front window hall thing

I sort of understand having massive windows if there's a view to look at. But the one you've posted is horrid.

Is that out near Buckhurst Hill? I'm sure I walked past that on a pre-LEL stroll last year and thought it was a big window for no view.

I'm not convinced the original was any better. I bet it smelt of cabbage inside and had a Stannah

The existing wasn't worth saving, but the replacement is a gopper.

Seems a bit ridiculous having massive windows in a hallway? Wouldn't they be better in, you know, rooms you actually use? There will some stupid unmaintainable skylight / roof lantern thing at the top too, which just gets covered in shit and can't ever be cleaned.

Where I was bought up is full of houses like that, now. Division one footballer basic bitch houses.

Presumably the big tree with a TPO on it you see in the first picture succumbed to some tragic disease during the construction process.

Is it now a church or a medical centre?

Strange chimneys

Maybe an old fashioned nod to those places with external chimneys. I guess it saves on internal space.

I assume they knocked down the old place and this is a ground up build? I can't recognise any of the original place.

Grim for sure.

Edit: Double front door is the worst bit for me. Awful out of ten.

Thats the one, but I dont know what you and @NickCJ mean about no view, they face directly at this...

which of course used to be this:

You can see where they got their #inspo

@leggy_blonde @Howard I agree that the old was a show stopper, but this is...something else. As people were saying a few pages ago about buying ugly houses and just living in them, I dont understand this trend of trying to make houses look like're some kind new build. Its a bit like my neighour who ripped out the 40m2 of teak parquet downstairs to replace with shiny grey tiles...

mmm external parquet

I would have had that parquet off them!

You can see where they got their #inspo

Probably matches their holiday home down in Cornwall. Something like:

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Thats what I said to him, as we were having ours refinished at the time, but dont worry, he said it only took an hour or so to rip out and assured me it wasnt real parque flooring as the wood strips were 'only thin'.

My face was a mask.

You can see the bones if you look hard enough. Stick an extension a'top the gargae, replace the bay windows with the glass waiting room, shove another exension on the side return...

lol, presumably they are looking forward to flashing their dangly bits at each other from those hallways.

ooh ooh ooh.

before:

after:

Oooft thats a great one, Its a fun game isnt it!

I've got a pair...

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I might be mis-sleuthing here but the two estate agent boards make me think the new building is flats. If so, gets ticks from me for increasing density and (probably) upgrading efficiency.

Interest free money has a lot to answer for

Just a house, wasn't shifting with one agent so they brought another in iirc. There's a bin for 2a tho, looks like some kind of low-key garden accommodation there too?!

e: ah no, it was always 2a but now it has a swimming pool.