Britain: Homeowners downsizing to cut bills

A third of home owners who plan to downsize in the near future are doing so in order to cut their household bills, a study has found.

Just over half of home owners surveyed who are planning to move house in the next three years said they plan to downsize, compared with just over a fifth (22pc) who are looking to trade up to somewhere bigger, Lloyds TSB found.

But "empty nesters" who no longer need the space are not the only ones looking to trade down, and while 63pc of those looking to do so are aged over 55, more than a quarter are aged between 46 and 55 and around 5pc are aged between 36 and 45, the study found.

Money worries have strongly influenced people's plans to downsize, with 33pc of potential downsizers saying they need to move to reduce their household bills and 37pc saying they would like to free up some equity. Three in 10 of those planning to trade down said they were doing so to boost their retirement income.

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