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Survey finds
⅓ of Brits
check up on friends' property values!
IT'S the topic of conversation at dinner parties all
across the land: how much is your property worth? We are, it's fair to say, a
nation obsessed with property value. It's hardly surprising, considering we're
one of the few European countries where being a homeowner; and aspiring to it;
is more common than being a renter. And what with property values tending to go
up (largely - recessions aside), we Brits see our homes as our nest egg, as well
as just our nest.
Estate Agents Keatons have surveyed 2,000 home owners in the UK to find out how
clued up we are about property values. And it turns out we're fairly savvy and
not just when it comes to our own! In fact, 36% of us have checked up on the
value of a friend, family member's, or neighbour's property, using an online
property valuation tool. This could be out of envy, or just plain curiosity,
but it goes to show we're a bit of a nosey nation when it comes to other
people's money.
Of these nosey parkers, men are more likely to check out the competition (we
imagine they don't like the idea that anyone they know is worth more than they
are?), while, regionally, those in the East Midlands (44%) are most likely to be
sniffing around their neighbours' property prices, followed by North West (41%)
and North East and in the South East (39%). Those in the East are the least interested in
finding out the value of property of their neighbours (24%).
Obviously, the most important property value to know is our own, and even
without specifically searching, 53% of us know how much our place is worth. And
we're also pretty optimistic about house prices; 32% of us think the value of
our property will go up this year; that's even despite Brexit and the
Trumpageddon! Of these positive souls, 64% are from the East of England.
21% of us are erring on the side of caution, and think our home's value will
stay static, while pessimists make up 7.2% of us, who believe our home value
will decrease; of those doom mongers, the most gloomy were from the North West
(23%). "It's a very British thing, to be preoccupied with property and prices. An Englishman's home is his castle, after
all! It's important to keep an eye on values, though; that way you know when the
right time to move, or improve, might be." says a Keatons spokesperson. |
