Living in a cul-de-sac

Due you think families may prefer cul-de-sac properties for the safety aspect,by way of not having cars going past at speed and the main Road could be a danger to their children . I have lived in both and had no preference really except getting my car out onto the main Road was far more difficult than in the cul-de-sac.

I think we have the best of both worlds as our frontage is on one of the main roads into our large-ish village but with a very wide grass verge between the road and our front garden.

The rear of our property is at the end of a cul-de-sac with plenty of space for deliveries, visitors parking etc. and we have our own car parking and garage there too.

Like you kitty I like to see who/what is passing by at the front but I also like the peace and quiet at the back where our study is and our "sitting-out" garden.

I don't think I would like a small and narrow cul-de-sac.

Not particularly but I can see the advantages to some. Less noise, pollution, parking and there are probably more I've not thought of.

I think we have the best of both worlds too gaga as our garden backs onto other gardens and fields so is quite quiet. It is also mainly walled, so very private.

We live in a small cul de sac of 7 houses, we are the last but one. There is a foot path opposite that leads to a small play area, and is also a short cut to the primary school, so plenty of people going by to wave to!

Our garden backs on to fields, and that plus the lack of through traffic means it's perfect for cats

It's lovely to see the littlies out playing too, learning to ride scooters and bikes.

We once lived in a small cul-de-sac of 12 houses. In two homes the son died, one after falling and banging his head the other through illness. Two families split up and left anguished children behind. One person knocked over and killed a pensioner (not her fault) and became traumatised. One family caused local problems by trying to take over a plot of land designated as common use. All this happened in a space of 2 years. We moved. Never want to live in a cul-de-sac again!

No. DD lives in a cul de sac with a turning circle at the top. Everyone has a driveway, but it still tends to get very congested, and if, as recently, someone at the top has builders or other vans parked outside it can be a right pain turning round. The side road next to our house is a cul de sac and recently there seem to be more cars parked on the pavements there as only one house has a double drive.

Houses in cul-de-sacs are usually fairly modern houses, whether that attracts people, possibly potential buyers also think that cul de sacs will be more friendly as they usually consist of a small cluster of houses looking at each other.

My worry about cul-de-sacs, is their dangers to children. They are usually narrow and curvy with inadequate parking and cars are forever backing to and fro because of the difficulties of turning round, the danger to children running around or playing on bikes is obvious.

We have lived in cul-de-sacs, both just long roads with dead ends, not the arrangement most people think of. I have also lived on a busy road, quiet through road and now something between the two, a short access road parallel to the public serving three houses.

To be honest I have no preference for one location over any other. For me it is the house itself and the broader locality tha tmatters.

What attracts buyers to DD's road is not the cul de sac, but the area. If we sold our house, which is not a modest property, and added in our savings we still could not afford to buy the three bed semi currently for sale on their road. It's the catchment area for the schools that makes people snap them up. It will not be on the market long.

Whilst not quite a cul de sac we live on a no through road but see lots of people trolling up and down as we live near the town and the park so people walk past a lot. additionally the children play out a lot and I like to see them playing.

I live in a cul de sac of 16 houses and 2 flats. It was the cul de sac location which attracted me to the house because of my cat- safer for the animal. Also it was a modern house which is what I wanted. The majority but not all of the people are friendly.

My parents bought a new house in small cul de sac about 30 years ago, Dad is still there - the only remaining original owner. It's lovely, quiet as no traffic belting up and down the road. It has walk through to town and lots of dog walkers pass by to get to the fields nearby. Nice neighbours, only had one or two unsocial ones over those years.

Five out of eight homes, including our current home, have been in a cult-de-sac. Accident rather than design but we enjoyed them all other than one when there was a very difficult neighbour, which of course could happen in a through road. As long as there is adequate parking I'd see no reason to avoid one.

My parents also bought a new house, in a cul de sac, in the latter half of the 1930's. It was detached and in front was a green, where the children all played. I came along in 1942, and grew up there, and knew nearly everyone as it was very friendly, back then.

