How to appeal to the home worker

Mon 24 Aug 2020

Paul Bennett, Director

In one of our most recent blogs, we revealed the new ‘must have’ moving list and right up there was the home office. While there is a push to get professionals back behind their corporate desks, many companies in London are set to embrace flexi working or even a rota system. This will see people split their time between a central hub and the home. Others, however, will continue full time employment exclusively from their residence, only travelling to attend meetings and events when required.

 

It wasn’t too long ago that studies were seen as wasted space – often turned into a playroom or given over to storage. Now he race is on to present properties for sale and to rent with the best working from home spaces possible, as there are huge benefits to marketing a property with a ‘dedicated home office’ in the details.

 

If you are selling up soon or are a landlord looking to remarket a let, the following advice will help you appeal to the home working masses:-

 

Dressing a spare room as an office

We list every property with a floorplan and this generally details the purpose of each room. Seeing a dedicated home office will please many but speak with us first if this comes at the detriment of a bedroom as reducing the number of bedrooms can affect a home’s value and outweigh the benefits of an office.

A good solution is to turn a spare room on your ground floor into a home working hub. Movers respond best when they can see the purposes of a space, however, so install a desk, an office chair, a bookcase and perhaps a filing unit before photographs are taken.

Creating a home office from nothing

Not everyone has the luxury of a spare room but that doesn’t mean a working area can’t be created. Slim line, sit-stand and fold down desks are ideal for small spaces – think alcoves, hallways and landings. You may also like to add a console table and chair to a bedroom, propping with a laptop to set the scene, or create a home working scene at a breakfast bar, if that’s the only place free to work.

Updating an existing home office

If your property features a purpose-built office, it may have been kitted out to be an ‘epicentre of power’ with floor-to-ceiling fitted shelving, wood-paneled walls and an oversized, integrated desk. Tastes have changed, however, and a lighter, more contemporary touch is highly prized. Freestanding furniture, low-level storage and neutrally painted walls will come across well in our marketing literature. Don’t forget to accessorize – a desk lamp, house plants and wall art will all help to sell the space as a place to work permanently.

Concentrate on connections: working from home demands excellent data supply, so make sure you have the fastest fibre optic broadband available running to the property. It’s also worth having an electrical evaluation to cut down on trailing cables. Get an electrician to install or upgrade power points, USB wall sockets and telephone points for a seamless set-up, and ensure you tell your agent about any existing data distribution systems or CAT6 wiring.

The Behr & Butchoff team is here to help sellers and landlords get ready for the open market. Our waiting list of home movers is growing, with an increasing number of people looking at working from home options. Please contact us if we can help you buy, sell, invest or rent.