This research is a collaboration between the NHBC Foundation and Savills to understand what people are looking for in a new-build home. Feedback was obtained from an electronic survey questionnaire that was sent to 14,000 people on the NHBC New Homes Community Panel* who had purchased a new home since 2014.

The survey participants were asked to gauge what was important to them when choosing their new home, with questions exploring:

1. The features of the home itself (such as number of bedrooms, design of living space, location).

2. Considerations specific to a new-build purchase (such as Help to Buy, new home warranty and minimum maintenance).

3. Parking, how many cars they owned and how they travel to work and to amenities.

4. The amenities they believed were important to have close to their home.

Our analysis has looked specifically at what people rated as ‘very important’ within the survey to find out what they were prioritising in their buying decision.

We also requested feedback from a select group of industry contacts to see how the results aligned with trends seen in their work; we have included some of their comments within the report.

The Sample

Over 38% (5,407) of households responded to the survey. There was good representation across Great Britain (Figure 1), however the distribution does not accurately align with the proportions of new homes being built in the regions, with London under-represented in the sample.

^{Source: Savills Research & NHBC Foundation}

The age profile of the survey respondents is shown in Figure 2, compared with a national age profile of new homeowners based on NHBC statistics. The sample in this study may be slightly under-representing the priorities of younger owners and over-representing the priorities of owners over 45.

^{Source: Savills Research & NHBC Foundation}

The distribution of home types in the sample is shown in Figure 3. Compared to the current national housing output, apartments are under-represented in this sample (by about 15%) and detached homes over-represented (by about 22%). The average home size in the sample, measured by bedroom number (Figure 4) is 3.4, higher than the average number of bedrooms estimated for new homes, estimated to be 2.7 [1].

^{Source: Savills Research & NHBC Foundation}

^{Source: Savills Research & NHBC Foundation}

To explore the market in more detail, the sample of purchasers is divided into three location categories (see below). The sample distribution across these locations is shown in Figure 5. To provide further insight, we have analysed according to the underlying reason for purchase, whether related to getting onto the property ladder, upsizing, downsizing or relocating (Figure 6).

^{Source: Savills Research & NHBC Foundation}

^{Source: Savills Research & NHBC Foundation}

This additional analysis helps us to understand what is important to buyers in different locations and with different lifestyle objectives. Finally the survey provides the age distribution of the different purchaser types (Figure 7), giving additional context when considering their responses.

^{Source: Savills Research & NHBC Foundation}

Our three location categories

High-density urban markets

■ These markets are high-density residential areas with some retail and commercial space integrated into them, such as a high street. Our sample included major city centres such as London, Birmingham and Manchester as well as central locations in towns such as Harrogate (North Yorkshire).

■ There was a higher proportion of first-time buyers here than in other markets – accounting for 29% of the sample compared to 19% in suburban markets.

■ Homes here were more likely to be smaller properties; a quarter of our respondents had bought a two-bedroom property in these locations, compared with just 11% in more suburban locations. Likewise, 30% of properties bought here were apartments, compared to just 6% of the properties in the suburbs.

Medium-density urban markets

■ These markets include medium-density residential areas with amenities, as well as regenerated industrial and retail sites. Our sample included regenerated industrial sites such as in Newport (Gwent) and Dartford (Kent) and medium-density residential areas such as Stevenage (Hertfordshire).

■ Buyers in these markets were found to be slightly younger than elsewhere, with 27% aged under 35 against an average of 22% across the sample.

■ Only 16% of properties in these locations were apartments, and the houses were more likely to be smaller (one-, two- or three-bedroom) than in the high-density and suburban locations. Buyers were therefore paying a lower average price for their property than in other markets.

Suburban/urban fringe markets

■ These markets are lower-density residential areas, with 91% of this sample located within 3km of an urban area. Our sample included suburbs of larger urban areas such as Solihull (West Midlands) and the outskirts of Aberdeen (Aberdeenshire), and urban extensions such as at Aylesbury (Buckinghamshire) and south Cambridge (Cambridgeshire).

■ There were more families in this market: 36% of respondents in the suburbs have children compared to 30% in high-density urban areas.

■ With a higher proportion of families, buyers were purchasing larger homes in this market than elsewhere. 53% of properties here have four or more bedrooms, compared to 39% of properties in higher-density urban markets.

^{*The New Homes Community Panel is run by NHBC. It is a voluntary initiative for homeowners who have registered an interest in taking part in research surveys.}