Wales residents most happy with their surroundings, survey finds

People in Wales are the most likely to feel happy with where they live, according to a UK-wide study.

More than nine in 10 (93.4%) of people living in Wales said yes when asked if they were happy where they were living, compared with 89.1% of the population generally.

Yorkshire residents and those in the South West of England were also particularly likely to be satisfied with where they live, the research from Co-op Insurance found.

People in Northern Ireland were the least likely to report being happy with where they lived, with 82.1% people there saying they were happy.

The research also suggested that the price of a home may have more of an influence on home buyers' decisions than the location.

Seven in 10 (70%) people said the price of a home was a main influence on whether or not they bought it, while 65% said a home's location was key, the survey of more than 2,000 people found.

Nearly half (48%) of people surveyed said the size of the garden was a major factor when buying a house, while a third (33%) said access to transport links was vital, a quarter (25%) wanted storage space and 24% wanted to be near a good school.

Some 23% of people surveyed would want a home that was ready to move into, with no renovations needed, while one in 10 (10%) would like a property with investment potential.

Two-thirds (67%) of people surveyed said a good sense of community spirit is the key to being happy with where you live. And nearly one in five (19%) had considered how nice the neighbours seemed before putting in an offer on a property.

Here are the percentages of people who said they were happy with where they were living, according to Co-op Insurance:

:: East Midlands 87.5%

:: East Anglia 83.2%

:: London, 88.7%

:: North East, 86.7%

:: North West, 86.1%

:: Northern Ireland, 82.1%

:: Scotland, 88.7%

:: South East, 91.2%

:: South West, 92.8%

:: Wales, 93.4%

:: West Midlands, 91.6%

:: Yorkshire and the Humber, 92.8%