Enfield will trial new, ultra-basic naked homes that are designed to sell for an impressive 40% less than standard new build properties. How do they achieve this? The answer is by doing away with partition walls, flooring and wall finishes, and only featuring basic plumbing. The idea is that buyers will want to do much of the finishing themselves, saving them money and allowing them to personalise more of the property to suit their needs.
The properties will be around 15% cheaper to build than standard new builds due to the savings on materials and labour. These savings can be passed on to buyers, resulting in the lower selling prices. The build times will also be reduced, allowing quicker completion.
The prices will be reduced further because owners will not own the land they are built on. The council will retain this and owners will become leaseholders. They will need to pay annual ground rent but the lower asking prices will make the homes accessible to people on lower incomes.
The designs of the homes adhere to minimalist trends but offer a great deal of potential in terms of personalisation and evolving over time. Buyers will be able to decide on the layout as well as almost every single fixture, fitting, and piece of decoration.
The trial will begin with 22 apartments spread across three sites in Enfield. The land being freed up for them was previously taken up by garages and car parks. These sites were derelict or hugely under-used so they are being redeveloped to create the new homes. If the project is successful an addition seven sites may be made available.
At Finefair we specialise in estate management in Enfield, delivering useful services to landlords who want to put their properties in professional hands. We always monitor the market so we can see new opportunities for investment for the future. Basic homes could quickly spread and become as popular in the UK as they are in the Netherlands. They would present interesting investment options with landlords even allowing tenants to do the finishing work if they wished.
