Over-40s 'undervalue home contents'

04/11/11

By Dan Smith

The value of people's possessions tends to peak at the age of 48, according to the latest research.

Figures published by More Than and collated by the Centre for Economics and Business Research show that people's homes tend to contain £52,587 worth of goods by the time they reach 48.

Despite this finding, the research revealed that householders in their 40s often tend to under-value how much their possessions are really worth.

The study indicated that they only believe their possessions are worth a sum of £24,510.

In general terms, respondents to the survey felt that the contents of their homes were worth an average of £21,477.

Three out of the five most costly items in people's properties are hi-tech in nature, the study found, with computers, large electrical goods and electronic gadgets such as smartphones among them.