Homeowners plan to invest in structural changes

The slower housing market may be having a direct impact on the nation's plans to make the most of where they currently live as a fifth (21%) of British homeowners plan to undertake major structural changes to their properties in the next 12 months, according to Sainsbury's Home Insurance.

The bank's new research puts the average amount to be spent per household at £17,361; although nearly a fifth (19%) of those planning works intend to spend more than £20,000, 4% plan to spend over £50,000 and 1% expect their works to cost between £100,001 and £200,000.

Sainsbury's Home Insurance warns that homeowners looking to undertake any structural changes that will increase the size of their property should inform their buildings insurer first in order to ensure that they are fully covered for the increased value of their home. When questioned, a third (33%) of people planning on carrying out structural works said that they were not aware that they had to inform their home buildings insurer before the works started.

Up to 5.3 million homeowners intend to undertake some sort of major structural work in the next 12 months. Of these, 1.3 million say they are planning on converting their loft or roof, 1.2 million will erect a conservatory and a further 950,000 are planning on a rear extension to their property.

Around 228,000 homeowners are planning on carrying out a basement excavation to create a new room, which is in line with a new trend that is emerging in city or town centres, where space is often at a premium.

Neil Laird, Home Insurance Manager, Sainsbury's Finance said: "In the current housing climate, creating extra space in your home is another option for those who have maybe decided to put their plans to move on hold. But, as buildings insurance premiums are calculated based on the type of house, for example the number of bedrooms it has, creating extra rooms can have an impact on your premium even if you have unlimited cover.

"We want to make sure that homeowners are aware that they could be left underinsured or even invalidate their insurance entirely in the event of an incident during or after the works if they have not informed their insurer first."

On a regional basis, rear extensions, conversion of outbuildings or conversion of an existing basement are most popular in Greater London with 364,000, 167,000 and 116,000 homeowners, respectively, planning to carry out these works in the next 12 months.

Conservatories are most popular in the South East / Anglia (397,000) and Loft or Roof conversions are planned by the most people in the North West (260,000). Side extensions are most likely to be carried out in the North East / Yorkshire and Humberside region (256,000) as are basement excavations to create a new room (84,000).

As well as being competitively priced, Sainsbury's Home Insurance offers an extensive range of cover and benefits. This includes:

Unlimited buildings cover
20% discount online when buying buildings and contents cover together
Unlike some home insurers, Sainsbury's Bank does not apply charges for customers paying their premiums by direct debit
Maximum no-claims discount of up to 30% as standard
No-claims discount protection
Cover for accidental damage - even by pets