Single Storey Tale
Last updated: 19/09/2007 - 10:29
An Englishman's bungalow can still be his castle, finds study.
Bungalows are the most sought after type of housing in England, according to research carried out by the MORI Social Research Institute for the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE).
People were asked to choose where they would most like to live from a selection of images of houses. These ranged from a bungalow, a traditional village house, a 1930s semi and a Victorian terrace, to a modern 'Wimpey'-style semi, a loft apartment and a tower block. The two most desirable housing types overall were the bungalow (30%) and the village house (29%), followed by the Victorian terrace (16%) and the modern semi (14%).
Housing Types
Only 2% of people - just one in 50 - chose a modern loft style apartment, and no one at all selected the tower block. Young people, aged 16 to 24, were most likely to choose the modern buildings, with around one in six (17%) selecting one of the modern developments, compared to only one in a hundred (1%) of older people.
The survey went on to ask people about their views on the design of housing. When asked to list two or three things which they considered were important in the design of new houses, more than half the respondents (59%) said security against crime was a key factor. 56% said that new homes should be built to last; 45% said they should be designed to be safe from accidents and fires; 41% mentioned ease of maintenance; and 35% thought energy efficiency was important.
When it came to the value of homes, many felt design was important. Nearly three quarters of people (72%) thought that well designed houses will increase in value quicker than average, with only one in ten (9%) disagreeing with this statement.
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