Can children decide where their family lives? Three families tell about their experiences – and show what opportunities and challenges arise when children’s voices are influential in housing decisions.
Large house with garden in quiet suburbia: Sally Bentley has a home that many families might dream of. For this reason, the Englishman can hardly imagine giving up his home in Liverpool.
But when his then 14-year-old daughter, Tabatha, saw an advertisement for apartments in Stanley Dock, everything changed. “We watched it to make my daughter happy, and we were surprised ourselves,” Bentley said in an interview with British newspaper The Telegraph.
“Sometimes I wonder if it was the right decision”
The family actually decided to sell their old house and move into a modern loft — a former warehouse with brick walls and a 24-hour concierge. Although there is no private garden, there is a communal green area and a group of active dogs in the building.
“Sometimes I wonder if this was the right decision,” Bentley admits. But these new apartments are in an area that will change significantly in the coming years.
Children have a voice – decision support when buying a home
Advantages of the new residence: short distance to the city center, beautiful views and close to the Everton stadium, where a daughter has now found a part-time job. Bentley comes to a positive conclusion: children should have a voice because they will also live there in the same way.
The Bentley family is not an isolated case: According to the real estate portal “Zoopla”, 74 percent of all families who move include their children in the decision.
Familiar environment: Happy kids without moving
Rebecca Barr, a single mother of six, knows the opposite scenario. He wanted to move to a bigger apartment near the water, but his children opposed the move.
“The kids love it here, with the friends, the school and the recreational activities,” Barr told The Telegraph. Despite her own desires, she respects her children: “I will have the bathroom of my dreams when they move in.”
To move or not to move? When a 3 year old child decides
Children’s voices also play an important role for a family from Birmingham. The plan is to move to Cornwall for more space and peace. But their three-year-old son, Zachariah, wants to live closer to his grandparents in Coventry. Parents adjust their plans.
- Apartment rentals around German cities are still cheaper than in the city center, but the price advantage is decreasing.
- In the Berlin And Stuttgart Rental prices in the surrounding areas are rising faster than in the city center, and the potential for savings for renters is shrinking.
- For example, if you live 76 to 100 kilometers from the city center, you can get around Munich until 47 percent save on housing costs.
- In the Hamburg The rental price advantage in the area remains stable at 29 percent, while other areas such as Berlin And Stuttgart becomes much more interesting.
