Homeowners rank their rooms

The living room sits comfortably on top of the pile when it comes to Irish homeowner’s favourite room in the house, but what’s their least favourite?

A new survey has found that a whopping 59% of homeowners across Ireland favour their living room above all others. The majority of those who listed the living room as their favourite room were aged 55 and over.

It’s a close race then for second place as the kitchen just about makes the cut with 18% of people surveyed saying it’s their favourite room in the house, followed by the bedroom tucked up in third with 15%. The bedroom was most popular with the younger cohort, with 75% of those choosing it as their favourite space ageing between 18 and 24.

The playroom, for those lucky enough to have an entire room dedicated to playing, is favoured by just 3% of homeowners, which is understandable really considering few children own homes in Ireland.

Surprisingly the dining room and the utility room are drawn for fifth favourite with just 2% of those surveyed choosing them as their favourite room.

And finally, flushed all the way down to the bottom of the list sits the bathroom, the unsung hero of the house, a crucial room, always there when you need it, always underappreciated.

The figures are the result of a new survey carried out by iReach Insights on behalf of Aviva Insurance Ireland DAC (Aviva) which sought to understand how homeowners felt about the different rooms in their house and what their top priority would be if adding more space to their homes.

Respondents were asked what their priority would be if they could add more space to their homes with a bigger kitchen topping the list at 28% of people surveyed.

This was followed by a conservatory (14%), a utility room (11%), and bigger or additional bathrooms at 8%.

Unsurprisingly, given an increase in people working from home or hybrid working, 7% would like to have a home office. Other options selected include a games room/man cave (6%), a home gym/yoga studio/meditation room (5%), and a bigger sitting room (5%). The favoured additional space selected by 4% of those surveyed included a bigger dining room, a boot room, a playroom/den, and a home pub/bar.

Commenting on the results of the survey, Alan Darcy, Home Product Manager, Aviva said he was not surprised that the living room is the favourite room for most homeowners.

“This is the room where we are most likely to relax in and spend quality time with family and friends,” said Alan.

“And it was no great surprise that the bedroom was the most favoured room for the younger age cohort as they tend to spend more time in their bedrooms, either asleep or relaxing on their own or with friends.

“The addition of a home office has become a particularly important feature in homes since the outbreak of the pandemic as more people continue to either work full-time from home or are engaged in hybrid working.

The appeal of having some privacy whilst working in the home has seen a surge in people looking to convert their attics, a spare bedroom or even convert an outdoor building or build a Shomera in the garden.”