Brits ‘stay put to avoid falling into debt’

Homeowners are opting to stay put and carry out renovations rather than moving and getting into debt, new research has found.

A survey by Lloyds TSB has revealed 55 per cent of estate agents have witnessed sellers taking their properties off the market in order to carry out home improvements instead.

Meanwhile, the bank has recorded a 19 per cent increase in loan applications taken out specifically to carry out house renovations over the past year.

The research also revealed some 59 per cent of those people who had been considering selling up had decided to put their plans on hold.

Of those homeowners, half were intending to carry out work on their current property in an attempt to increase its worth and prevent them falling into debt when they did decide to move.

David Wishart, director of personal loans at Lloyds TSB, said if people did not make improvements to their current property they might find they could not cope with loan repayments when they did buy a new house.

He stated: “If you want to trade up and avoid substantially increasing your mortgage, you’ll need to add value to the house you’re currently in.”

Elsewhere, Savills has warned the housing market will continue to struggle until general economic conditions improve.