DIY nation: the UK’s home improvement hotspots

What renovations are trending across the nation

Nothing feels better than creating the home of your dreams –so, it's no wonder the UK home improvement market was valued at £11.2 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach £16.7 billion by 2033.

With this in mind, Hillarys has compiled the latest home renovation trends and statistics to reveal Britain’s DIY hotspots, how much households are spending, and what on.

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UK overview

Before we dive into the findings, let's discuss the UK as a whole. According to Hillarys, homeowners across Britain are spending, on average, £10.70 each week on home maintenance and repairs, and £31.10 on bigger alterations and improvements.

The average weekly housing expenditure in the UK is £201, so that means Brits are putting aside 20.8% of their budget for house projects. Now, let's see where people are spending the least (and the most)...

12th for home improvements: Northern Ireland

The UK is made up of 12 regions and of those, Northern Ireland was found to be the area where homeowners are spending the least on home improvement projects.

The average weekly spend here is £112, and locals are putting 19.6% of that money aside for household jobs. They are currently spending just £4.90 on maintenance and repairs and £17.10 on bigger jobs, like extensions, loft conversions, or new kitchens. 

11th for home improvements: Scotland

Scotland came in 11th place, with homeowners here spending, on average, £22.80 a week on maintenance, repairs, alterations, or improvements.

The average weekly housing expenditure here is just £134, which means Scots are putting 17% of their overall budget to one side and investing it in their properties.

10th for home improvements: North East

In 10th place is the North East of England, an area that includes County Durham, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, and parts of North Yorkshire. This corner of the UK is frequently named one of the cheapest for buying a house, so it makes sense that homeowners here aren't investing too heavily in their homes.

Hillarys suggests that locals spend just £4 a week on repairs and maintenance, and a further £20 on bigger improvements. That's just 19.6% of people's £123 weekly budget.

9th for home improvements: North West

The North West of England was named in ninth place, with people here spending £8.10 a week on repairs and £26.10 on alterations – that's 5.3% and 17.2% respectively of their £152 weekly housing budget.

The North West region of England consists of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, and Merseyside, as well as major urban centres like Manchester and Liverpool.

8th for home improvements: West Midlands

In eighth place is the West Midlands. This part of the UK is made up of Herefordshire, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, the West Midlands, and Worcestershire.

Here, locals are setting aside 23.2% of their weekly expenditure budget (£159), paying out £8.90 for maintenance and £28 for bigger improvements.

7th for home improvements: London

Interestingly, London came in seventh place, with local homeowners spending less than half the amount on improving their properties compared to the region that came in second (read on for more).

Here, the weekly expenditure is much higher, at £270, but Londoners are only investing £38.10 of that in maintaining, repairing, or altering their homes. That's a mere 14.1% of their total weekly budget.

6th for home improvements: East Midlands

Just in front of London is the East Midlands. This part of England consists of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire, and Rutland.

In this area, people have a weekly house expenditure of £205 and use £26.40 of that for alterations and £13.70 for repairs. That's just shy of 20% of their budget going on home improvements.

5th for home improvements: Yorkshire and Humber

In fifth place, we have Yorkshire and Humber. This region of England encompasses the likes of Leeds, Sheffield, York, and Kingston upon Hull.

Here, homeowners are investing 24.4% of their £169 average weekly housing expenditure. 6.1% of that, or £10.20, is being used for repairs and maintenance, while 18.3%, or £30.80, is being used for larger home improvement projects, like extensions.

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4th for home improvements: South West

South West England is one of the finest corners of the nation. Formed from the idyllic counties of Cornwall, Dorset, Devon, Bristol, Gloucestershire, Somerset, and Wiltshire, the region is known for its coastline and natural landscapes.

Here, people have, on average, £209 each week for housing expenses. They are setting aside 23.1% of that cash for home projects; £11.70 for maintenance and £36.40 for larger projects. 

3rd for home improvements: East England

The East of England is another highly popular region and is composed of some of the UK's greenest counties: Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, and Suffolk.

