The average new three bedroom home currently being built by the UK's top house builders is around 8% smaller than the basic recommended minimum size depriving thousands of families the space needed for children to do homework, adults to work from home, guests to stay and for members of the household to relax together.
A RIBA report exposes the lack of transparency existing around the size of UK homes – details are simply not recorded or publicly available. Home buyers repeatedly fail to get detailed information about properties for sale or rent, and are rarely given the overall floor area; consumers can therefore be left confused about the actual amount of space they are purchasing.
The RIBA's Case for Space report, based on 80 sites across England, reveals:
- The floor area of the average new three bedroom home is only 92% of the recommended minimum size, therefore missing the space equivalent to a single bedroom which could comfortably accommodate a single bed, bedside table, wardrobe, desk and chair. With a floor area of 88m², the average house is 8m² short of the recommended size (the benchmark for comparison is the London Plan space standards for a 2 storey, 3 bedroom home big enough for 5 people).
- The most common new three bedroom home is smaller still at 74m². At only 77% of the recommended size it is missing 22m² and therefore the space equivalent to two double bedrooms and all their contents.
- The average single storey one bedroom home is 46m², which is 93% (4m² short) of the recommended minimum size – missing out on space equivalent to a single bed, a bedside table and a dressing table with a stool.
Figures exposing the lack of choice and information available to home buyers have been released to coincide with the launch of a new national housing campaign and inquiry led by the RIBA to build a comprehensive picture about what people want and need from their homes.
The RIBA's HomeWise campaign calls for:
- Consumers to be home-wise and demand better information from estate agents and house builders so they can choose the most ideal layout, size and design of their new home
- Housebuilders, providers and estate agents to include the floor area of properties in their marketing material and indicative floor plans with furniture as well as the number of bedrooms
- Energy performance certificates - including floor area - to be provided up-front rather than only after contracts have been signed, which is too frequently the case
- The government to work with the house building industry to produce an industry-wide voluntary agreement to ensure house builders publish data about the size and quality of new homes.
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