There are several reasons why a garden room would not only be a great addition to your property but also increase its market value. If you are looking for a short answer, then yes. A garden room would pay for itself when sold, covering the installation cost and it’s cheaper and faster than building an extension. So, go forth, design, build and enjoy your garden room!
But if you are looking for the “how’s” and “why’s”, then stick around.
What is a big garden, but big possibilities?
Big gardens themselves are always a plus when it comes to property ownership: a place to relax and sunbathe in those long British summers… but gardens are more than that. They are a spark of possibility of what can be constructed there. A green canvas if you will. An extension could come to mind as your first option, but planning permission and months of life disrupting, sledge hammering inside your own house would make the project less appealing.
What is effective floor space and why does it matter?
Now, without getting too technical, there’s a difference between the “net floor space” and the “effective floor space” of your property. For example, the stairs that lead from your ground floor to the first floor are without any doubt part of the property, but they are not “usable space”. Your big garden is part of the property but is not “effective floor space”. A garden room would take part of that external area of your property and transform it into usable floor space, without all the hassle of an extension.
A garden room increases the floor space of your property in an easy and considerably inexpensive way.
How an estate agent will market your property?
When you look at your property you might see the dream of being a homeowner come true, life memories or simply just a monetary investment, but when an estate agent looks at a property he/she is looking for a product to sell. The way they understand a property is through features and floor space. A beautiful bay window, lovely chimney, granite countertops, a garden room… those are just a few features an estate agent will instantly notice, and make a mental note to add to your home brochure and specifically tell the property photographer to shoot. The more features your home has, the more an estate agent will love your property.
The more an estate agent loves your property, the more effort they will put on marketing.
Why is a garden room a prized feature?
The post pandemic era has introduced the world to a whole new set of challenges to the so called “work-life balance”. Routines have been disrupted and suddenly your house has become an office flooded with paperwork and an infinite number of zoom calls. Your “office” is now invaded with interruptions, like kids running around and the intermittent “do you want another cuppa?” of your significant other. All this can be mitigated with the addition of a garden room. Therefore, a property with a garden room already built creates more appeal to people looking to buy.
All work no play…
A garden room would not only appeal to potential buyers that work from home. Enter the debate between specialised vs general garden rooms. If you are thinking about building a garden room and then selling your property, ensure your garden room can be repurposed with little to no effort. Someone who wants a home gym would prefer an open space and maybe a big wall to set up a mirror, a photographer would want various light sources, a videographer or sound engineer would need several power sockets.
These features are not mutually exclusive, but just a drop in the ocean of possibilities of what a garden room can be and why someone would want one.
How to make a small investment and have a quick return?
The allure of having your property extended would be your first thought because value is calculated by square metres (or square feet), therefore a bigger property would as a fact be more expensive. But thinking outside of the box is profitable – most of the time. Because all the compounded benefits attached to having a garden room that we have mentioned would make your property value increase more than the cost of installing one.
Features upon features?
As mentioned before, a garden room is an enticing feature that would attract potential buyers to explore your property, and in turn think of it as an investment for themselves. The better the garden room is, the more important it becomes as a main selling point of your property. Think about insulation, floor heating, light sources, ranging from big windows to skylights, and power outlets. Those are just a few examples of add-ons that would make a regular garden room stand out and make it unique.
If you think about your property as a product to sell, the more appealing it is, the more customers will be interested on it.
Is installing a garden room a safe bet?
As soon as the pandemic began it was predicted that the housing market was going to lead the world’s economic recovery. People migrated from big unaffordable metropolis to smaller cities and towns where they could “start a new life”. People weigh up their options between a fixer upper, a work in progress or a property with fully realised potential, based on the impossible intersection in the Venn diagram of “what can I afford?”, “what do I need?” and “what do I want?”.
Yes, at the time of writing the housing market is booming, prices are rocketing and working from home is here to stay.
Quick recap: A garden room is not only a good return on investment, but also an effective way to add floor space to a part of your property that otherwise might not be fully taken advantage of. This would be more than just a home office, but a full home improvement that with some key add-ons would be a sure bet, raising market value.
And remember, the value of a product is increased by the amount of people interested in buying it. So a unique and functional garden room will appeal to the majority of potential buyers and you could have a bidding war on your hands!