- One in ten Brits can’t settle into a new home until WiFi is connected
- Men are twice as likely to want to redecorate sooner than women
- It takes Brits 90 days for a new house to feel like a home
7 March 2015: New research from homeware-for-less retailer HomeSense has revealed the redecoration habits of the nation which shows that on average, Brits redecorate their homes after just 2 years 4 months – but stop bothering to redecorate at 64. The research also highlights that 23% refresh their home decor more than once a year – though one in twenty of us confess to having the same interior décor for more than twenty years!
The HomeSense report supports the latest Housing Market Confidence Tracker from Halifax, which shows that 2016 is a good year to move home. The report also looks into the redecoration habits of new homeowners…
- Typically we allocate £1,500 to redecorating in the first year of owning a new house
- 10% redecorate before moving in
- …and 25% get it all done in the first month
Moving home is said to be one of life’s most stressful experiences and more than one in ten of us (12%), admit that a new house doesn’t really feel like a home until we’ve installed WiFi. Whilst technology charts highly on the agenda for how to make a new house feel like a home, over a third of us (34%) only feel at home once we’ve decorated – typically for most Brits within the first 90 days.
The research, which polled 2,000 men and women from ages 18 to over 60, also highlights the stylish have and have-nots when moving into a new home. With more Brits renting their homes than ever before (47% in 2015 – Mintel), the research supports an emerging trend for us to ‘spruce’ up their home, rather than redecorate entirely. With new deliveries in-store every day at up to 60% less than the RRP, HomeSense helps new homeowners and renters refresh their homes with unique and personal accessories, rather than needing to redecorate entirely.
| Items we want to change | Most desirable items | |
| 1 | Black-painted woodwork (48%) | Plants/flowers 40% |
| 2 | Patterned carpets (45%) | Photo frames 32% |
| 3 | 1970s tiling in kitchen or bathroom (44%) | Artwork 27% |
| 4 | Coloured bathroom suite (37%) | Real wood flooring 27% |
| 5 | Dark wood kitchen cupboards (31%) | Open fireplace 25% |
| 6 | Lino flooring (29%) | Wallpaper 24% |
| 7 | Artex ceilings (26%) | Wallmounted flat screen 22% |
| 8 | Pebbledash exteriors (15%) | Range cooker 13% |
| 9 | Brass-coloured door handles (9%) | Induction hob 11% |
| 10 | White power sockets (8%) | Wireless speaker system 11% |
Interestingly, 57% of Brits admit they are stuck in an interior style rut and one in ten of us admit they are too scared to use colour in their homes.