The short answer
- Search your area first, then add a keywordOn Rightmove the keyword box sits above the results and moves matching houses to the top. On Zoopla, OnTheMarket and PrimeLocation it narrows the list.
- Search for both spellings, and for granny flatAgents write annex, annexe, granny flat or self contained, and a keyword only finds the word the agent used.
- Ready-made searches for your areaPick a county or town, bedrooms, budget and house or bungalow, and open each search in a new tab.
- Check the annex is self-containedIts own kitchen, bathroom and front door is what makes it an annex rather than a bedroom with an ensuite.
Annex and annexe mean the same thing. Annexe is the usual British spelling and both turn up in listings, so this guide uses both.
How to search
How to search Rightmove for a house with a granny annex
Rightmove has no filter for a granny annex. What it has is a keyword box that looks for words in the listing's own description. It takes three steps, and it works on top of an ordinary search rather than replacing one.
Step 1: Search your area the usual waySection titled Step%201%3A%20Search%20your%20area%20the%20usual%20way
Go to rightmove.co.uk and search for houses for sale where you want to live, with your number of bedrooms and your budget. Leave the annex out for now, because the keyword is added once the results are showing.
Step 2: Add a keyword above the resultsSection titled Step%202%3A%20Add%20a%20keyword%20above%20the%20results
Above the list of houses there is a line that reads "Prioritise properties with..." and a box marked Add keyword. Type "annexe" and press enter. Rightmove then sorts the results by keyword match, so houses whose description uses the word move to the top. The other houses stay in the list below them, which means the number of results does not go down, and it is worth scrolling past the first page.
Step 3: Repeat with the other words, and save the searchesSection titled Step%203%3A%20Repeat%20with%20the%20other%20words%2C%20and%20save%20the%20searches
A keyword only finds the word the agent used, so run the search again with "annex", "granny flat" and "self contained". When one turns something up, save it. Rightmove will email you when a new listing matches a saved search, so you do not have to repeat it by hand every few days.
What happens when you add the keyword “annexe”
Rightmove
Box above the results: “Prioritise properties with…”, then Add keyword. Matching listings move to the top and the rest stay below.
- Detached house with self-contained annexe
- Farmhouse with annexe in the grounds
- Semi-detached house, large garden
- Terraced house near the station
Zoopla, OnTheMarket and PrimeLocation
The keyword is a filter. Only listings that use the word are left.
- Detached house with self-contained annexe
- Farmhouse with annexe in the grounds
The same search on Zoopla, OnTheMarket and PrimeLocationSection titled The%20same%20search%20on%20Zoopla%2C%20OnTheMarket%20and%20PrimeLocation
Zoopla, OnTheMarket and PrimeLocation all accept a keyword as well, and on those three it works as a filter: only listings that use the word are left. That makes the results quicker to read, though a listing that describes the annex in other words will drop out entirely. In our checks Zoopla and PrimeLocation returned the same houses for the same search, so if you are short of time, one of the two will do. The search builder further down this page sets the area, bedrooms, budget and keyword on all four portals for you.
The self-contained testSection titled The%20self-contained%20test
Before you book a viewing, check the listing for a kitchen, a bathroom and a front door of its own. Those are what make it an annex your parent can live in independently. A large bedroom with an ensuite off the family's hallway is not the same thing, even when the listing calls it an annexe. Whether the annex is self-contained also decides whether it has its own council tax band once you own it.
The search terms
Which words to search for: annex, annexe, granny flat and more
The word an agent chose when writing the listing decides whether your search finds it. Work through these from the top.
Spelling variants
Try these first. Agents write the same thing different ways, and some portals will not match one spelling against the other.
“Granny annexe”
The usual British spelling of the word.
“Granny annex”
The spelling used in American English, and by some UK agents too, so it is worth its own search.
“Annexe or annex”
Drops "granny" to catch listings that say "guest annexe", "self-contained annex" or just "annexe".
Related terms
Agents describe the same kind of space in different ways depending on its size and how it is built.
“Granny flat”
Common for a self-contained space built into or attached to the house.
“Granny cottage”
Used for a fully detached building in the garden or grounds.
“Self contained”
Finds annexes described by their layout rather than who they are for. Leave out the hyphen: on OnTheMarket "self-contained" found nothing where "self contained" found listings.
Wider terms, if the first two groups turn up little
These catch listings an agent has not framed around a relative at all.
“Wheelchair access”
Surfaces step-free annexes and ground-floor accommodation built for mobility.
“Annexe potential”
Used for outbuildings an agent thinks could become one, not a finished annexe.
“Outbuilding”
Wider still. Expect to filter out garages and workshops by eye.
