Recent studies show that UK homes have an average of 15% unutilised space. With the average house price of £226,906, this equates to thousands of wasted pounds both inside and outside the home – an average £34,000 of wasted space. The main underutilised areas being the attic, spare rooms and the garden shed. Eye-opening? Definitely!
Why the Waste?
So, why all the unused space? Surveys showed that one of the main reasons is lack of a good Wi-Fi signal in certain areas of the home causing homeowners to simply underutilise the space. A huge 96% of people who took part in the surveys agreed that a good Wi-Fi signal was important to them and following this a quarter also said they would be willing to pay an extra £12,000 for a home with no Wi-Fi blackspots! Of course, most of us can’t freely move to a home without a blackspot. So, what can we do to be making more use of the space that we have?
Enter the Wi-Fi Booster
We’ll start off with the easiest one. If wi-fi signal (or lack of it) in some areas of your home is the reason for unutilised space a wi-fi booster may just be the answer to your prayers. These nifty little devices cost as little as £20 (the higher end models around £130) and can be placed in areas of the home to extend your signal. Not all boosters are created equal, so we’d urge you to do some research and invest in one that suits your needs. After all, if a couple of wi-fi boosters costing around £200 can save you wasted space of £34,000 then that’s surely got to be a good investment?
Assuming the Wi-Fi booster works, you can now think about actually using the previously unused spaces in your home.
(see here for a range of boosters)
Garden Shed Makeover
When it comes to the garden shed, we’re all guilty of thinking inside the box; lawn mower, gardening equipment and old toys are just some of the things we’d usually store here. From this it can then begin to turn into a bit of a dumping ground and can lead to unnecessary clutter. However, with a bit of imagination (and some hard work) you really can turn your shed into something spectacular. Invest in some hooks to hang your gardening equipment and why not invest in some seating that doubles up as storage. Add a work table, some shelving and straight away you’ve got a more inviting space to use in the warmer months for some DIY, gardening or even entertaining.
An Inviting Attic Space
The garden shed makeover leads us on nicely to our next area for a revamp: the attic. This is another highly underutilised space which has so much potential. Think about how much open floor space you have and what you could be doing up there. The attic can often seem like an area that’s disconnected from the rest of the family so why not use this to your advantage and create a cinema room or relaxation space.
Invest in a Sofa Bed
Another area of the home majorly underutilised is the guest bedroom(s). An easy way to make this more liveable when you don’t have guests staying over is the addition of a simple sofa bed. The addition of some cushions will easily transform this into an inviting quiet space where you can wind down with a good book or just have some alone time.
Still Not Using the Space? Do You Really Need It?
Got to this point and still not using the full space in your home? Then maybe this raises the question of whether you actually need the extra space after all. Remember decluttering and downsizing is always an option and could save you a lot of money. That’s where self storage can help.
We have a variety of storage options available for those extra items if you’re considering downsizing. Call or email us any time for advice on what space you might need and how it all works.
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