Blog>News>Three in five homeowners to undertake a home 'tweakment' over a big renovation*
Last updated: 7 October 2022
Three in five homeowners to undertake a home 'tweakment' over a big renovation*
Checkatrade reveal the small home improvements to give your home a facelift on a budget.
Fast Facts
New research from Checkatrade reveals the resilience of UK homeowners as they refuse to fully sacrifice home improvements despite the rise in cost of living.
Almost half (46%) of Brits intend to make changes to their home this year, but three in five are opting for smaller jobs over big renovations.
The top tweakments are painting walls (25%), laying new carpet (18%) and painting fences and ceilings (17% respectively).
Despite tightening of purse strings, Brits are still set to spend on average over £2,400 on home improvements this year.
New research out from Checkatrade reveals how Brits are refusing to sacrifice home improvements despite the cost-of-living crisis (23%).
The study of 2,000 UK homeowners found that Brits still see value in refreshing their homes, with almost half (46%) intending to make changes to their home this year, but budget is still top of mind, with three in five opting for smaller jobs instead.
Larger renovation projects are taking a backseat, with almost half (46%) of homeowners postponing planned improvements. Top reasons include Brits having less funds (42%) and facing other financial priorities (34%).
Motivating factors for homeowners choosing tweakments over larger renovation projects include updating their homes’ style (33%), adding value (25%) and ultimately to save money (23%). Aside from saving money, the benefits of smaller home improvements are far-reaching – homeowners cite that making tweakments to their home helps to keep them motivated (18%) and allows them to test out styles before making bigger changes (17%) to their homes.
Trending tweakments
Almost a quarter (24%) admit they can’t imagine not doing any work in their home for a period of time, with the average homeowner only going eight months in their current property without making any changes to it.
Instead, homeowners are planning, on average, five small changes to their homes this year with painting walls (25%), laying new carpet (18%) and painting fences and ceilings (17% respectively) amongst the most popular tweakments.
The top 20 small jobs that homeowners are keeping busy with this year include:
Paint walls
New carpet
Paint fence
Paint ceilings
Wallpapering
Paint skirting boards
New light fitting
Re-grout / replace bathroom tiles
Hang curtains/blinds
Paint/oil interior doors
Paint a shed
Paint stairs
New plug sockets
New hard flooring
New front door
Update kitchen sink
Replace kitchen worktops
Hang shelves
Change/update doorknobs
Paint / upcycle garden furniture
Home improvement investment
Further outgoings which have prevented Brits from undertaking planned renovations include utility bills (27%) and family expenses (21%). Despite this, over three quarters (78%) still hope to tackle larger renovations in the next five years, with bathroom (22%), kitchen (21%) and garden remodelling (19%) the most desired.
Even with budgets tightening, homeowners have already spent an average of £2,053 this year and expect to spend a further £2,413 in the next 12 months; proving that whilst our purse strings might be tighter, Brits still see value in refreshing their homes.
Mike Fairman, CEO at Checkatrade said,
"Whether it’s giving a living room a new lease of life with a lick of paint or freshening up a bathroom by re-grouting tiles, keeping up with smaller and more affordable improvements means we can continue to keep our homes in top shape.
These small changes are something we expect to see throughout 2022 as homeowners continue to navigate the rising costs of living and save up for larger home improvements. However, with 55% intending to tackle big renovation projects themselves; we would encourage homeowners to not be tempted to take any short-cuts and to turn to only reputable and vetted experts to support in any home improvement changes."
*A study of 2,000 adults who own a home found that 46% intend to make changes to their home this year, but three in five are opting for smaller jobs over big renovations.
