Buying a Victorian Home: The Ideal Guide

At Liam Gretton we’ve always known that people don’t really buy houses – they buy homes and period properties are in high demand – and none more so than the classic Victorian home.

Being a lucky owner of a Victorian house means you are the guardian of a piece of design history. Victorian homes are cherished, hugely diverse, beautiful and familiar in our everyday lives, forming an important part of the Wirral Peninsula.

Nevertheless how can you tell if a property is Victorian, where are the best place to find a Victorian home and most importantly how should you style one for modern day living?

We’ve brainstormed, walked the streets and marketed the style of property meaning we are best positioned to provide you with all the answers in our Ideal Guide to buying a Victorian home…

What Is A Period Property?

Although all homes date from a certain ‘period’, it’s usually those built before World War I (1914-1918) that are usually referred to as period properties.

So, period properties include properties built in:

• The Elizabethan era (1558-1603)
• The Georgian era (1714-1830)
• The Regency era (1811-1820)
• The Victorian era (1830-1901)
• The Edwardian era (1901-1910)

What Age Is A Victorian House?

The Victorian era lasted from 1830 to 1901 – The time in which Queen Victoria sat on the throne, so most properties built during this time are classed as Victorian homes.

However, there was a slight overlap with the Georgian and Regency periods, where many homes in these styles continued to be built alongside what people today would consider a true Victorian home.

The Wirral and the majority of Britain had a vast influx of wealth brought on by the Industrial Revolution, so early Victorian houses are often the most extravagant of the era.

What Makes A House Victorian?

A Victorian house is a home built during the reign of Queen Victoria (1830-1901).

However, ‘Victorian’ architecture wasn’t widely seen until the mid 1800s.

Victorian homes built after Georgian and Regency styles faded in popularity during the mid-1800s and were more heavily influenced by gothic styles.

Many of the early to mid-Victorian homes are tall and thin, with rooms being allocated to servants either on the top floors or within the basements.

As the need for servants declined in the late 1800s and early 1900s, Victorian properties started to make a natural development into what would become Edwardian homes from 1901 to 1910.

How Do You Know If A Wirral Home Is Victorian?

Victorian architecture is highly identifiable, but does differ from the early, middle and end of the era.

Key things to look out for:

• Bay windows and stained glass
• A steep, pointed roof
• Porches made from red brick
• Wooden floors
• Patterned tiles in hallways and on pathways
• Gothic-style fireplaces in every room

The best way to find out definitively if a property dates from the Victorian era is to research its history.

Start by looking at old local maps, research the property in your local library, where county and parish records may exist of homes built in your area.

Your local council may also have planning permission records available to view, while local history societies often have a great knowledge of properties in the area.

Finally, ask your neighbours. You’ll be surprised by how much information has been shared through the generations of people passing through the home and local area – it’s highly likely some of them may have undertaken the same research when buying their homes.

Do Victorian Houses Still Exist?

Victorian properties were built to last – and there are huge numbers of them still standing gloriously on the Wirral.

During the 1960s and 1970s, Victorian homes went out of fashion for a brief period, however, with buyers removing period features like fireplaces, floor tiles, cornicing and ceiling roses ripped out and replaced. In recent times the increased popularity of Victorian properties has seen many of them lovingly restored by their owners, while in some cases they also remain in high demand with the rental market.

Where Can I Buy A Victorian House?

There are many areas on the Wirral which have Victorian properties, particularly those with strong rail links as the railway boom of the 1840s was sparked by increased wealth during Victorian times.

The standard of Victorian homes across the Wirral does vary, but here are five places where you’ll find the best Victorian homes…

1. Oxton Village

Oxton originally a village in its own right was once one of the most affluent areas in England mainly due to its proximity to Liverpool. It was a favourite residential area for wealthy Liverpool merchants and tradesmen of the time. Oxton Village is a mainly early Victorian era settlement with fine sandstone and brick built houses, many of which now form part of a conservation area.

