Modern housing on the continent is far superior to that in the UK (and I like carpets!).
There were standards on house building which assured a minimum floor area which were later abandoned. The UK now has the smallest homes in Europe. The windows are tiny, and the materials are cheap.
I agree turn-of-the-century housing was generally generously proportioned, and well built, and stand the test of time. And the housing that followed up to 1940s, even the austere housing that followed in the 50s wasn't bad either. But from the 60s onwards the quality took a nose dive (there are some good quality social housing complexes), and the puny mock victorian 80s and 90s houses are the worst examples.
I'd be interested to hear why the UK took a turn for the worse, and other places didn't (or perhaps they did to a lesser degree). Belgium is similarly cramped but seems to continue to build good proportioned housing.
There were standards on house building which assured a minimum floor area which were later abandoned. The UK now has the smallest homes in Europe. The windows are tiny, and the materials are cheap.
I agree turn-of-the-century housing was generally generously proportioned, and well built, and stand the test of time. And the housing that followed up to 1940s, even the austere housing that followed in the 50s wasn't bad either. But from the 60s onwards the quality took a nose dive (there are some good quality social housing complexes), and the puny mock victorian 80s and 90s houses are the worst examples.
This is a great book on the subject: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Guide_to_the_New_Ruins_of_Gre...
I'd be interested to hear why the UK took a turn for the worse, and other places didn't (or perhaps they did to a lesser degree). Belgium is similarly cramped but seems to continue to build good proportioned housing.