British people believe they need to view eight properties before choosing the one that suits them, however 8% claim the would be happy to but the first house they saw.

According to research by energy firm E.ON. 32% think it will take two to three months to decide on the right home.

The survey of over 2,000 adults, which has been conducted to explore people's attitudes to home buying and energy efficiency, also found that location ranks highest overall when making a property purchase (74%), followed by mortgage costs (56%), size (53%) and the amount of work needed on a property (40%).


In terms of energy efficiency, over three-quarters of first time buyers say it's very important (76%) versus just under two-thirds of existing homeowners (65%). Most people feel that a new build will be the most energy efficient type of property (85%) with Edwardian homes coming last (2%).

Beverley Maguire, energy efficiency expert at E.ON, said: "Home hunters feel confident they can judge what's out there once they've seen an average of eight properties, and most people identified new builds as being most energy efficient - but older properties can be efficient too.

"Before making a decision, buyers should make sure they know about the condition of the property's heating system and whether it's well insulated. Energy suppliers can help with free or discounted insulation and boiler replacements for people who qualify.

"There's lots of help available to ensure people use no more energy than they need once they move in too, such as our Saving Energy Toolkit which shows you how your energy use stacks up to similar homes as well as giving you advice on how to improve its energy efficiency."

(CD/MH)