While in the past basic necessities such as regulator supply of water and other civic amenities were considered while arriving at a decision to purchase a new house, in UK a recent study highlights that citizens also review the speed of broadband services available in the region.

ISPreview’s study points out that 75% of people in UK would not buy a house even if it is good if the house does not has access to more than 1 Mbps broadband service.

61.7 % people want the broadband speed in excess of 4 Mbps, 20.8 % contend with 4 Mbps, 10.8 % with 2 Mbps and only 6.6% settling for 1 Mbps.

While fixedline broadband access is the most preferred medium, Wi-Fi, Mobile Broadband and Satellite were the other popular mediums for broadband access.

"Consumers clearly place a significant emphasis on broadband performance, so much so that an overwhelming majority would even be willing to give up on an almost perfect dream home in favour of a cosmetically less attractive one that received faster speeds," commented ISPreview Editor and Founder, Mark Jackson. "The results could have profound implications because many slower homes are often found in remote and rural locations that reside further from their local telephone exchange, hinting at the potential for a greater exodus into urban environments (towns and cities) where speeds are higher and prices lower."

"Estate agents have long voiced the importance of broadband equipped homes, though few may have recognised that modern demand also requires the service to be fast, affordable and flexible. This highlights the importance of being able to deliver speeds of more than double the current government target, which is committed to delivering a minimum 2Mbps broadband speed to everybody by 2012. This may now simply end up being too little, too late," concluded Jackson.