The UK’s Dream Home

From the sofa style to the specific shade of curtains, many of us know what we want our dream home to look like. The grandeur of a mansion may sound impressive, but is that what we would want in an ideal world?  

We have surveyed 2,000 UK residents to find out what they would include if they had the opportunity to build their dream home, and with the help of AI, we have brought the UK’s dream home to life. Here’s what we found.

•  More UK residents would choose a bungalow (20.1%) over a mansion (14.2%) as their dream property type.
• Only 5.8% of UK residents want a maximalist-style house - the least favoured of any style.
• Almost one in twelve residents from Edinburgh said they wouldn’t want a garden in their dream home.
• Nearly 40% of UK residents aged 65+ imagine having electric blinds in their dream home - the most significant proportion of any age group.
• Almost two-thirds of respondents envision a walk-in pantry as part of their dream kitchen.

A house's exterior is where people develop their first impression of a property, so this must encapsulate the home's overall vibe. Below is a list of the most popular types of UK dream properties.

Our findings show that cottages are the most sought-after property type among the UK population (20.70%), closely followed by villas (20.20%) and bungalows (20.10%).

Cottages are the most popular property type, and if we look into specific demographics, it appears that females (21.9%) are more captivated by cottages than males (19.1%). There are different styles of cottage properties, but some standard features include a gabled roof, stoned walls, and a large chimney.

On the other end of the spectrum, flats are the least popular choice for UK dream properties, with less than 4% of surveyed participants opting for this style.

While some people enjoy having a unique interior style for each room, others prefer a particular theme running through their home. The following ranking shows the most sought-after dream property styles.

UK residents value a simple look over a colourful one, as the minimalistic style is revealed as the most desired when it comes to dream homes. It is worth noting that respondents could choose as many options as they liked instead of being tied down to one style. Despite this, the most popular styles have an overarching theme of neutral colours and a sleek feel.

However, not every demographic agrees, as there appears to be a difference in the preferred styles of different age groups. Unsurprisingly, a ‘modern’ style was preferred for 18-24-year-olds, whereas those over 65 want a classic interior with timeless and traditional features.

The maximalist style, associated with bold colours and patterns, is the least popular house style on our list, with only 5.80% of respondents wanting to showcase their creativity with a pop of colour.

British weather is very unpredictable, but despite this, many of us dream of having an outdoor area that we can call our own. The next list reveals the most favourable garden styles for UK residents.

Our findings show a cottage-style garden is the most sought-after outdoor living space. Generally, cottage gardens combine livestock, vegetables, and plants with traditional materials. Given the charming nature of these gardens, it's no wonder that over a quarter of Brits would choose to have one as part of their dream home.

Despite having the most significant chunk of the vote overall, there is a difference in opinion across genders, with UK men favouring an English Country-style garden (27.8%) over a Cottage (22.3%). Some unique garden styles include Japanese and French Formal, which occupied only 12.40% and 3% of votes, respectively.

Gardens look incredible when in good condition, but keeping a garden pristine can require a lot of effort from the homeowner. Being responsible for this regular upkeep may sound like a chore to some, which is likely why 3% of UK residents say they wouldn't want a garden in their dream home.

Your bedroom is arguably the most important room of the house, so it needs to be perfect for you. Based on our survey findings, we have compiled a list of the most desirable bedroom features.

Almost 68% of UK residents we surveyed say they want a king-sized bed as part of their dream bedroom. However, a bed isn't enough for many Brits, as just under 47% of respondents said they would also like a sofa or sitting area in their bedroom.

Bookshelves are among the most popular bedroom features, with more than 34% of UK residents saying they would like one in their dream home. Having said this, there is a divide between Northern England (30.4%) and South West England (42.6%), with a higher percentage of Southerners envisioning a bookshelf in their ideal bedroom.

From Venetian to Roman blinds, there are lots of window coverings out there, but around a third of Brits say they would want electric blinds as a feature in their dream bedroom. Electric blinds are a great option for hard-to-reach spaces; you can program them to open and close at certain times. Of all the age groups we surveyed, these types of blinds are most popular with those aged 65+, likely because of their ease of use and automation. 

While some people associate bathrooms simply as a place of privacy, others see it as an area of relaxation and escapism. With this in mind, what does the UK dream bathroom look like? Here’s what we found.

Often associated with a minimalistic style, it may come as no surprise that open/walk-in showers are the most sought-after bathroom feature on our list (65%). On the other hand, bidets are revealed as the least popular feature, with only 17% saying they would want one as part of their dream bathroom.

The second most popular bathroom feature amongst UK residents is heated flooring. Northern people, including residents from Newcastle (64.2%) and Sheffield (64.6%), are more inclined to want this feature in their dream homes, which is understandable given the colder average temperatures.

Interestingly, our findings show that Brits over the retirement age are the least interested in a relaxing bath, with less than half of residents aged 65+ saying they would want a separate bathtub in their dream home and even less wanting a rainfall shower (30.3%).

With so many things to consider, fitting a brand-new kitchen can be very costly, but if money was no object, what would you want in your dream kitchen? The following list reveals the most popular answers among UK residents.

UK residents place value on different kitchen features depending on their age. According to our findings, boiling water taps are most popular with 25-34-year-olds, kitchen islands are the biggest hit with 45-54-year-olds, and 55-64-year-olds are most likely to want a walk-in pantry in their dream kitchen.

A wine and beer fridge is one of the least popular dream kitchen features, and men value it much more than their female counterparts, with 44.8% and 30.6% opting for this feature, respectively.

We used TLF Research to create a survey asking respondents to detail the features of their dream home. We asked each respondent their age and gender, as well as which region and city they lived in - the total sample included 2,001 responses.

To find out what each person’s dream home would look like, we asked a total of 6 tick-box style questions which were split into the following sections: property type, property style, garden style, bedroom features, bathroom features, and kitchen features.

Participants were asked to select as many answers as they wanted for each question, apart from the property type and garden style questions in which they were limited to a single response. All questions included an ‘other (please specify)’ option where they could elaborate on any additional features that were not listed.

We then used Midjourney to produce images based on the most popular answers from each survey question.