Potter’s Place

Harry Potter is all grown up now and married to Ginny so where do they live? In the muggle world or somewhere much more magical? Harry grew up in Privet Drive in a cupboard under the stairs so maybe he has had his fill of muggle houses and would definitely be looking for somewhere with a bit more space! However, Harry is a kind soul and might think it’s important to share his life between the two worlds, after all one his best friends, Hermione, indeed has half magic and half muggle lineage. So what would Harry Potter look for when shopping for real estate?

What Harry’s dream home might look like

I’d like to think that Harry would choose a property that looked rather normal on the outside but had hidden magical charm. Maybe the perfect specifications would look something like: a large five bedroom home with an attic big enough for spell practice, a large garden perfect for entertaining but secluded enough for growing ingredients for potions and tinted windows for privacy. It would have to be fitted with all the latest mod cons of the wizarding world including self-dusting surfaces, self-washing dishes, self-hoovering carpets and clothes that can iron themselves!

Most people looking for a home who have children will be drawn by things like proximity to good schools. For Harry Potter, this isn’t really an issue as wherever he chooses to live, he knows his kids are off to Hogwarts as soon as they are old enough.

Location and security, wizard-style

Most homebuyers will be looking for a location with a low crime rate and a house in a desirable area. For a magical house, this isn’t really a problem for Harry either, as presumably he can protect it with spells and enchantments to keep it safe wherever it is. He could also pick up somewhere very cheap and add rooms and extensions on without any muggles knowing they were there. No planning permission needed either!

Or maybe something more like Hogwarts

Perhaps he would choose something magnificent and imposing like Hogwarts itself, with turrets and battlements. It would be decked out with portraits of old legendary wizards and witches who would turn to look at you as you climbed the stairs and bid you a ‘Good Morning’ or ‘Good Night’. It would look incredibly creepy to us muggles with it’s dark corridors and floating candles but would be quite normal to a wizarding family. Harry and Ginny might miss the corridors of Hogwarts, which actually feature the cloisters of Gloucester Cathedral in the films. For Gloucester Estate Agents, visit http://www.tgres.co.uk/

Whatever kind of house the Potter’s picked, it would be full of fun, frolics and magical mayhem. Regular visitors would need somewhere to stay and it would have to be big enough to accommodate Hagrid too! Ron, Hermione and their children would be dropping in and of course there would need to space to hold all the Weasley’s too and there’s quite a few of them!

Summary

This playful article imagines what kind of home Harry Potter might buy as an adult, from a normal-looking house with hidden magical features like a spell-practice attic and potion-growing garden, to a grand, Hogwarts-style property with turrets and talking portraits. It notes that schools and crime rates, usual priorities for home buyers, wouldn’t matter much to a wizard who can protect a house with spells.

Questions this article raises

• Which magical home features would be hardest to hide from muggle neighbours?
• Would Harry realistically choose somewhere so conspicuous as a Hogwarts-style house?
• How would the Weasleys’ large family actually fit into any of these homes?