Is your home good value for money?

Is your home good value for money?

There are many questions we can ask about the place we live in. Do I like it? Do I want to stay here? Should I extend it? and so on. But have you ever asked yourself whether you are getting good value for money from your home?

One way or another, our homes cost money, whether that’s in the form of rent or mortgage payments. Even if you’re fortunate enough to have paid off your mortgage, you paid out the money at some point. To get a very rough idea of how much your space costs you, take the last known market value of where you live, and divide it by the number of useable spaces.

So, for example:

House value   £300,000 / 6 spaces (3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, living room, kitchen) = £50,000 per space

You can be more precise, work out the square footage, give the living area a higher value than a WC, but the result is the same – we pay a lot for the spaces we live in. For most of us, in fact, our home will be the most valuable material asset we ever possess. And if we don’t make best use of that space, there are no refunds!

So how do you know if you are getting good value from your home? Here are some questions to ask yourself.

1. Is your space used as effectively as possible (for you and your life that is)?
2. Has a bedroom become a ‘dumping ground’ for things you don’t know where else to put?
3. Are there rooms left prepared for guests who visit for only a night or two every few months?
4. Do you run a business from home from a corner of your kitchen table?
5. Are your belongings well stored?
6. Are there ‘wasted’ spaces – corners behind TV’s for example, or storage you can’t access?
7. Are you storing items you no longer need or use?
8. Are you storing someone else’s belongings unnecessarily? (perhaps those of children who have their own homes now!)
9. Does your home make you feel happy when you return to it?

If the first thing that enters your head when you enter your home is a never-ending list of jobs to do, and you never seem to have enough room for your belongings, then you’re not getting great value for your investment.

To me, when you walk through your front door after a hard day, it should feel like your home gives you a great big hug. Your home is the place where you should be able to relax, feel safe, at peace, entertain, be inspired, have fun – when you can do all these and more your home is giving you good value for money.

Wondering where to start? Take a good look around your home and work out what bothers you most. Write a list, do some planning – then follow our blog and we’ll take you through the steps to getting great value from your home.

And if you need an objective eye to help you see the possibilities, give us a call, we’re always happy to help.