BUNGALOWS breed more domestic contentment than any other type of home, towering above penthouse flats and even country mansions in the nation’s affections.

A survey into the key factors that determine the happiness of a home has found that the ideal dwelling is a remarkably modest affair, with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a small garden and, crucially, no stairs.

It appears that bungalow- dwellers are the happiest with their home, despite the properties representing just 2 per cent of the housing stock, according to the household insurer Halifax General, which commissioned the survey.

Jan Whitbourn and her daughter, Natalie, live in a three-bedroom bungalow in Spalding, Lincolnshire. It is spacious and smart, with two bathrooms and a large garden.

Ms Whitbourn, 51, a widow, has lived in bungalows for her entire adult life. What she really values about her home is the fact that she can maintain it by herself.

“I can do all my own DIY. I have decorated inside and out on my own. I even did the guttering. I don’t need to call in anyone else to help me, I can be independent,” she said.

“A lot of people think bungalows are for the elderly, but I don’t agree. Why would anyone want to have to carry a vacuum cleaner upstairs?” While space was the most important physical factor influencing domestic happiness, limitless room was not necessarily desirable. The ideal number of bedrooms for a two-person household was three.

The Social Issues Research Centre, which conducted the survey of 2,000 adults, found that the most popular definitions of a happy home were “a place where you feel safe and secure”, “a place where you can relax” and “a place where you can be yourself”.

Eighty per cent of people questioned for the survey awarded their home a score of seven or more out of ten on the “happiness” scale, but bungalows were rated by their occupants as an average of 8.15.

Home-happiness appears to be linked to the age of the occupants, with those aged 50 and over reporting significantly higher levels of happiness.

Social class appears to have little to do with domestic happiness, although different socio-economic groups did reveal different priorities.

The highest proportion of happy home-owners are to be found in the Midlands, according to the report, with 31 per cent of respondents there rating the happiness of their homes a perfect ten.

People in the North West had the lowest proportion of contented residents, with just 12 per cent of home-owners rating their homes “very happy”.

Simon Bradley, the author of the report, said that proximity to amenities as well as personal and emotional considerations also influenced happiness at home. “Factors vary from the tangible notions of light and space, on the one hand, to the more abstract concepts of ‘gut-feeling’ on the other. The purpose of this study was to examine how these variables interact and in what proportion they should be present to create the truly happy home,” he said.

www.timesonline.co.uk/property

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