Does a Garden Office Add Value to Your Home?

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Yes, a garden room has the potential to add to your property value. But it depends on a few factors, and there are also some ways it could reduce the property value if you don’t take care of it properly. Our garden building experts have all the details below, backed up by reputable sources within the property industry.

Understanding How a Garden Room Adds Value

Floor space is a crucial factor in determining the value of a property. The more square footage, the higher its value tends to be. Bigger areas are often preferred by buyers and offer more flexibility in terms of usage.

While a garden room doesn’t increase your house size, it does perform a similar function to a home extension. It creates an additional functional area outside of the main house. This extra space can be used for both work and pleasure, adding versatility for homeowners.

Our customers have used garden rooms for these sorts of purposes:

Sheltered outdoor seating, to enable enjoyment of the garden in all weathers
Garden pubs for private and social drinking or garden parties
A dedicated home cinema space for films, TV or sports events
Professional workspaces such as hair salons, photography studios, garden offices, or pet grooming

What is important for property value is: can your building be used for more than one purpose?

For example, if you’ve got a garden bar setup, this might not appeal to everyone. The flexibility needs to be there for the bar counter to be replaced with alternative furniture

Research from the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) and The Guild of Property Professionals also shows that adding a garden room can boost a home’s value by around £36,000 in Surrey or £10,000 in London.

While the average cost of building one is around £9,000, it can add an average of 8.4%. This shows a big return for homeowners making this home upgrade.

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Factors Influencing Added Value

One of our customers shared their garden office setup, featuring an L-shaped desk in one corner, an inviting green sofa in the centre, and a treadmill in the other side.

How much a garden room boosts property value depends on key factors. To begin, location plays a crucial role. Properties in high-demand areas typically see a greater increase with a garden office. Conversely, in less sought-after areas, the impact may be less significant.

The type of property also influences the value added. Detached houses, e.g., those with their own gardens, tend to increase in value more with a garden office. This is because there’s usually more room to put the outbuilding.

So, if you have a detached house with a big backyard, you can easily add one without taking up too much space. This makes the house more appealing and valuable to potential buyers.

Additionally, the size of the structure matters. Larger garden rooms tend to contribute more value to the property because of how many more potential uses they open up. In contrast, smaller units may have a more modest impact on valuation.

Furthermore, how the garden space is utilised alongside the garden office is essential. If the garden is big and well-kept, it makes the property more attractive and worth more money. Otherwise, it could make the property less appealing and not increase in value as much.

To sum up, adding a garden room can make a property worth more, but how much more depends on:

where the property is
what type of property it is
how big the building is
how multi-functional the building is
how much garden space is left remaining
what condition the garden rooms is in

The condition is a significant factor. If the building is in poor condition at the point of sale, it will require additional work from the new buyers such as repairs, treatment, and potentially demolition if it’s in really bad shape. This scenario can only make the property value go down, as your buyer will be totting up the cost of all the work they’ll need to do.

Additional appeal for self-employed and remote workers

Many professionals value having space to work from home when they are searching the property market. In cases where there isn’t room for a study in the main house, a garden office can be a valuable alternative. In some cases this can be more attractive, as it provides greater work-life balance when the workspace is completely outside the distractions of the home environment. Many of our customers have reported that it helps them to switch off properly at the end of the working day.

According to a study, investing in a garden office can result in a substantial increase in a home’s value. On average, it can add between 5% to 10% to the overall value of the property. Say your home is valued at £300,000; adding a garden office could potentially increase its value by £15,000 to £30,000.

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Round-up

So, does a garden room add value to your home? The answer is yes; on average, it can add 5% to 10%, but factors are things that can determine the outcome. In essence, these can influence how much worth it adds to your overall property, including:

where your property is located
what type of property it is (like detached or semi-detached)
how big the garden itself is, and how the space is used
the size and quality of the garden office and how it is decorated

By considering these, you can ensure that adding one gives you the most benefit for your home.

If you’re still searching for the ideal garden room, look no further than Garden Buildings Direct. Explore our range, including insulated garden rooms for year-round use!

Discover more about these amazing buildings and how to make the right purchase in our garden room buying guide.

Looking to push the value of your home up before you buy a garden building? Take a look at some Garden Features That Can Increase Your Property Value.