Millions of Brits have no emotional attachment to their homes, seeing where they live as merely ‘four walls and a ceiling’ according to Alliance & Leicester Mortgages’ moving-improving index…

Just five per cent, or 2.3 million* adults are living in their dream home, leaving the majority of the population settling for less. A further 1.9 million (4%) do not have an emotional attachment to their property, seeing it merely as four walls and a ceiling.

The study asked Brits to rate on a scale of one to ten, how emotionally attached they were to their home. The results showed an average rating of 5.83 – meaning the majority of homes in the UK are regarded as ‘halfway houses’ - neither loved nor hated by their owners.

But living in Wales or East Anglia means there may be a bigger chance of finding a dream home, as these regions have the highest proportion of people (8%) scoring their property as a perfect 10. Conversely, just three per cent of Londoners are happy to give their home top marks.

One reason why the traditional idea of a house being a home is declining may be due, in part, to the increase in new build flats and cut price furniture stores springing up around the country.  A house can now be built and furnished in a matter of months with no thought attached to who might be living there.

Emotional detachment

With house buyers increasingly seeing their property as an investment, it is no wonder they are emotionally detaching themselves from their homes, and seeing it as a giant piggy bank rather than a place they can look at with fondness and memories.

Stephen Leonard, Director of Mortgages at Alliance & Leicester comments: “It seems people are happy to move into a property that isn’t their ideal, in order to move up the property ladder and reap the benefit of rising house prices. More and more people seem to be looking for property on the basis of an investment, rather than buying their dream home.”

Alliance & Leicester’s research demonstrates how the average ‘home rating’ looks around the country:

Not surprisingly, homeowners have a stronger emotional attachment to their home (6.41) compared to renters (4.48), but many of those still living with their parents seem pretty contented – to the tune of 6.18.

FTBs ‘flit around’

Despite the apparent low ratings, many homeowners are still expecting to stay in their current property for a further 20 years or more. However, first time buyers are evidently dissatisfied with staying put – those who are looking to buy only expect to stay at their present address for an average of three years and four months. It isn’t surprising as first time buyers have already lived in an average of 3.5 properties before they come to buy.

The research also looks at the factors people consider when choosing where to live, and the findings show that people are more likely to consider their career as a more important reason to put down sticks compared to the proximity of family and friends:

Top factors influencing choice of property

• Location (58%).
  
  
• Price (48%).
  
  
• Job/career (44%).
  
  
• Family/friends (31%).
  
  
• Transport accessibility (31%).
  
  
• Shopping/entertainment amenities (16%).
  
  
• Schools (16%).

Stephen Leonard concludes: “It’s not just the house that we live in that we aspire to buy, it’s also the location. Some house buyers are also clearly willing to sacrifice a home with a thatched roof, large garden or open plan living area, to live in a particular location. It’s no wonder some people are unattached to their property because they simply don’t see it as a long-term purchase.”