Bungalows balloon but flats shrink – analysis into changes in typical home sizes
But bungalows, terraced homes and semi-detached properties have typically grown in size between 2013 and 2023, according to the research, which used data from the English Housing Survey.
Andrew Harvey, Nationwide's senior economist, said: 'Typical property sizes have increased slightly over the last decade. Since 2013, the average floor area has increased from 95.3 square metres to 96.2 square metres.
He added: 'The largest increase has been in terraced houses, where the average floor area is 3.6% bigger than in 2013. But the average size of flat, the smallest property type, is now 1.7% smaller than 10 years ago at 60.3 square metres.
'Reflecting the composition of the stock, the owner occupier sector has the highest average floor area at 112 square metres. The average floor area in the private and social rented sectors is smaller at 76 square metres and 65 square metres respectively, due to greater concentration of flats.'
Mr Harvey said the total housing stock in England has increased by 2.1 million homes to 25.4 million in 2023.
He added: 'Of the total, 16.3 million dwellings are owner occupied, while 4.9 million are privately rented, with the remaining 4.2 million in the social rented sector (local authority or housing association properties).'
Here are average floor areas for property types in England in square metres in 2013 followed by 2023 and the percentage change, according to Nationwide Building Society:
Flats, 61.4, 60.3, minus 1.7%
Bungalow, 77.0, 77.5, 0.6%
Terraced, 88.7, 91.9, 3.6%
Semi-detached, 96.9, 99.1, 2.2%
Detached, 152.9, 151.9, minus 0.6%
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