Renovating because of the pandemic

Few of us will ever have spent as long staring at the same four walls as we have done in 2020. Coronavirus restrictions have scuppered holiday plans and seen almost a quarter of the UK workforce set up a permanent office at home. No wonder the number of second mortgages taken out, doubled over summer as Britons funded a renovation spree.

If you decide to join them, you will be in good company. Last year, more than half of UK homeowners tackled a renovation project, which saw them smartening up three rooms apiece on average. That trend is continuing. B&Q’s sales were up by a fifth as we entered autumn 2020 and Screwfix did even better. This is a mixed blessing, as it could mean you have trouble sourcing the supplies you want.

Kingfisher, which owns both B&Q and Screwfix reported that it is seeing “strong demand levels within the paint, decorating materials, outdoor, building materials and kitchen ranges, where vendors are challenged in keeping up with high demand levels. These issues are being driven by a combination of capacity constraints and extended lead times from their raw material suppliers. In addition, the pandemic continues to place a considerable strain, industry-wide, on the international logistics infrastructure. We expect these challenges to continue for at least the next six months”.

So, decide at the outset whether you are prepared to wait for the tiles and paint you really want to become available – or if you would prefer to compromise.

Renovating because of pandemic
Renovating because of pandemic

Designing the do-everything home

Curbs on what we can do and where we can socialise are driving current renovation trends. Money.co.uk found that, if money was no object, a quarter of Newcastle homeowners would build a home pub, and the same number in Birmingham would build themselves a gym. There is also a trend towards setting up a more formal home office space, and somewhere to store a bike now that we are all driving less.

Ring, famous for its Internet-connected doorbells, found that 57% of consumers have adapted their homes over the last year, with one in five converting their living room or garage into a work area.

Ikea found a similar desire for domestic workspaces. Its 2020 Life at Home report revealed that “we want our homes to support lots of activities. From new hobbies like reading and gardening to bigger lifestyle changes like a space to work from home.” It is worth bearing this in mind when renovating – particularly if moving home is part of your post-pandemic plan and you don’t currently live near a major city.

The Ikea research cited earlier revealed that 33% want a study or home working space, and 47% would consider moving further from their place of work for a better home. If your property delivered that, on top of an attractive home office, it might not stay on the market for long.

Renovating the garden

If you don’t like the idea of living in a building site, this is the ideal time to think about developing your outdoor space. Summer is behind us and plants are going to sleep for the winter, so you can trim back trees and bushes to make the space you need for more serious groundwork. It also means that everything will be in place to enjoy your improved outdoor space by the time spring rolls around.

Homes & Gardens identified 20 trends for garden design in 2020, including bringing the indoors out and installing creative seating and patio daybeds. Ideal Home had similar ideas, with tips for interior decor used outdoors, and designing a ‘fifth room’ by your French windows.

However, we would also recommend developing some working and workout spaces if you have room. Pilates in the garden might not be tempting right now, but it could be in May if the gyms are still closed – and a log cabin office could well be the working retreat you need when your partner or kids aren’t giving you the peace you need to work in the house.

The dangers of doing it yourself

It (almost) goes without saying that you should always take care when undertaking renovation work yourself, but the advice is even more pertinent when the health service is already under strain. Almost 5,000 of us were admitted to hospital with DIY injuries last year which, as NHS England points out, is “a rise of more than 7% as people have been inspired by TV programmes such as DIY SOS, Grand Designs and 60 Minute Makeover.”

Don’t let that put you off, though. If you are adapting to part time hours, you have been furloughed, or you are lucky enough to be doing your regular job from home, you may have been able to reclaim some hours, even if it is only through cutting out the commute. Put them to good use and you could soon be enjoying a home that better suits the way we live today.

If you are looking to make some home improvements, you may find some of these services useful