One in four want to make their home more sustainable

One in four want to make their home more sustainable to save money, and be more environmentally considerate in 2022

• 34% say that their cost of living has increased as a direct result of rising energy prices in the last 12 months, new research from Homevalue has revealed
  
• 14% of homeowners have already made plans to renovate their homes to be more sustainable in 2022, citing increased awareness of environmental impact
  
• 1 in 10 (10%) have already made sustainable upgrades

4th Feb 2022 – As we wave goodbye to January, many households have already started to upgrade and renovate their homes in 2022 with a view to being more sustainable this year. New research shows the nation’s growing appetite to live more sustainably, with over a quarter of homeowners (26%) saying that they would like to make their homes more sustainable and save some money in the process this year.

In fact, 14% of all adults polled said that they have already made plans to renovate their homes to be more sustainable this year, saying that the environment has become increasingly more important to them.

The survey from leading DIY, Hardware and Homeware group, Homevalue, further elaborated on the growing appetite to live in more sustainable households, with 1 in 10 saying they have already made renovations to their home to be more sustainable.

A further one third of people (32%) said that they would like to know more about the steps and measures they can take, to make their home more sustainable in 2022.

The new research comes on the back of rising energy prices for homeowners, with as many as 34% of people claiming that their cost of living has increased as a direct result of rising energy prices in the last 12 months.

Sustainable options

In addition to the growing appetite to learn more about sustainable home living, a fifth (21%) of adults said they are already aware and have some knowledge of, measures and steps available to make their homes more sustainable. In fact, 1 in 10 (12%) people said that they have already availed of some form of a grant, support, or scheme to update their home to make it more sustainable.

A further 16% of adults said they are aware of the grants or financial supports available to them to upgrade their homes. For those who wish to know more, a range of supports are available to homeowners, to make their homes more sustainable. These vary from grants and financial supports to smaller sustainable options, like portable and efficient heating upgrades and electric stoves.

Homevalue is encouraging the public to engage with their builder, tradesperson, or even local builders’ providers regarding the steps they can take to make their homes more sustainable in 2022. With 18% of people saying that builders and builders' providers could do more to proactively encourage people to make their homes more sustainable, Homevalue is making sure it plays its part.

Speaking about the research, Homevalue Sales Director Jason Doherty commented:

Long-term, many households would benefit financially from upgrading or renovating their homes to be more sustainable. With rising heating and energy bills for many, there are both small steps and larger steps we can support customers to take to help make their homes more sustainable, without putting a massive dent in their wallet.