Survey reveals the “must-haves” property buyers are after in their new homes, as well as how much over asking price they’re willing to pay to tick all their boxes
- A garden tops the list of “must-haves” for London buyers, with almost half (42%) looking for an outside space and less than a third (30%) looking for a spare room or parking space (31%)
- Londoners are the most willing to compromise on their must-haves, with a third (33%) willing to give up dream items to buy an almost-perfect property
- Brits view property websites 3 times per month on average, with 61% saying they use these sites to find their dream home even if they don’t intend to purchase
- A third of London buyers say the cost of living crisis has impacted plans to purchase property, the majority (64%) say by 1-4 years
JULY 2022: In a survey commissioned by conservatory installation experts ConservatoryLand it was revealed that almost two thirds (61%) of Brits regularly check property websites to find their dream home, even if they don’t intend to buy. What’s more, it seems London’s buyers are checking more frequently than most, with 29% admitting to checking sites like Zoopla and Rightmove between daily and once a week.
While this daily trip into dream home fantasyland is “just for fun” for many (43%), for others it’s more to see how the market is looking (39%), or to understand how much is needed for a deposit (24%), especially now that we are in this cost of living crisis.
Almost half (45%) of Londoners surveyed said they are actively looking for their next property, and it seems the majority (44%) are not willing to compromise on what their “dream home” looks like. When asked what “must-haves” their next property should have, Brits revealed they were after a whole host of non-negotiables.
The UK’s New Home Must-Haves
Of the five most important things buyers are looking for in their next homes, more than half are after an outdoor space or leafy garden as a priority. This “must-have” is the biggest priority in London too, with 42% of buyers there wanting this feature in their dream home. An outdoor space was the top priority for every age demographic, though the UK’s Baby Boomers are after a garden the most, with 58% of this group saying this is their top must-have versus only 27% of Gen Zs saying the same.
Following this must-have is a parking space or driveway, with 43% of buyers looking for somewhere to park a car. Buyers in London have this priority further down the list at number five, and instead are looking for lots of natural light (37%), double glazing (34%) and plenty of storage (32%) as their biggest priorities.
The UK’s Biggest Spenders
Despite the current cost of living crisis, many are willing to pay extra to get their hands on their dream property. On average, UK buyers are willing to pay an average of £6,277 more than the listed asking price in order to buy the home that ticks all the boxes, even though Brits admit that the current financial crunch will see their home buying timeline impacted by an average of 3.78 years.
The survey revealed that almost a quarter of buyers (23%) believe the current crisis will affect their property purchases for a period of 5-10 years, while the majority (59%) believe it will be more like 1-4 years until they can now buy their dream home.
It comes as no surprise that Londoners are prepared to pay the most over asking price, with this region saying they would spend more than £10,200 extra to get their top property, while 1 in 10 Gen Z home buyers said they would pay up to £25,000 extra to make sure they could purchase the home of their dreams – despite almost two thirds of this age group (61%) saying the cost crisis has impacted their purchase timeline by up to four years.
The UK’s Biggest Turn-Offs
When asked about the biggest icks home buyers face when it comes to viewing properties for sale, weird smells were the top turn off with almost 50% of Brits saying this was the clincher for them to disregard a potential home altogether. This was followed by cracked floors (32%), stained surfaces (31%) and pet hair and clutter (both 24%) rounding out the top five turn-offs for new home buyers.
While it seems that Baby Boomers care the most about pet hair (26%) and the current owners’ clutter (25%) when viewing potential properties, Gen X are secretly critiquing your patterned wallpaper choices and state of your furniture (15%) and over 74s are being turned off by homes with small windows.
The full study can be found here:
