Partner Article

New survey shows home buyers in the North West spend up to £40k fixing dodgy DIY projects

This week (16-22 May) is New Homes Week, when homebuilders including Barratt Manchester, collaborate with the Home Builders Federation (HBF), to promote the benefits of buying new.

To mark this year’s activities, the HBF has released a survey which uncovers some interesting insights – including the fact that only 1% of home buyers across the region do not have to spend money on rectifying faults and improving their home after they’ve moved in.

According to the report, the main culprit is the previous owner’s dodgy decorations, but over half of the people asked also said they had to make improvements to the kitchen and bathrooms too. 40% also had to upgrade the heating, including the home’s plumbing; 39% needed to install double glazed windows; and 21% were forced into re-wiring their recently bought home.

None of this work is cheap to do. Over a third of people, 34%, spent £10,000 - £40,000 upgrading their recently purchased home, with 13% reporting that they spend over £40,000.

However, recent figures show that the cost of upgrading a second hand home to the standard of a new build home is around £45,000. This is because new build homes come with brand new kitchens and bathrooms, including appliances; are double glazed throughout with the latest energy efficient and secure doors and windows; have brand new heating systems, including energy efficient boilers – all reducing the amount new build homes.

Barratt Manchester, which is currently building homes across the North West, including Highgate Park, Warton, Cheshire Limes, Northwich and Tarleton Locks, Tarleton – says it is not surprised by the findings, noting that there has been a marked shift in buyers’ priorities in recent years. Barratt Manchester Sales Director, Michaela Lancaster, said:

“Affordability is still a real issue for many buyers, despite the current low interest rates. Most people simply don’t have the time, inclination or the money to spend on large restoration projects.

“In addition to that, buying new no longer means purchasing a house type that you can’t make your stamp on. We’re seeing a resurgence of customers buying off plan so that they can choose many of their own specifications such as work surfaces, kitchen cupboards, flooring, tiles etc. This freedom to express their own unique style – without the headaches and DIY – are very appealing.”

The findings are unveiled in Why buy new? Home Buyers intentions and opinions’ a report by the Home Builders Federation (HBF) following a YouGov survey of over 2000 people.

For more information on Barratt Homes visit www.barratthomes.co.uk

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Tom Opper-Cunnane .