Maw Comms news

7 Jun, 17 Connection, connection, connection – the new homebuyer mantra  

The estate agents’ traditional refrain of ‘location, location, location’ still matters when it comes to choosing a new home, but homebuyers are increasingly looking for ‘connection, connection, connection’, according to new research out today.

The survey, commissioned by GoCompare Home Insurance, reveals that the most desirable properties are located in good neighbourhoods, with low crime rates, near local shops and GP or dentist surgeries.  But, the survey also found that potential home-hunters increasingly value superfast broadband, clear mobile phone signals, satellite TV and transport connections over pubs, schools and recreation facilities.

A quarter (26%) of potential home-hunters prioritised good access to recreation facilities or nature while 14% were concerned about being near a good pub and 14% near a good school.

Commenting on the research, Ben Wilson from GoCompare Home Insurance said, “Location will always be a key factor for homebuyers.  After all, while you can improve a property – you can’t move it.  But it is too simple these days to say that it is the only consideration.  Homeowners also expect to be connected in a way that wasn’t envisaged even 10 years ago.  They will want to know about the transport infrastructure and communications as much as the schools, shops and amenities.

“The location of a property will also affect the amount you pay for home buildings and contents insurance.  A property’s postcode has a big impact on how much it costs to insure because premiums are partly based on the likelihood of you having to make a claim.  So, if you live in an area with a high rate of burglaries, then you’ll probably face higher premiums for your contents insurance.  Likewise, if you live in an area considered to be at higher risk of flooding then the cost of your buildings insurance will reflect this.”

For details on how a property’s location may affect the cost of insuring it visit: http://www.gocompare.com/home-insurance/how-home-insurance-companies-calculate-risk-and-price

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For further information please contact:

Anders Nilsson or Martyn John at GoCompare on 01633 654 054 / 01633 654 725

Gordon, Jason or Liz at MAW Communications on 01603 505 845

Keep up-to-date with the GoCompare press team on Twitter; @GoComparecomms

Notes to editors:

*On 27 March 2017, Bilendi conducted an online survey among 2001 randomly selected British adults who are Maximiles UK panelists (1,275 were homeowners).  The margin of error-which measures sampling variability-is +/- 2.2%. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and regional data to ensure samples representative of the entire adult population of United Kingdom. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.

GoCompare is a comparison website that enables people to compare the costs and features of a wide variety of insurance policies, financial products and energy tariffs. GoCompare does not charge people to use its services, and it does not accept advertising or sponsored listings, so all product comparisons are unbiased. GoCompare makes its money through fees paid by the providers of products that appear on its various comparison services when a customer buys through the site. GoCompare does not sell its customers’ data.

When it launched in 2006, it was the first comparison site to focus on displaying policy details rather than just listing prices, with the aim of helping people to make better-informed decisions when buying their insurance. GoCompare has remained dedicated to helping people choose the most appropriate products rather than just the cheapest, and has teamed up with Defaqto, the independent financial researcher, to integrate additional policy information into a number of its insurance comparison services. This allows people to compare up to an extra 30 features of cover.

GoCompare is the only comparison website to be invited to join the British Insurance Brokers’ Association (BIBA) and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).