A quarter of Brits are reconsidering where they live as a result of lockdown, a survey by estate Yopa has found.
The estate agency says that most respondents cited the desire to be closer to family as the main reason for wanting to relocate.
One in five Brits are now less keen on living in or near busy towns and cities while two in five buyers are looking for larger properties.
Shift towards working from home causing many to reconsider their location.
More than one in five respondents revealed that their employer has indicated that working from home will be commonplace in the future and 36 per cent of people said that, if given more flexibility to work from home, they would reconsider where in the country they live.
This increased to 43 per cent among Londoners, suggesting an exodus from the capital could be on the cards.
Those who do choose to remain in urban areas may find their commute less busy, as 37 per cent of people are more inclined to walk or cycle to work in the future.
The lockdown also saw a quarter of people seeking to move somewhere with greater access to green space and the same number of people wishing they had a bigger garden.
For those looking to purchase a property in the next three years, this figure increases to 43 per cent, suggesting that gardens will be high on buyers’ wishlists over the coming months.
Meanwhile one in five people are now considering a move to the seaside.
Yopa operations director Chris Rosindale says: “It’s not surprising that Brits’ attitudes towards their properties have evolved over the lockdown period. “For many of us it’s been the most time we’ve ever spent in our homes.
“For a lot of people, it was an opportunity to take stock of their lives and consider whether they were truly happy with where they live.
“We know that visits to the property portals grew exponentially over lockdown, and our survey revealed that three in four people looking to sell their property over the next three years spent lockdown browsing property online.
“At Yopa we’re already seeing a shift in buyer demand away from busy towns and cities, so it will be interesting to see whether this trend continues.”
