£11,000 for your garden? Outside space now adds huge value to homes

Over the past year we've been spending more time at home than ever before, thanks to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

If you're lucky enough to have a garden, it's likely to have become a precious space to escape to.

Now, new research has revealed that as well as being a place to relax and entertain friends, outside space can actually add a huge amount to your property's value.

A study by the AA has revealed that having garden space on your property can lift its value by 5%.

The research looked at homes with and without gardens in 30 towns and cities across the nation to see where gardens are valued the most.

The findings revealed the average house price for properties of up to three bedrooms, with and without a garden, to assess how much of a difference there was between the two.

And it turns out people place a pretty high value on homes that come with outside space.

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Overall, the average home was valued at £209,525, but the price of homes of the same size that had gardens rose to an average of £220,555 - just over £11,000 more.

The top locations for a garden price bump include: Walsall, where a house is worth 16% more if it has a garden, Sunderland, where it’s 15% more and Liverpool, at 11% more.

While those are the best places for garden value in comparison to the house itself, Brighton is where a garden’s worth the most cash to wannabe homeowners.

Here, compared to an average house price of £379,259, a home with a garden in the south coastal town is worth £27,297 more, a 7% increase.

In the capital, however, it appears that properties with a garden are actually cheaper. This is potentially due to the rise in new-build flats and penthouses pushing the average price of all properties beyond those with gardens.

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London ranked as the area where garden space added the least value to property prices with the addition of a garden reducing prices by -£28,560.76.

Glasgow placed second with gardens adding 1% to property value, while Wolverhampton and Bristol were also close behind with gardens adding just 3% to property value.

While it's clear gardens can add £££s to property prices, additional research has revealed the pandemic has likely played a role in how much we value our outside spaces and how much we want to spend in upgrading them.

In a survey of over 1000 Brits, it was revealed that 60% of people had spent more on their gardens during the summer of 2020 than in 2019 - with over 40% spending over £100 more.

Welsh residents, in particular, spent more last year, with one in five saying they spent over £500 more in 2020 compared with the previous year.

Commenting on the findings, Jack Cousens from the AA said: “2020 was a tumultuous time for new and existing homeowners, so it is notable to see that gardens and green space are so highly regarded in terms of both the study and the survey.

"As a nation we are fairly apt with DIY and home improvement, so it will be interesting to see whether this trend will continue in 2021.”

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As well as adding value in terms of property prices, outside space has also provided many with other benefits for our health and wellbeing.

"As human beings, we evolved in natural environments, and as a species, we have thrived," explains Lee Chambers, environmental psychologist and wellbeing consultant.

"This affinity that we have for outdoor spaces plays a role in how nature boosts our wellbeing. Studies have shown that time in nature helps us regulate our emotions and maintain a state of increased positivity.

"Being exposed to nature has been identified as a way to improve mood and increase optimism and motivation for those with mild depression. Nature connection can lower our stress levels, according to studies that show being in nature reduces our cortisol levels."

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