The UK has long been obsessed with shows like the Antiques Roadshow and Cash in the Attic. And the idea of stumbling into a big cash windfall has never been so attractive as the credit crunch bites. But although there may be some real finds hidden in some of the nations' attics, the reality is our lofts are stuffed with ill-fitting clothes that we kid ourselves that one day we'll a) fit into again, and b) will come back into fashion. Other random objects stuffed into our lofts that have no space in our regular rooms are tents, unused exercise machines, old cots and high chairs (just in case!) and other flotsam and jetsam from the crazy whims and impulse buys of our daily lives.

 

 

If you're clearing out the attic because you're undertaking a loft conversion, you could be one of the lucky few to stumble across some hidden treasures. The Telegraph reported on the loft of Johnny Vosper, an antiques dealer – thousands of antiques and a chest containing £33,000 were discovered in his loft, proving that for some, there is cash in the attic. But unless you're an antiques dealer with lofts full of unsold stock, the remnants in your attic are more likely to be old mix tapes, records and dated PCs. Lofts can be packed with all the accumulated junk that we haven't yet taken to the tip, sold off in a car boot sale, given to charity shops or binned – whether its laziness or sentimentality.

 

 

But TV shows like the long running daytime TV series Cash in the Attic prove that we live in hope. There are plenty of stories about priceless paintings being unearthed or hidden under existing paintings. Of course, the newer your home, the less likely you are to find treasures left behind by previous occupants. But we all accumulate 'stuff' over the years – some of it inherited, some of it packed away, some that we've forgotten about packed away in our attics. Cash in the Attic is all about unearthing hidden treasure to flog at auction in order to raise funds for something special – a holiday, a wedding, or even a loft conversion! It's a huge daytime TV hit, revealing our enduring love of serendipitous finds, and has been presented by famous faces including Gloria Hunniford, Angela Rippon and Ben Fogle. 

 

 

But for most of us flogging off our attic junk wouldn't leave us enough to buy a bottle of plonk. Humans seem to have an innate impulse to collect and hoard (worthless) things we'll never need again – bits of unused carpet that you think may come in handy, out of date encyclopaedias that are redundant (thanks Google), old Atlases where the Berlin wall is still up, Brother word processors from the Stone Age of technology...add to that the bin bag after bin bag of ill-fitting, out-dated clothes (did people actually wear berets?), the holiday gear you forgot about (bum bags, rucksacks and sun hats), that exercise bike you used three times, a box of old records as you chucked out the record player 20 years ago, an old video machine (ditto). In truth, items you'll never use ever again, and what's more, that you'll have to pay to get rid of. If your loft is a shrine to the eighties, with synthesizers and cassettes, it's time to get shot of it.

 

 

As Antiques Roadshow's Eric Knowles told the press: “I spend more time telling people to cancel world cruises than book them.” The real cash in the attic lies in a loft conversion. Loft conversion experts, Truss Lofts, say a typical loft represents the largest unused space within a property. And that the potential of our lofts is often missed at first glance thanks to the timber trusses, tanks and of course, general accumulated junk cluttering up the space. Loft conversions are the surest way of creating a long-term financial investment. And take heart, if you are one of those lucky few who do stumble across an unexpected treasure, the junk stuffed in your attic could end up paying for your loft conversion!