Cul-de-sacs have always been a selling point for me because I am such a light sleeper.

However, my late MiL lived for a few years in her privately owned bungalow on housing association owned land in a designated part of a branched cul-de-sac. She grew to hate it, describing it as God's waiting room & she loathed looking out of her windows, wondering "who's next?".

Although we live on a through road there are a group of 10 houses (5 on either side of the road) that are naturally allied because of proximity and roads off. In those 10 houses we have had 3 deaths, 2 divorces and quite a few serious illnesses. It happens all over the place, I think, not just in cul-de-sacs.

And, of course, we are not isolated from getting to know the people we see regularly at the shops, in the library etc. I'm feeling a bit depressed now!

We live in a cul de sac of 7 houses. At the end is a railway cutting . So there is only one way in. We feel very secure. Someone is always in , so strangers and strange cars are noticed very quickly.

We know all our neighbours and take parcels in for each other and recommend tradespeople. It's very quiet, as now all the children have grown up, we've only had one newcomer in 20 + years .

It's certainly a selling point for us ( and as we have finally decided to move) it was a good selling point for prospective buyers.

Sorry kitty didn't mean to depress you . I realise that all sorts of things can happen wherever you live -main road or cu-de-sac. It's just that the closeness you get with your neighbours if you live in a small cul-de-sac seems to be exaggerated when something bad happens. Go back to being happy with your home please ?

I do love my home - just a reflection on how things change as we age and also have lived in the same place for so long.

We live in the end/top house of a cul de sac so we have no traffic or people walking passed. There are 31 detached and semi's altogether, apart from 4 including us who've been here for 20+ years there seems to be constant change of ownership so we don't really know very many neighbours!

I would never live in a cul se sac again. Everybody seeing you and your visitors coming and going, it felt like living in a goldfish bowl. I didn't feel private at all, just eyes all around. And always a nosey neighbour and a gossip to contend with.

In the school holidays and at weekends the neighbouring streets would discharge their children to play in our safe cul de sac. We had kids [and accompanying noise] on bikes and scooters up and down, so driving home or going out could be a hazard and only safe to go 2 mph. Oh and the odd verbal abuse from the kids too!

Then we had a spate of football matches taking place, and balls being kicked into and onto parked cars, causing damage and scratched paintwork.

Now I am on a not too busy main road but it means police cars regularly go by, there is good street lighting, street is swept often, snow cleared away, people are only passing by not lingering or playing footie. But it's quiet enough, busy enough, people are friendly enough and it suits me far better.

I'm guessing cul de sacs are considered desirable because people might envisage the lifestyle of the residents of Brookside or Neighbours - everybody getting on and dropping into each others' homes to borrow some sugar!
I think it's because we're too busy going out to work that it wouldn't appeal to me at the moment, although I wouldn't rule it out when we retire.
What is the difference between living in a cul de sac and in a close?

i was brought up in a house at the "open end" of a cul de sac [still a quiet residential road though] and all the children used to play in the road. the best play of all was going up one side of the cul de sac, round the circle and back on the other side of the road - whether on scooter, bike or trike. it was safe and there were no accidents.
when i got married i lived on a through road although it was a quiet residential street again - not too many people going past or cars/vans hurtling past.
i then moved towns and again lived on a quiet through road so it didn't seem much different.
after i left my husband i moved into a little terraced house at the end of a cul de sac. most of the houses in my road are social housing but there are two which are privately owned [mine being one of them]. i love living here! my kitchen window looks to the front and i can see the children playing on the square of grass outside [my part of this cul de sac is built as three sides of a square]. however football isn't allowed on the grass - two boys destroyed my fence by using is as a goal!!
but, given a choice, i'd choose to live in a cul de sac again [if i ever moved that is] whether it be private or social housing, older or younger houses or whatever. i don't feel threatened in the slightest or isolated.

Cul-de-sacs are safer for children but there is the problem of footballs and not just kids, parents seem to think it's ok to come out with the kids and kick a ball around.
We lived in a square, which was great when my children were young lots children in the square played together, until they got older. Not so good. Have now moved.