When we tried the same searches on 6 October 2026, Zoopla and PrimeLocation returned the same houses for "annex" and "annexe", while OnTheMarket returned a different number for each. Rightmove does not narrow the list, so it does not show how many houses matched. Searching for both spellings everywhere is the simplest way to make sure nothing is missed.
Searches for your area
Ready-made searches for houses with an annex near you
Start from your county for searches set out town by town, or use the builder below it to choose an area, bedrooms, a budget and a house or a bungalow. The portal links open in a new tab.
Build your annex searches
Choose an area and what you need. Each link below opens that portal’s own results in a new tab, with the search term already entered.
Searches for houses in Kent
Rightmove
Moves matching listings to the top rather than hiding the rest.
Zoopla
Shows only listings that use the word.
OnTheMarket
Shows only listings that use the word.
PrimeLocation
Shows only listings that use the word.
These are ordinary links to each portal’s public search, with no tracking added.
The areas in the list are the ones we could check on all four portals. If your town is not there, choose its county and narrow the search on the portal itself. Where a portal has no single page for an area (Rightmove and OnTheMarket for Scotland as a whole, Zoopla and PrimeLocation for Mid Wales), the link opens that portal's own search page instead, so choose a town there.
3 and 4 bedroom houses
Finding a 3 or 4 bedroom house with an annex on Rightmove
If you are moving in alongside your parent, you need enough bedrooms in the main house as well as the annex. The bedroom filter needs a little care, because the number on a listing is whatever the agent entered.
Some agents count the annex bedroom in the total and some do not. A house listed as four bedrooms might have four bedrooms in the main house and a one-bedroom annex as well, or three in the house and one in the annex. The way to tell is to read the description and look at the floor plan, which sits with the photos on the listing.
How to set the bedroom filter when you want an annex as well
| What to set | What to check on each listing | |
|---|---|---|
| You need 3 bedrooms in the main house | Minimum 3 bedrooms, keyword annexe | Whether the annex bedroom is one of the 3. If it is, the main house has 2. |
| You need 4 bedrooms in the main house | Minimum 4 bedrooms, keyword annexe | The floor plan, to see how the bedrooms are split between the house and the annex. |
| You are not sure yet | Minimum 3 bedrooms and no maximum | The wording of the headline: "4 bed including annexe" and "4 bed plus annexe" describe different houses. |
| You want the widest list | No bedroom filter, keyword annexe | Use the budget to keep the list manageable, and save the search so new listings are emailed to you. |
You need 3 bedrooms in the main house
- What to set
- Minimum 3 bedrooms, keyword annexe
- What to check on each listing
- Whether the annex bedroom is one of the 3. If it is, the main house has 2.
You need 4 bedrooms in the main house
- What to set
- Minimum 4 bedrooms, keyword annexe
- What to check on each listing
- The floor plan, to see how the bedrooms are split between the house and the annex.
You are not sure yet
- What to set
- Minimum 3 bedrooms and no maximum
- What to check on each listing
- The wording of the headline: "4 bed including annexe" and "4 bed plus annexe" describe different houses.
You want the widest list
- What to set
- No bedroom filter, keyword annexe
- What to check on each listing
- Use the budget to keep the list manageable, and save the search so new listings are emailed to you.
Tips for a 3 bedroom house with an annexSection titled Tips%20for%20a%203%20bedroom%20house%20with%20an%20annex
Set the minimum to 3 and leave the maximum empty. A house listed as four bedrooms may be the three-bedroom house you want with the annex counted in, and a maximum of 3 would hide it. On Rightmove, add "annexe" as the keyword and save the search, so that new three-bedroom listings with an annex reach your inbox.
Tips for a 4 bedroom house with an annexSection titled Tips%20for%20a%204%20bedroom%20house%20with%20an%20annex
A four-bedroom house with an annex as well is a large property, so the budget filter does a lot of the work here. If the list is short, try a wider area before you lower the bedroom count, because a three-bedroom house would leave you a room short.
If your parent will need help once they move inSection titled If%20your%20parent%20will%20need%20help%20once%20they%20move%20in
Bedrooms matter for care as well as for family. If your parent may later need a live-in carer in the annex, the carer needs a bedroom of their own. A two-bedroom annex, or a spare room in the main house, keeps that option open. Care in a granny annexe explains how visits and live-in care work when a parent lives next door to family.
Bungalows with an annex
How to find a bungalow with an annex for sale
A bungalow suits a parent who cannot manage stairs, and some come with an annex or a self-contained wing. All four portals let you search for bungalows only.
