Up to date kitchens and bathrooms add value

People with property for sale should be aware that kitchens and bathrooms are the two main areas in which value and saleability can be added to a house.

That's according to a technical consultant at the National Home Improvement Council (NHIC) who identified the importance of the kitchen because of its central role in the social dynamic of the house.

The NHIC also advised people with houses for sale to ensure that they had brought their bathrooms "up to speed too, especially if it is an old bathroom".

Andrew Leech, technical consultant to the NHIC, said: "The kitchen is definitely the kind of place you need to update.

"The kitchen these days is becoming more and more a place where you meet people, rather than the lounge. If you have the option to extend the size of your kitchen, by knocking a wall down within the house and making it larger, it is definitely a good thing to do and if you can do it and incorporate a dining area, this seems to be the right thing to do."

Research published by the Nationwide building society found that although location remains the key factor for a property's value, bedrooms and bathrooms could add more than five per cent to the sale price.

Property Investment News posted on 21/11/2007 16:16:28