London New Homes are 20% smaller than in the 70’s
Research by LABC Warranty shows that new homes are being built a lot smaller than in the 70’s. London is coming in at the top of the polls with newly built homes in London the smallest in the country. The average new home is only 56 sq m. This is less than the size of 5 car parking spaces. The average bedroom size in the capital is now a mere 7.6 sq m. This is two thirds the size of one car parking space. Basically sleeping in your car could afford you more scope than your bedroom.
Living Rooms almost 33% smaller
The average living room is almost a third smaller and the average kitchen is now a quarter smaller than it’s 70’s counterpart. Even with our fascination for island kitchens, preparation space and seating we are squeezing more into less space.
Research shows that we have less bedrooms now also. With the average bedrooms per property peaking at 3.6 in the 1980’s we are now down to 2.9 bedrooms at the moment. Not only is the number of bedrooms per property lower but the size of each bedroom is also smaller. What does mean for us in the capital?
Demand for affordable new London homes is driving the size reduction
With demand for new homes at a critical level in London there is pressure to provide affordable homes to those on lists. As a result the size of new homes has shrunk to meet these demands. Growing land and commercial property prices has also fuelled this trend to build small.
While guidelines were brought in giving minimum size standards in 2015, these are voluntary. With 8000 studio flats smaller than 37 sq m sold last year it seems people are eager to accept the situation as it is. If buying a smaller property gets us closer to the workplace, leaves us less maintenance and supports our lifestyles then we seem to be happy to do so. People starting a family in these small spaces will ultimately rethink their decision and perhaps trade up. Time will tell.
Interested in buying or selling property in SW8?
With properties both big and small on our books we have something for everybody at Henry Wiltshire Nine Elms. Click on the links below and get in touch with us. Whether you want to buy or sell we can help you.
