10
Nov
The benefits of a luxury home with a garden
For many people, a garden is one of the essential requirements of
any luxury home. After all, even the least green fingered among us
will usually enjoy eating brunch in a garden on a warm summer's
morning.
Even now, with the dark, winter months upon us, a garden is still
seen as key to many property purchases. In fact, the recent Post
Office Mortgages Homebuyers Report found that outside space is the
most important feature when it comes to a property itself.
Green spaces were rated as the second most important deciding
factor for people purchasing a new home, coming in just after being
close to family members and before a low crime rate and good
community feel, the study shows.
Nearly a quarter of people looking for a new home said they would
be willing to pay extra to secure a garden or roof terrace.
A similar study by Halifax also found that that their garden was
the most important feature for 24 per cent of people when they
bought their current house.
According to the research, four in ten homeowners (42 per cent) in
the north-east and 36 per cent in Wales admitted they chose their
current home because it offered a large garden.
However, homeowners who opt for a high-end property with a garden
will pay more for the privilege.
Speaking to the Times, George Franks, the head of estate agents
Douglas and Gordon in Clapham, South London, said a south-facing
garden can increase a property's value by between two and ten per
cent.
Homes with large gardens will be in the
minority
Even though people are on the lookout for a luxury property with a
large garden, it is becoming more and more difficult to find homes
with a sizable green space, particularly in urban areas.
A recent report from Lloyds TSB Home Insurance predicted that
private outdoor space looks set to disappear in some urban areas by
the end of the next decade.
The average plot size has fallen by a quarter since the mid-1960s,
the study said, because homeowners have been selling off plots to
developers.
Over 670,000 homeowners have sold off land to developers in the
last ten years, according to the research, while 32 per cent of
Brits have seen buildings erected on garden space in their
community.
How to make the most of your garden
It's not surprising that gardens are a key property requirement for
many people. After all, it is possible to refurbish and redecorate
a home, but it is usually much harder to increase the space of a
garden.
Despite this, it is always possible to give any garden a makeover,
whether your high-end property comes with a roof terrace, small
garden or large expanses of lawns.
In the past, many people opting for high-end property looked to buy
houses with a modern garden, but this is now changing.
According to Thomas Hoblyn, from the Society of Garden Designers,
people are increasingly opting for gardens with a more traditional
feel.
"There is a big, strong revisit to this retro 70s and 80s feel
about things that I have noticed this winter. There is definitely a
retro feel about things. Chrysanthemums used to be considered
really tacky, but now they are everywhere this winter," he
said.
Another fashionable addition which people looking for a new home
should keep an eye out for is wallflowers, which bloom in late
spring.
Mr Hoblyn said that, while these are traditionally seen as a plant
from the 1980s, they have also become much more popular this
year.
However people choose to accentuate their garden, they can rest
assured that green space won't go out of style any time soon.