On Rightmove, choose Bungalow under property type, then add "annexe" as the keyword in the same way. On Zoopla, OnTheMarket and PrimeLocation, bungalows have a search of their own, and the builder above uses it when you choose Bungalow.
Check for stairs inside
Look at where the annex is
Look at the bathroom
Parking and the path to the door
There may be only a handful of bungalows with an annex for sale in your area at any one time, so set up saved searches and give them a few weeks. If nothing comes up, a bungalow with a large garage or a garden building can sometimes be converted. How much it would cost to build a granny annexe and whether you need planning permission explain what that involves, and home adaptations that reduce the need for care covers smaller changes to a bungalow without an annex.
Checking a listing
Two examples of an annex listing, and what to do if none fit
These two came up in a search for a granny annexe. Both have since sold, so treat them as examples of what to look for rather than as houses you can buy.
A four-bedroom farmhouse on the Isle of Wight came with a separate two-bedroom cottage in its grounds, with its own kitchen and bathroom. Everything a parent would need was on the ground floor, and the room upstairs suited whoever else was staying, whether a visiting relative or a live-in carer.
A house in Margate, Kent, had its annex built into the house: a self-contained flat on the lower ground floor with its own entrance. A layout like this gives less privacy between the two households than a separate cottage, but your parent is only a door away.
Both passed the self-contained test, with a kitchen, a bathroom and an entrance of their own.
Take the free granny annexe checklist to viewings and use its cost sheet to compare your shortlist.
Before you make an offerSection titled Before%20you%20make%20an%20offer
If you are buying together with your parent, or using money from the sale of their home, settle who owns what before you offer. Buying a house with an elderly parent covers joint ownership, stamp duty and how the house is treated if your parent later needs to pay for care.
If nothing on the market fitsSection titled If%20nothing%20on%20the%20market%20fits
- 1
Widen the area or the budget
FirstA wider area, or a search that includes bungalows and larger family houses, can turn up a listing the first search missed. - 2
Build an annex instead
If nothing turns upAdding a self-contained annex to a house you or your parent already own can be more direct than waiting for one to come up for sale. - 3
Adapt the house you have
A smaller stepA downstairs bedroom and a walk-in shower can sometimes do the job of an annex without building one. - 4
Look at the other options
Worth comparingA care home or community retirement living suits some parents better, particularly if company during the day matters more to them than independence.
An annex is one of several ways to keep a parent close. What a granny annexe is and how families use one covers the rest, and the comparison of care at home and a care home, care homes and community retirement living set out the alternatives.
When your parent moves in, find a carer nearbySection titled When%20your%20parent%20moves%20in%2C%20find%20a%20carer%20nearby
An annex keeps your parent close, but it does not cover the hours when they need help with washing, dressing or meals while you are at work. Self-employed carers on PrimeCarers who offer hourly visits charge £18 to £25 an hour with our fee included. Every carer on PrimeCarers has had an ID check, a right to work check, an enhanced DBS check issued within the last 2 years (PVG in Scotland, Access NI in Northern Ireland) and an online interview. Find a carer near the annex to see who is available.
Questions
Questions families ask about finding a house with a granny annex for sale
No. Rightmove's filters cover things like price, bedrooms and property type, and an annex is not one of them. Once your results are showing, use the box above them that reads "Prioritise properties with..." and add a keyword such as annexe. Rightmove then sorts matching listings to the top. It does not hide the houses that do not match.
Start with "annexe" and "annex", then try "granny flat", "granny cottage" and "self contained" (without the hyphen). Each catches a different way agents describe the same kind of space. The search builder on this page makes one link per term for your area.
Yes. All three accept a keyword, and unlike Rightmove they narrow the list to listings that use the word rather than reordering it. In our checks on 6 October 2026, Zoopla and PrimeLocation treated annex and annexe as the same word and OnTheMarket did not, so search for both spellings.
On Rightmove choose Bungalow as the property type and add "annexe" as the keyword. Zoopla, OnTheMarket and PrimeLocation have a separate bungalow search that takes a keyword too. Check the floor plan for stairs, because a chalet or dormer bungalow has rooms in the roof.
A self-contained space: its own kitchen, its own bathroom and a front door that does not go through the main house. A large bedroom with an ensuite off the family's hallway is not the same thing, even if a listing calls it an annexe, and it will not give a parent the same independence.
It can. A relief called Multiple Dwellings Relief used to reduce Stamp Duty Land Tax on a house bought with a separate annexe, because it counted as buying two homes. The government abolished that relief for purchases completing on or after 1 June 2024, so ask a solicitor for the figure on any house you are thinking of offering on.
It can, depending on how well it is built, whether it is self-contained and how much of the garden it takes up. Do granny annexes add value covers what makes the difference.