Not Building A Garden Room is Like Throwing Money Down The Drain

You have probably had people tell you that you should invest in your property because that’s what potential buyer’s want.

Well, building a garden room was the in thing in 2021, and it does add a bucket load of money to your property value.

The question is, should you be spending £15,000? £20,000? or even £30,000 on a bespoke outhouse in your garden?

Well, estate agents think you should.

Properties with a garden room in Hertfordshire generate over 3x the amount of buyer leads compared to a property of the same size, condition, and location that does not have one.

The proof is there!

We have spoken to many estate agents that have handled properties with & without outhouses, and they all say the same thing.

A good quality garden room increases a properties value.

But beware, as some homeowners don’t spend the money on a quality outbuilding, they struggle to get a good return on their investment.

It is like anything.

People pay for quality, and quality garden rooms pay you.

So, a cheap garden room will probably pay itself off, which isn’t a bad thing.

But for a few thousand more, you might double or even triple the money you spend on a high-quality garden room.

Imagine that. You spend £20,000 for a room that is detached from your property. And it increases your property value by £40,000, £50,000, or even £60,000.

Not only have you added a usable structure to your life, but you have also spent significantly less than someone that builds an extension on their property.

Why does a garden room add so much value to your house?

Where else do you get a detached, low maintenance structure that can last over 20-years with no expenditure (other than a little bit of internal painting) for £15,000-£30,000.

The answer is – nowhere!

Building an extension now costs in the region of £50,000, and that is if you make minimal changes to your existing property.

But most people doing an extension will want to knock through structural walls, expand their kitchen and probably do a few more things.

This is where the real costs of an extension will hit home.

Once you do these few extra things, you can say goodbye to spending £50,000 and hello to £90,000 plus.

So what is the cheaper alternative to extending your house?

A garden room.

The rooms in your garden have a massive amount of uses, and the best thing about them is that they are cheap and usable all year round.

We have clients that need these rooms for every purpose you could imagine.

The most popular uses are garden offices and home gyms.

But, we also have clients that need art/dance studios, playrooms, mancaves, and even garden bars.

The potential use of these garden rooms is endless.

One of our clients recently built a garden room for his daughter in Hertfordshire as a combination art studio/garden office, so she had no distractions and could get on with her uni work.

Anyway, let’s get back to why a garden room is worth the money.

Imagine spending £7,000 on a cheaper alternative to a good garden room.

Sure, you will get additional space, but you will most likely have a structure similar to a shed.

You could end up with a garden structure that you will not use all year round and something that you will have to force yourself to use in the winter months.

What a waste of money!

If you only need a room for the short summers in the UK, that could work perfectly.

However, if this garden room is needed all year, you want it to be comfortable and offer a good environment to work in, spend the extra money!

Another reason to spend the money is quality.

Most of these cheaper alternatives will come with very thin insulation. We have seen them with walls as thin as a jumper.

Most of these cheaper alternatives don’t come with foundations, so you will probably have issues with dampness or rot, especially if you are receiving flat-pack cladding that needs treating every 6-months.

The other issue is they may not be fit for everyone’s purpose.

So when spending in the thousands on a garden structure. Consider spending a little more on a composite garden room, and you can be sure to see that money plus a profitable return in the future.

Should you buy a composite garden room?

Well, this is something that you need to weigh up.

You might need the space, so the answer is yes.

You might want to invest in property but not have enough for an additional deposit. So, why not reinvest in your home and build an outhouse in your garden?

Will leaving £20,000 in the bank grow to £50,000 by the time you sell your house?

Probably not.

But will the investment of building a garden room add additional value to your property?

Yes, it will.

But how is that possible?

Potential buyers want something different.

How many people do you know with a high-quality garden room?

The answer is most likely: not many.

This garden room craze all began a few years ago, and with Covid-19 forcing people to work from home, a quiet garden office is worth its weight in gold.

Look at it this way.

Most first-time buyers will struggle to have enough cash to buy a property.

However, they have saved and saved and finally have enough money to buy a house.

