A new survey of more than 2,600 respondents offers a strong indication of what buyers want from housebuilders and estate agents. 

The Consumer Insights Survey, carried out by Zoopla, captured the views of those who have either bought a home in the last 18 months or intend to buy one over the next 18 months. 

The study found that there is a clear correlation between buyers’ overall satisfaction with the purchase process and the speed of the transaction once an offer has been accepted.

Buyers who had a ‘very good’ or ‘good’ experience typically saw the process between offer accepted and exchange take less than half the time compared to those who had a ‘poor’ experience (65 versus 138 days).

Interestingly, the purchase process also varies by buyer group, with older households – who are perhaps more selective with their requirements – taking some 240 days from initial search to exchange and families taking just 160 days on average. For the pre-family audience, where affordability is a more significant concern, buyers typically take 203 days from search to exchange.

Almost 70% of new-build respondents said energy efficiency was an ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ important factor in their decision to buy a new home. That compares to 41% of resale respondents.

However, the majority of respondents underestimate the cost savings of moving to a highly-rated EPC home. A third of respondents estimated a new home offered annual savings of 20% or less compared to an average resale house. And, one in ten respondents simply ‘didn’t know’ what the savings might be. The correct figure is 52%, highlighting the knowledge gap around the potential cost savings of living in an EPC rated ‘A’ or ‘B’ property.

Some 94% of all respondents want some form of parking at their new home, with off-road parking – either a garage or a driveway a preference for the majority. Outdoor space is also a key consideration for buyers with 84% of respondents saying they wanted a garden – and 45% of this group saying they would like a large garden.

This has been a long-term requirement for buyers since before the pandemic – with ‘gardens’ and ‘garages’ remaining the top 2 keyword searches on Zoopla among new home and resale buyers over the last 3 years.

Alex Rose, director of new homes at Zoopla, said: “Our Consumer Insights survey provides agents and builders with a range of actionable insights to inform new homes strategies and the marketing of new homes. One key take-away is the importance of energy rating to new home buyers at a time when energy bills are rising.

“We see a real opportunity for builders to push the green credentials of homes compared to the wider resale market which is one of the key benefits of buying a new home.”