Majority of House Buyers Carry Out Work

When we first move into a new home, it’s important that it starts to feel like ours as soon as possible. House buyers are not generally satisfied with the level of work that was carried out by the previous owners, and many are deciding to tackle jobs straight away.

A new survey has highlighted the areas that house buyers tend to focus on when they first move in. Even though sellers often carry out some work before they put the property on the market, buyers generally want to put their own stamp on a property.

Make the Property Your Home

The research by TSB found that more than two-thirds of buyers spend as much as £2,500 on the initial work. Those that don’t do any work on a new property are in the minority, with 71% of people carrying out some degree of work. This can range from simple jobs, including painting, to large-scale renovations such as installing spiral staircases. Around a third of new buyers do some decorating and 15% fit new carpets. Then there are those buyers who want to carry out more substantial work, with 6% renovating the kitchen, 5% installing new heating and a further 5% having new windows installed.

When people buy a new property, many of them feel that the work is necessary before they will feel happy with their home. Almost half thought that the work they were doing was essential, and 27% wanted it to feel more like home.

They also have strong priorities when it comes to which rooms they tackle first, showing a preference for the areas they spend more time in. 37% of new home buyers will focus on the lounge as a matter of priority, followed by 18% who want to freshen up the bedroom. Next in the list of priorities is the kitchen with 16% of respondents and then the bathroom, which 8% of people would look at first.

Prioritising Finances

Moving house can be an expensive process anyway, and this becomes even more costly if there is work that needs to be done. When you first view a property, it’s important that you have a clear understanding of how much any essential work will cost. If necessary, take a builder along, so that they can provide an estimate for the work. This could potentially give