Nearly a third of UK home owners are looking to carry out work on their home in the next three years, with up to £6b – based on the premise of 17.5 million owner-occupied households – in projected works planned annually over the next three years, according to a new study from the Federation of Master Builders (FMB).
Driven by the Generation Stay trend, over a million home owners (1,050,000) are looking to build extra space to accommodate grown-up children who cannot afford to leave home. According to the study, families up and down the country are seeking to be more creative with the space in their property, with one in five homeowners (22%) investing because of a property plateau which sees them unable to afford to move in to a bigger property, despite having a growing family.
Almost 40% of home improvements are set to be major refurbishments, including new kitchens, new bathrooms and home extensions, while smaller works such as loft conversions and conservatories account for 38%.
Homeowners are putting families first, as wider motivations to invest in their property include planning for having a family and parents wishing to boost their children’s future inheritance.
Brian Berry, chief executive of the FMB, which commissioned the study, says: “We have seen a rising trend of multi-generational households, with grown-up children opting to stay with their parents while they save money for their own homes.”
