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Never. Noise, pollution, parking problems, potential danger to kids and pets. I would rather have a smaller house on a sleepy road than a McMansion facing highway or a busy road. But I am speaking strictly as a residential customer. I can see some advantages if someone wants to use the house as an office.
#1 rule in real estate is location, location, location. One day, you will need or want to sell the house. If you're already questioning buying a property on a busy road, just keep in mind that everyone else who looks at the home will also be questioning it.
I always tell my clients that once you buy a house, you can change many things, like the color or even the interior, but the one thing you can never change is the location.
I always tell my clients that once you buy a house, you can change many things, like the color or even the interior, but the one thing you can never change is the location.
A more useful 3-L rule is "location, land, layout". You can't change the location, you can't change the land, and changing the layout in a big way (i.e.. more than just removing or adding a wall) is serious money. Condition of foundation is probably up there too, but it doesn't start with "L".
Nearly everything else just goes into the price you should be willing to pay. Needs exterior paint? A few thousand. New siding and a new roof? Tens of thousands. Needs central AC? A few thousand to over ten thousand based on various factors.
Interior surfaces should be way down near the bottom of the list.
As for major roads, sometimes odd things happen. There are houses in West Orange that are right along I-280 (which is newer than they are). And it's one of the most quiet places in W.O, because the road is on fill well _above_ the houses, with a sound wall, so the highway noise goes upwards, and that hill absorbs local sound. Still a detraction because it's a big ugly hill, but much better than a noisy lesser road.
Most likely I would not. Only way to consider it is if was far back from the road with a huge driveway so you can exit forward instead of having to back out. Even so, I still would think it's a safety concern. Only advantage is I guess it's safer from robbers doubt anyone would break into a house on a main road.
Most likely I would not. Only way to consider it is if was far back from the road with a huge driveway so you can exit forward instead of having to back out.
That's a good point. If the house is in a fairly rural area on a large plot of land, and set back far from the road, then it's probably not a big deal if it's a busy road or not.
That's a good point. If the house is in a fairly rural area on a large plot of land, and set back far from the road, then it's probably not a big deal if it's a busy road or not.
No. I grew up in a house on a busy road in North Jersey. Had all the typical problems: constant noise (day and night), cars smashing into my dad's car parked on the street (this happened multiple times, always in the middle of the night), sister got in an accident backing out of the too-short and too-narrow driveway, etc. When I got married and moved to South Jersey, I couldn't sleep at first because it was too quiet. LOL Now the opposite would be true.
Edited to add: Oh, and my Mom wouldn't let me cross the street by myself until I was in 6th grade! And even then, she worried all the time about us kids crossing the street.
Just curious. Would you or have you lived on a major road? I'm considering buying a house on a pretty major road but really concerned about pollution from cars & noise. The price is good because of the location but I fear I will regret it!
I'm a bit shocked by the amount of anxiety and fear communicated in this thread. There are thousands of things that concern me much more than a double yellow. I don't understand the magnitude of people's fear. You'd think the OP had asked about buying a house next door to a registered sex offender! With that level of anxiety, how do you ever survive in overpopulated New Jersey?
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