Thanks to the pandemic, the home improvement market is changing fast. While homeowners are still opting for some classic renovations, demand is also growing for coronavirus-related improvements too.
In this article, we take a look at some of the home improvements homeowners are spending their money on in 2021. Check them out below.
Beautiful Outdoor Spaces
During the pandemic, many people began using their gardens as a sanctuary (partly helped by the beautiful weather). With the nation in lockdown, they suddenly needed a relaxing space that enabled them to get out of the house and enjoy the fresh air.
The data back this up. 39 percent of people say that they did more gardening during the pandemic. And 64 percent of people living in the UK say that they would no longer buy a home if it didn’t offer some kind of outdoor space.
Naturally, the urge to make landscaping improvements to homes followed. More than 47 percent of British residents said that they were planning on some sort of improvements to their gardens in 2021. Popular upgrades include things like creating vegetable patches, adding fencing or external lighting and planting new flowers and trees. Other popular improvements, such as adding decking or summer houses also saw a bump in demand during the pandemic.
Sustainability-Backed Upgrades
Homeowners are also becoming more concerned about the effects of their homes on the environment. For that reason, they are looking to make changes and upgrades to make them more eco-friendly. 57 percent of UK residents, for instance, said that they were adopting at least one of the following alterations to their lifestyle and home environment:
- Eating less meat
- Adding eco-friendly home improvements
- Recycling more of their waste
It would be premature, however, to say that the boom in eco-friendly home improvements was purely a consequence of changes in consumer attitudes. The government is also pushing the drive to greener homes with Green Homes Grants. This initiative is helping to reduce the cost of installing various energy-related home upgrades, including UPVC windows and doors, solar panels and roof insulation. According to data, around 4 percent of UK residents have applied for the scheme.
Eco-friendly home renovations take a variety of forms. Perhaps the most popular right now is upgrading a home’s insulation. According to data, homes can lose up to 40 percent of their heat because of a lack of insulating material in the attic and walls.
Homeowners are also increasingly opting for triple-glazing, currently the most advanced form of insulated glazing on the market. These work by reducing air flow and using low-conductivity gases, such as argon.
Homeowners are also investing heavily in solar panels. Solar roof tiles prices remain fairly high, in the £10,000 to £12,000 range. But the long-term savings are also fairly substantial, especially for homes with large roof areas and south-facing plots.
Renewable heating systems are becoming more popular too. Ground-source heat pumps, for instance, use buried pipes to provide energy for homes’ heating systems. These usually require digging up part of the garden and then using the thermal properties of the soil to conduct a small amount of energy for home use.
Home Offices
Home used to be where the heart is. But thanks to the pandemic, it is now where the office is.
Residential office space has become increasingly important. Up until now, many homeowners have been making do with working in the kitchen, spare bedroom, or dining room. But as remote work becomes the norm, many are looking to build physically separate spaces to differentiate their home and work lives. Offices in outbuildings in the garden, therefore, are becoming more popular. Home offices generally cost in the region of £6,000.
More Space
Lastly, the pandemic reminded many people that they want more space from their homes. In the UK, average square footage of residential properties is small. And this is something that has become apparent for people now that they are spending so much more time in their properties. Many are considering adding space to their properties by:
- Knocking through adjoining walls to increase the size of rooms
- Adding bespoke storage areas and utility rooms
- Creating more mult-functional spaces
- Adding extensions to the side or back of the property (read more about extensions here).
- Converting the loft
Data also suggest that people are planning on moving to bigger homes in the future. Around 25 percent of UK residents say that they want to move to a larger home in the next year. And around 39 percent say that they want more outdoor space than they have right now.
This article was written by https://www.surreybuildingprojects.co.uk/ leading builders in Surrey.