2. Port Sunlight

Port Sunlight was built by a Victorian-era entrepreneur with work commencing in 1888 to accommodate workers in its soap factory (now part of Unilever) Port Sunlight contains 900 Grade II listed buildings, and was declared a conservation area in 1978. The unique area has been informally suggested for World Heritage Site (WHS) status to protect it from development and to preserve the unique character for future generations.

3. West Kirby

Originally West Kirby is of Viking origin and lies at the north-western corner of the Wirral Peninsula however the old village of West Kirby lay around St. Bridget’s Church. The town today is centred on West Kirby railway station. The town has a Victorian promenade which is flanked by the West Kirby Marine Lake that permits boats to sail even at low tide.

4. Wallasey And New Brighton

The shoreline between Seacombe and Rock Point started to become an attractive area to which affluent merchants and sea captains could retire during the Victorian-era. With the expansion of trade on the Mersey, new homes were required for the growing population as well as new docks which were constructed between 1842 and 1847.

New Brighton became popular seaside resort after the mid-19th century and today it is home to the UK’s longest promenade. Victorian homes in the area range from large villas near the sea to suburban semi-detached homes, and some terraces in parts of the area.

5. Heswall

In 1841 the population of Heswall was 398. Its growth was started by wealthy merchants during the Victorian-era who had originally chosen it as a retreat from the busy River Mersey and City of Liverpool. However the arrival of two railway connections allowed them to commute with ease into other areas. 100 years after the reign of Queen Victoria Heswall was listed as the seventh richest neighbourhood in the UK.

How To Style A Victorian House Interior

Victorian wealth led to many homeowners styling their properties in extravagant ways.

As the popularity of period properties has grown in more modern times, restoration of Victorian houses in the UK has become a labour of love for many of their guardians.

Here are five things you can do to your Victorian home to make it shine…

1. Be Brave With Dark Colours

Classic Victorian-era interiors embraced Gothic styling so, don’t be afraid to go dark with your colour schemes, adding deep greens and plums to walls and furnishings, coupled with wood flooring and fire surround are a great mixture.

2. Period Cornicing

Ornate cornicing and ceiling roses were a staple feature of Victorian homes, but many features like this were removed by buyers in the 60s and 70s.

There are many present-day companies who can recreate the intricate designs used by the Victorians, these are key period features that can make any Victorian property stand out.

3. Add Or Restore Floor Tiles

Flooring was another area of the home where our predecessors made bold and impactful statements.

Patterned floor tiles were the norm in the mid 1800s but were often covered with carpets or wood flooring in the late 20^th century.

One of the first port of calls should be to pull back existing flooring to see what lies beneath, as original floor tiles may have been preserved.

If sadly they have not been preserved then there are lots of modern options to choose from that reflect the bold styling of the Victorians.

4. Fireplace Features

It was common to see a fireplace in every room of a Victorian home, yet many of these features were removed and replaced by electric options during the 20th century.

If your fireplace is still in place, it can be restored with a lick of paint or polish and with some new tiles on the surround the fireplace can be given a whole new lease of life.

If it’s not salvageable, fear not. Restored Victorian fireplaces are often up for sale on platforms like e-Bay, Facebook as well as many companies selling modern equivalents.

5. Mixing The Traditional With The Modern

If you’re keeping bold Victorian features like flooring, fireplaces and decorative mouldings in place, don’t be afraid to add some more modern touches to complement those original delights.

Modern furnishings or printed wallpapers can bring your Victorian home right up to date, while also being sympathetic to its history.

Victorian homes like Shrewsbury Road, Oxton could share many stories from its time as a home. One of the visible stories is the small rear extension added onto the detached property in a style that matches the original architecture which has resulted in a great way of adding extra space and reorganising an existing layout for modern day-to-day family and continues to celebrate the fact that homes built during the Victorian period are part of the evolution, rather than aiming to mimic the original architecture.