Property owners face paying up to £50,000 to upgrade a new property, according to trade body Homes for Scotland (HfS).

New research, published as part of this year's New Homes Week (15-21 May), states how buying a new build home offers more advantages than purchasing an older property.

The 'Avoid the Money pit – the cost of upgrading old to new' report examined work that might have to be carried out when people move into an older home, and what would have to be done to a home to bring it up to the standards of a new property, which also comes with a warranty protecting the buyer from liability on structural problems in the first 10 years.

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Various costs include buying and fitting a new kitchen (£7,900), having the house rewired (£8,850) or works required to the central heating (£5,240). Other costs include £3,800 for bathrooms improvements and £4,000 for roofing upgrades.

In addition, only 26% of second hand homes achieving an energy efficiency rating of A to C while 94% of homes built in 2016 will be built to this standard.

Nicola Barclay, Chief Executive of HfS, said: "Whether you are starting out on the housing ladder, upgrading with a growing family or downsizing after children have left the nest, the new build market offers the widest possible range of options to suit every stage of your housing journey.

"New homes also offer important benefits second-hand homes simply can't match.  As well as being built to suit modern lifestyle requirements and providing the peace of mind of a ten year warranty and protection of the Consumer Code for Home Builders, they can also help save buyers a lot of money and stressful upgrading as today's report shows."

(LM)