UK: Homeowners sitting on at least £791.bn in spare room value

From James Lockett ProperPR
Research from the game-changing property platform, Boomin, has revealed that the value of the nation’s spare rooms is estimated at at least £791.5bn, and that’s just those of us that admit to having two or more.
The research shows that: -
- The average spare room is currently valued at £42,000 in the current UK market, the equivalent value of 1.3 Bitcoins or just over the average annual London salary.
- London is home to the most expensive spare room value at £76,476, followed by the South East (£54,346) and the East of England (£49,211).
- Even in the North East where this value is at its lowest, homeowners are still sitting on a spare room value to the tune of £21,881 per room.
- Statistics from the English Housing Survey by the Office for National Statistics show that 38% of homes in England are under-occupied - meaning they have two or more spare rooms.
- With 24.7m homes across England, that’s 9.4m homes boasting two or more rooms that are largely surplus to requirement.
- Boomin estimates that, even at just two spare rooms in total, the current value of this spare space is a staggering £791.5bn - and that’s without counting those with just a single spare room.
- London again ranks top where this total spare room value is concerned, with the capital accounting for an estimated £211.2bn worth of spare rooms value, with the South East (£1.65bn) and East of England (£102.2bn) also exceeding £100bn.
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James Lockett
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ProperPR
A waste of space - Homeowners sitting on £791.bn in spare room value
Research from the game-changing property platform, Boomin, has revealed that the value of the nation’s spare rooms is estimated at at least £791.5bn, and that’s just those of us that admit to having two or more.
Boomin’s research found that 50% of us have one spare room within our homes. This spare space is currently valued at £42,000 per room in the current UK market, the equivalent value of 1.3 Bitcoins or just over the average annual London salary.
London is home to the most expensive spare room value at £76,476, followed by the South East (£54,346) and the East of England (£49,211). Even in the North East where this value is at its lowest, homeowners are still sitting on a spare room value to the tune of £21,881 per room.
However, statistics from the English Housing Survey by the Office for National Statistics show that 38% of homes in England are under-occupied - meaning they have two or more spare rooms. With 24.7m homes across England, that’s 9.4m homes boasting two or more rooms that are largely surplus to requirement.
Boomin estimates that, even at just two spare rooms in total, the current value of this spare space is a staggering £791.5bn - and that’s without counting those with just a single spare room.
To put that wasted value into perspective, £791.bn is more than the entire GDP of Mexico and enough to purchase 9,062,761 brand new Porsche 911s.
London again ranks top where this total spare room value is concerned, with the capital accounting for an estimated £211.2bn worth of spare rooms value, with the South East (£1.65bn) and East of England (£102.2bn) also exceeding £100bn.
One way to get your spare room generating value rather than wasting it is via the government’s rent a room scheme. This allows you to generate rental income up to a maximum threshold of £7,500 per year without paying tax. That’s £625 per month in rent for a room you may otherwise rarely use.


Notes:
- Boomin launched on 2 April 2021.
- Boomin was founded by Michael and Kenny Bruce and David Shepherd, who previously launched Purplebricks in 2014.
- Boomin is a unique marketplace providing property search and inspiration to home movers and improvers across the UK.
- Boomin has a world class internal team of close to 200 experts, including some 85 in technology, from leading digital businesses.
- Recognised as one of the UK’s most innovative and disruptive new businesses in the Startups 100 2021 list.
- Boomin is also innovating the way we value our homes with its unique SmartVal online valuation tool - which blends technology and data with local agent expertise to deliver the most accurate real-time online residential property valuation. It’s more accurate than digital valuations which are algorithm generated valuations based on historical data.
- Available 24/7, SmartVal generates valuation opportunities by connecting agents with local vendors and landlords much earlier.
Published January 20, 2022
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