Majority of Brits want to change something about their home

The majority of people in the UK are not content with their homes. New research suggests that over 80 per cent of people want to change something about their property.

From getting round to fixing those home essentials to boosting a property’s value, there are a number of reasons why people may wish to change something about their home.

The survey revealed some interesting answers among respondents when asked ‘ what would you change about your home?’.

According to the latest figures by Everest Home Improvements, a staggering 82 per cent of people want to change something about their home. Being eco-friendly, reducing energy bills and essential home maintenance are all high on the list for improvements, but the number one reason why people want to make changes to their home is so that it looks better.

An online poll following the Ideal Home Show, which Everest sponsored, found that, unsurprisingly, women are keener than men to change features in their home. The study shows that 85 per cent of women want to change something about their home compared to 76 per cent of men.

The reason behind home improvement varies significantly from wanting to improve living standards, to making the house safer. Making our homes safer appears to be the least of the nation’s concerns with only three per cent of respondents listing this as their main motive for improvements.

Of those surveyed, the majority of people who want to change their home are aged 35-54. A massive 92 per cent of respondents in this age group want to alter their home in some way, compared to 72 per cent of those aged 18 to 34.

Making their homes look nicer is a high priority for Brits as nearly a third (30%) of respondents claimed that they want to make alterations to improve their homes’ appearance.

Regionally, the Midlands and Wales are home to the highest percentage of people looking to change something in their property. The study revealed that 84 per cent of people who do want to make changes are from the Midlands and Wales.

Those from Northern Ireland are least likely to change anything in and around their homes, as 25 per cent of respondents from this region are happy with their properties, followed closely by Southerners.

The respondents who want to change things about their home are mostly educated to CSE/O level with 88 per cent of them having this level of qualification. Over 75 per cent of those had A Levels as well. Nearly a third of those surveyed (32 per cent) who are looking to change something about their home earn between £20,000 and £29,000 per annum.

The survey suggests that both those on lower and higher incomes are looking to change things about their home.  A significant 75 per cent of people earning less than £10,000 a year want to make home improvements and 85 per cent of respondents earning between £80,000 and £89,000 want to do the same.

The research highlights that the higher the number of people in the home, the more likely they will be to want to improve the property. For example, 74 per cent of households with two people want to make changes, 86 per cent of households with three people and 91 per cent of households with four people want to make improvements.

The cost of living is soaring for many and a number of households are finding it difficult to cope financially. It might come as no surprise then that a number of homeowners want to find cost cutting measures to reduce household bills, such as installing double-glazing or solar panels. The research revealed that 16 per cent of people want to improve their home purely to reduce their expenditures on energy bills.