Weekly budgets are larger here, £238 on average, which means locals have more for spending on home jobs. Each week, those in the East are forking out £12.90 for repairs and a generous £41.80 for bigger home improvements. That's 23% of their weekly budget.

2nd for home improvements: Wales

In second place is Wales. Local homeowners are spending £56.70 to improve or repair their homes every single week. £44 of that is put aside for alterations and improvements, while £12.70 is for maintenance and repairs.

Inhabitants of Wales spend 30.8% of their average weekly housing expenditure on home improvements – the largest percentage of all UK regions. This means, proportionally, Welsh homeowners are spending more than double on improving their properties, compared to Londoners.

1st for home improvements: South East

Those living in the South East of England were found to be the biggest spenders when it comes to home improvements. Those in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey, and West Sussex spend, on average, £58.80 every week on their homes.

£45 of that is spent on alterations, while £13.80 is spent on maintenance and repairs. These figures make sense when you consider this region also has the largest weekly budget, at £275. So, what projects are Brits prioritising?

Most popular projects: decorating 29%

When looking at which home improvements people are focusing on the most, Hillarys found that 29% of Brits are prioritising decorating their interior, making it the most common DIY home renovation project.

More than half of those surveyed (54%) said their main objective was to improve the appearance of their home, and decorating is the perfect way to do so. By 2030, Hillarys believes annual sales for DIY and decorating in the UK could reach £30.8 billion, representing a rise of 3.4% in the space of six years.

Most popular projects: new kitchen 23%

According to Hillarys, just under a quarter (23%) of Brits intend to install a new kitchen in the next 12 months. 21% also want to extend their house to make it bigger, so it stands to reason that many will be adding a rear or side extension to boost the footprint of their kitchen.

Google Trends data collected by Hillarys shows that there are 89,810 monthly searches for 'kitchen renovation' in the UK. That's a 73% growth from 2021 to 2025.

Featured kitchen available from HUSK.

Most popular projects: bathroom renovation 21%

The third-most popular home project in Britain is a bathroom renovation, with around a fifth (21%) looking to update their bathroom and around one in six (17%) looking to add more bathroom facilities.

Plus, according to Pinterest data, new bathrooms are one of the most popular home renovation trends right now, with 89,000 pins across 376 unique boards.

Featured tiles available from Ca' Pietra.

Most popular projects: new flooring 21%

Close behind are new floors, with 21% of Brits looking to improve their interior flooring. So it makes sense that sales figures for flooring grew by almost three-quarters (72%) between 2020 and 2025. 

According to Pinterest data, new carpets are highly popular right now, with almost 82,500 pins over 355 unique boards.

Featured flooring available from Woodpecker Flooring.

Spending stats

According to Aviva’s ‘How We Live’ report, almost seven million UK homeowners planned to renovate their properties in 2025, with most looking to spend, on average, more than £14,000 on home improvements by 2027.

Aviva's statistics indicate that more than a sixth (17%) of those surveyed planned to spend between £5,001 and £10,000 on projects, the most popular amount from the study. This was followed by just over one in 10 (12%), who intended to spend between £3,001 and £5,000.

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Sustainability sells

Beyond aesthetics, energy efficiency is a strong motivator nationwide. 56% of British homeowners surveyed by Aviva reported making energy efficiency improvements within the last two years, and over half of those who hadn’t were planning to do so.

Younger homeowners, particularly Gen Z and Millennials, are leading the charge, with 86% focusing on improving their home's energy performance in the near future. 

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Driving forces

So, what's driving these regional trends? Myjobquote.co.uk believes three factors are playing a role: affordability, savings ratios, and green refurbishments. In areas with high house prices, spending on improvements often provides better value than moving house.

Secondly, in some regions people choose to invest their money into their homes, instead of building up savings and, finally, sustainable living and lower energy bills are at the top of Brits' wish lists.

Featured furnishings available from French Bedroom.

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