A property expert looks at what you can do to boost the value of your home.
As we move to a period of higher interest rates, some experts suggest house price inflation will cool as the year progresses.
As a result, sellers are going to have to be canny about how they market their property and any attempt to add value.
The simplest way of potentially adding value is through home improvements.
Many owners have already been very busy doing this.
But the key to adding value comes in expanding actual space rather than mere cosmetic makeovers.
As such, loft conversions, digging out cellars, building extensions and developing garden plots are the real value-adding winners.
DIY crazy
Much of what is spent goes into updating the internal fabric of the house, on items such as kitchens, bathrooms and general decoration.
It is astounding how much money we, as a nation, are currently spending on maintaining our old and ageing housing stock.
According to research on DIY spending and building maintenance, the average annual spend appears to be around £6,400 a year.
This figure over a 50-year period of home ownership, with a property requiring modernising and repairing, could increase to a staggering £300,000.
In future years, we expect households to become increasingly aware of the costs of maintaining a home.
New is best
The current, low levels of house building mean that the average house will have to last around a thousand years before it is replaced.
As such, there is a lot of on-going repair and maintenance work to be done to the structural fabric of our housing stock.
"We could eventually start to see a combination of fashion and maintenance costs shaping house prices in certain areas"
However, the housing types that will cost the most to maintain will see values under-perform the market over the long term.
The rising cost of constantly rebuilding our houses is part of the continued polarisation of the housing market, between the most desirable and least desirable housing types and locations.
The prime (typically period housing) and new build sectors are likely to fare best.
Our aspirations to live in the best housing will support the scrabble to get onto the most desirable rungs of the ladder and provide a steady upward push on values in these two market segments.
Trend setting
Taking this a step further, can we expect certain types of housing to stay fashionable and stay standing long enough?
"Suburbs look set to be the focus of regeneration in decades to come"
It's a fundamental question but potentially crucial for those buying for ownership or investment with a long-term view.
We could eventually start to see a combination of fashion and maintenance costs shaping house prices in certain areas.
Price falls cannot be ruled out in the worst affected areas.
Changing patterns of demand and economic factors have already taken their toll on some housing markets in the northern regions of England.
Suburban renaissance
The markets, and house prices, in the South are likely to be underpinned by our inability to build enough homes.
Although large tracts of suburbia in southern towns and cities are generally poorly served by public transport, the sheer imbalance between supply and demand will add support to values.
However, in some cases, where there are very low density housing types, such as 1930's bungalows or post war semi's, the land the housing stands on could start to be worth more than the house itself.
This will eventually be spotted by investors and developers who will start to exploit the potential to add value to housing plots rather than the bricks and mortar that stand on each plot.
Whilst the city centres have been the focus of urban regeneration in the last decade, the suburbs look set to be the focus of regeneration in decades to come.
The opinions expressed are those of the author and are not held by the BBC unless specifically stated. The material is for general information only and does not constitute investment, tax, legal or other form of advice. You should not rely on this information to make (or refrain from making) any decisions. Always obtain independent, professional advice for your own particular situation
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