Nearly three quarters of items in the average British home were picked out by the lady of the house, new research has shown. Experts who carried out a detailed study into equipment, furnishings, styles and colours in 2,000 modern homes found that a dominating 71% is chosen by the woman of the house.
The study, of 2,000 couples, revealed men do have some say on the surroundings – usually electronic equipment or the type of car purchased – but it’s their partners who take the lead in furniture, appliances and even the location of the house itself.
As well as ruling the roost on new possessions, it seems old ones aren’t safe either – 45% of women have binned items belonging to their partner because they failed to fit in with the look of their home.
From men’s cherished CDs and DVDs to clothes, sofas and favorite chairs – no possession is safe if it’s deemed an eyesore by the lady of the manor.
The report, commissioned by Banner Homes, saw six in ten men say ‘a woman’s touch’ is necessary to make a house feel like a home, despite their lack of input into the appearance themselves.
The research into choices around the home also examined the decision process involved in the purchase of a new property and saw that genders differ – women are more likely to look for a decent size kitchen, while men worry about where the television will go.
Piers Banfield, Group Sales and Marketing Director for Banner Homes said:
“When it comes to deciding on the look and feel of a house, every couple goes through their own process but it’s clear that more often than not a woman’s taste is the bigger influence.
“Men often trust their partner to lead the design and decoration of the home and tend to take the initiative on decisions in other areas and that compromise is only natural in any relationship.
“The majority of women are very proud of the look of their home and it seems they’ll maintain that at any cost – even if it means throwing items of their partner’s away that aren’t in keeping with the tone.”
The study also found that less than a fifth of men think decisions around the home are actually 50/50.
In fact, nearly two thirds leave ALL decisions on the appearance of the home to their wife or partner.
A quarter don’t even get asked their opinion, while 31% say if they disagree their partner will just go with what she thinks best anyway.
Perhaps no surprises then that over half of the men studied confessed they often just agree with their partner for an easy life.
A resigned 46% say they’ve had to throw out items that their partners insisted go in the bin because they didn’t fit with the look of the place, whilst four in ten say they sometimes look around their house and think that very little of their possessions are just their own.
When it comes to hunting for a property and making the big decisions, women were over three times as likely to be the one who had the biggest say on whether or not to move in.
Over two thirds (68%) knew that they wanted to move into their current property the very day they first looked at it, while nearly half knew it was the place for them in under half an hour.
Piers Banfield of Banner Homes added:
“Partners work together to create a home that both feel comfortable in and people tend to take on the roles that they’ve got a genuine interest in.
“We spend so much time in our homes it’s important we love the property, feel comfortable and get the look just right. It’s no surprise that women take the lead here and go to great lengths to maintain appearances – even throwing out old items of their partners that aren’t in keeping.
“At Banner Homes we always ensure that our new homes are designed to be places that our purchasers will enjoy living in, with high specification features and attention to detail throughout, ensuring each home is developed for 21st century living.”
PRIORITIES WHEN BUYING A HOME
1. Size of kitchen
2. Parking
3. Storage
4. Type of heating system
5. Security of the home
6. Transport links to work
7. Energy efficiency of the home
8. Proximity to a school
9. Space for all the family to eat together in the kitchen
10. Number of bathrooms
11. Investment potential
12. Size of garage
13. Connectivity
14. Number of power points/sockets etc
15. Number of people you could have round for a dinner party
16. Strength of broadband signal
17. How big a TV will fit in the living room
18. Where the television will go
19. Distance to the parents/ in laws house
20. Garden shed
21. Walking distance to a good pub
22. Trees in the garden
23. Proximity to friends’ houses
24. Dishwasher
25. Other
TOP 10 PARTNERS ITEMS THAT WOMEN THROW OUT
1. Magazine collections
2. Old hobby collection/ toy cars etc.
3. Clothes
4. DVDs/CDs
5. A sofa
6. Sports memorabilia
7. A painting
8. A chair
9. Stereo/ sound system
10. Sports kit/ equipment