With the average house price in the UK being more than £250,000, a first-time buyer would need to have saved circa 10% of this amount for a deposit.

That is £25,000.

So how does this first-time buyer get their garden room when they have most likely put the bulk of their life savings into their deposit?

Well, they either save an additional £20,000, which could take years (especially as they are now paying for a mortgage).

Or, they could buy a house with a garden room already built for a fraction of that £20,000.

How does that work? How does a buyer spend less but get more?

If the buyer can get a larger mortgage and they see a property with a garden room, they will most likely pay more for the property.

Based on our research, that house could now be worth in the region of £300,000 (£50,000 more).

That’s right. A garden room could add in the region of 20% to your property value.

So, how do they buy it?

Well, 10% of £300,000 is £30,000, so if that buyer is able to get a larger mortgage, all they would have to find is an additional £5,000 to top-up their deposit.

This extra £5,000 is the 10% of the additional £50,000 they need to buy the more expensive house with a garden room.

And this is why it is more appealing.

Instead of £20,000, they only need £5,000 more.

That small difference in the deposit can give a buyer 10x more when using a mortgage to buy a house.

Another reason to do it is that first-time buyers have probably never dealt with builders, and that thought alone could be daunting.

That is why we strive to be a business to recommend, as we want people to look forward to working with us and not worry about the rogue traders we constantly hear about.

How do you know if a garden room will add value to your property?

Firstly, find out what your property is worth.

If you have a house worth £60,000, spending £15,000-£30,000 on a garden room is not the most intelligent move (unless you want one, as it will not be a great investment).

Whereas if your property is worth £180,000 plus, building a garden room is a good investment that will make your property worth more.

Now you have done some research into your property value. You need to decide what type of outhouse you will build.

Do you buy the most prominent garden room available, or do you build a more practical room you can use?

We would suggest building the most practical, as depending on your garden size, we wouldn’t advise you to take up too much space.

How much space should you sacrifice for a garden room? We’d suggest leaving at least 60% of your existing garden.

If you have an 18m (60 feet) in length garden, you could comfortably shorten it up to 4m-5m (15 feet) and build a good-sized garden room.

This will ensure the remaining garden is big enough not to be detrimental to your house price.

Remember, your garden size is also an asset.

A good garden room company will also want to do what is best for you and advise on the best-sized room to yield the best returns.

Sometimes, clients send us photos and measurements of their garden to help suggest how big they should build their outhouses. Once they are ready, we are booked in for an on-site consultation.

What type of garden room should you build?

If the room is being built for an investment and you plan to use it on the odd occasion, you should probably consider a low maintenance composite garden room. Benefits of composite garden rooms

Composite is a low maintenance material that requires no treatment.

you are thinking of selling your property in the near future, and you should probably use a contemporary composite cladding that gives your garden a modern look. Make your garden look better.

You will most likely have a buyer aged in their 30’s (the average age of a property buyer in the UK is 33), and low maintenance contemporary garden rooms will appeal to this age group.

Consider grey composite cladding options, or if you want something more traditional.

There are modern grey composite cladding’s available that have an excellent wood effect.

This could be the best option and combine traditional with modern.

What is composite cladding? Benefits of composite garden rooms.

Composite cladding is a synthetic alternative to timber.

The better quality composites look like timber, are made from recycled materials and require nearly no maintenance with 10-year plus guarantees on their quality.

Usually, these outhouses cost a premium over redwood or larch cladding garden rooms; however, finding the right garden room supplier (like MyOuthouse) can get you excellent quality composite garden rooms for the same price as standard timber.

Conclusion

If you are thinking about building a garden room for investment but don’t have the cash to get reasonable quality. Please don’t do it unless you are doing it for you to use. Spending thousands of pounds on something that you hope to be a good investment but will not pay you a profit is not worth it.

You don’t want to take a punt at spending that much money on an outhouse and not see a profit.

However, if this outhouse is for you to use and not a money motivated investment, build what works and fits within your budget.

I’m not knocking cheaper alternatives; I’m giving investment advice on building quality garden rooms that will return a profit for someone looking to invest in their property.