Is there cash in your attic? You could have treasures worth £1,922

last updated 5 July 2022

Is your attic a secret gold mine or a labyrinth of cobwebs and old family heirlooms?

Well, you may be surprised at the value of Granny's old dolls' house and your Great Uncle's book collection.

In fact, the average UK attic stores valuables worth £1,922!

attic room with open book shelves and wooden sofa

In a bid to discover how those few who haven't converted their lofts into new bedrooms and designer bathrooms utilise their attics, Essex Rooms asked 2,000 British homeowners how they use their space.

73% said they used it for storage purposes whilst 10% didn't use the valuable space at all.

The top 5 most commonly stored items were the usual - Christmas decorations, old clothes, unused furniture, photo albums and books - but when the values were estimated, homeowners were shocked at the treasure chest they were sitting on (or beneath).

With 72% admitting they were hoarding these items and never planned to use them again it is time to turn those rags to riches...

Imagine sipping cocktails on a Caribbean cruise, landscaping the garden or indeed converting the space into a new room.

Essex Rooms also asked homeowners what gems they found in the rafters from the previous tenants.

The most bizarre responses came back with leftover urns of once beloved pets, disused dentures and a box of Victorian doll heads with bodies nowhere in sight!

So delve into the attic this weekend and head to an antique fair, you never know what you could find up there...

Ginevra Benedetti has been the Deputy Editor of Ideal Home magazine since 2021. With a career in magazines spanning nearly twenty years, she has worked for the majority of the UK’s interiors magazines, both as staff and as a freelancer. She first joined the Ideal Home team in 2011, initially as the Deputy Decorating Editor and has never left! She currently oversees the publication of the brand’s magazine each month, from planning through to publication, editing, writing or commissioning the majority of the content.