Why hate corner lots? (room, residential, cost, buying a house)
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I'm curious because I see so many people that say buying a house on a corner lot would be a deal breaker and I'm left wondering why. Maybe I'm not seeing the big picture and negatives about a corner lot. I spent part of my teen years in a house that was situated on a corner. It wasn't a busy street, but it wasn't an isolated little road either. I know i was a kid at the time, but I can't remember anything negative about the house being located on a corner. In fact, when I think back now, it did have a little larger than most front yards and one less neighbor living next door so it was actually more private IMO. If buying a house on a corner lot is a deal breaker for you, please tell me why. Thank you.
This could be resolved depending on how the house is situated on the lot, on topography, landscaping or fencing,etc.
But because of extra car and foot traffic, corners just tend to be "busier." It could be the school bus stop. It could be the dog walk pee/poop stop. You just never know.
I think the extra traffic might be a deal breaker for me (depending upon how busy the roads are). The noise can be annoying. Also, for anyone with kids, safety can be a factor.
For the most part, though, I've never heard that there's a huge drawback to a corner lot... they can often have more yard space. So that would attract some people. Also, there's likely to be some street parking space close to the house and that could be a bonus for a home owner who likes to invite people over.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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We love our corner lot, with trees on the corner it's much like having no neighbors, we only see the side of the house across the street. The side lawn is very big so plenty of room for the kids (now grandkids) to play. I can see that if a busy intersection there would be cars zooming around the corner, but in our case it's a very quiet neighborhood.
More traffic.
More maintenance if there are sidewalks.
More visibility, you're on display in your back yard.
More regulations like fence height.
More cost in some areas if there are charges based on road frontage.
It wouldn't be a deal breaker for me but the above are things that play into it.
I have clients that intentially seek out corner lots as there is at least 1 less neighbor to bother you. Interior corners are different than busy street corners. No one wants a busy street corner where the entire neighborhood is going to drive past the house. But an interior street corner is much quieter with less cars,
We have a couple of friends who live on a corner lot. One is on a busy corner and in the past year they had a car jump the curb and hit their house. They also constantly complain about random people using their driveway as a turn around, or just parking in it to find their bearings. I also hear them constantly talking about adding features/landscaping to add privacy and safety from other cars jumping the curb. It is a bus stop, which is a blessing and a curse. Their kids can wait inside until the bus shows up, but other kids will use their porch, which to them would be fine but they horse around and had to be spoken to repeatedly. It is a very busy intersection with a light, so it's likely not a typical situation, but hearing their difficulties, I wouldn't want a corner lot.
I have clients that intentially seek out corner lots as there is at least 1 less neighbor to bother you. Interior corners are different than busy street corners. No one wants a busy street corner where the entire neighborhood is going to drive past the house. But an interior street corner is much quieter with less cars,
Very true IMO. The house we lived in was very private. The part of the backyard facing the street had a wood fence and ivy growing on it. No one could see into the backyard. It was located in a residential area and cars were forced to slow down and drive slower through there because of the stop sign. The best part was that it did have one less neighbor living right next door so you are dealing with only one neighbor to one side of you and one neighbor behind you.
My problem with a corner lot would be the setbacks and the fencing rules since I would always have a dog. With a corner, and the frequent rule that the fence could not extend beyond the back corner of the house, the fenced backyard would always be smaller than if the same lot was in line with others. The same would occur if there were rules about patio placement, landscaping, etc.
I have a pool and enjoy backyard privacy. My neighbor is on a corner and has a joke of a backyard, he couldnt even put a pool in it if he wanted, not even an above ground. The last owner and this new one dont even go in their backyard because its just a sliver of land that you couldnt even throw a frisbie in. No point.
Also in a corner lot you have to deal with constant lawn issues from jokers driving over the grass cause they dont know how to drive around corners without texting etc.
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