Brits say goodbye to DIY

According to a new survey of 2,000 adults by UK based retirement housebuilder, McCarthy & Stone, few people take on day to day jobs and chores themselves and are embracing the idea of 'DFY' - jobs Done For You.

Warren Lewis
21st March 2016
DIY

In order to maintain an organised and busy lifestyle, millions of people are opting to hire external help in the form of cleaners, gardeners, dog walkers and nannies.

In addition, people are investing in technology to ensure they don't have to lift a finger around the home - meaning jobs such as washing up and doing the supermarket food shop are also a thing of the past.

The research found that when it comes to washing or servicing the car, cleaning the windows, or packing boxes to move house, Brits now automatically pick up the phone to find someone to do it for them.

A spokesman for McCarthy & Stone, who conducted the study, said: “There is no shame in looking for external help when jobs become too much to handle. It is well known that British people are amongst the hardest working in Europe, and it can only be possible to manage a busy lifestyle by getting a little bit of assistance along the way. Having someone else to help move house, walk the dog, or do the dusting when you're too busy to do it yourself can save a lot of stress.”

The study found that 51% of people no longer feel it is taboo to hire help around the house, and think nothing of getting someone in to help with odd jobs such as putting up shelves, blinds or curtain polls. 48% of people say they try to do so much that getting additional help has become a necessity. Fitting anything new around the house is now often left to the experts.

And when given any spare time at all, 56% of adults would far rather spend that time enjoying themselves than getting on with the household tasks.

Cleaning the carpets is no longer a job for the home vacuum cleaner, as many people opt to employ heavy duty cleaners, while cleaning the oven is considered something worth paying for.

Setting up technology and electrical items in the home are also jobs best left for someone else; installing computers, printers, and televisions are time consuming tasks only quick and easy for people who know what they are doing.

Making or altering clothes, pruning plants and hedges and jet washing the driveway are all amongst the tasks Brits are happy to leave to others.

A quarter of those polled admitted they are generally more likely to rely on external help than doing household tasks themselves, so that everything gets done.

A third of people just don't do jobs such as decorating, tending to the cleaning and gardening any more, and many say jobs like washing the windows and cleaning the oven would certainly fall by the wayside if they didn't employ someone else to do them.

Four in 10 of the adults surveyed claim they struggle to get things done at the best of times, with a further 43% feeling bogged down with all the work, chores, clubs, sports and family life they have to manage.

The spokesman for McCarthy & Stone concluded: “As the survey shows an extra pair of hands or two can make all the difference.

 Top jobs 'done for you'

    Service the car
    Washing the windows
    Cut the family's hair
    Washing / valeting the car
    Odd jobs such as putting up shelves
    Putting up blinds / curtain poles
    Mowing the lawn
    Fixing anything which is broken around the house
    Cleaning the oven
    Installing the computer / printer
    Setting up electrical items such as Sky or modems
    Building flat pack furniture
    The weekly food shop
    Cleaning carpets
    Fitting anything new around the house
    Gardening, pruning plants / hedges / trees, weeding
    Packing boxes when moving house
    Jet washing the driveway/ patio
    Making / altering / repairing clothes
    Clearing rubbish

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