New figures from Sainsburys Finance have revealed Brits remain committed to home improvements despite the current economic climate. With the housing market slow, the new figures suggest that Brits are opting to invest in improving their own homes rather than searching elsewhere. According to Sainsbury’s Finance, one in five loans taken out during the first six months of 2010 was spent entirely on home improvements.
Perhaps surprisingly, therefore, spending on home improvements has remained stable over the past year, while there has been a remarkable 47 per cent increase in the number of people taking out loans to improve their homes since 2007. While the number of people taking out personal loans for this reason has been steady over the last 12 months, the average value of these loans has risen. In 2009 the average home improvement loan was worth £8,237, though that figure has risen by 12 per cent to £9,225 in the first six months of 2010.
In light of the six monthly figures, analysts now expect the value of home improvement loans taken out from banks and lenders to reach a similar level to last year, when such loans totalled more than £3.2 billion.





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