Survey shows home buyers know what they want
Whether you’re in the market for a new home, or are wondering how appealing your existing home is by today’s standards, an up-to-date assessment of current home buyer preferences can prove handy in evaluating the many options that are out there.
Home builders rely on such information to determine the best floor plans, locations and amenities to offer their clients, and a prime source of these data is the National Association of Home Builders’ Home Buyer Preferences Survey. This study focuses on 2,000 households who have either purchased a new home in the last two years or who plan to do so within the next two years.
The latest survey results provide some surprising — and some not-so-surprising — insights into the psyche of today’s American home buyer. With new home construction continuing to bolster our local economy, we thought readers of The Spokesman-Review would find the following information helpful.
Square Footage: More is Better
This one may seem like a no-brainer. But, considering the way family sizes have trended downward in the last 30 years, the fact that the size of homes is on the rise is far from intuitive. The percentage of households with children is much smaller today than it was in the early 1970s, and nontraditional households – including single-parent and single-person households – are much more of a market force. Irrespective of this trend, however, the average size of new single-family homes continues to hit new records. It reached a new peak of 2,330 square feet – up 55 percent from three decades ago.
Kitchens and Bathrooms
•Not surprisingly, new home buyers pay particular attention to kitchens and bathrooms – more attention, in fact, than they pay to any other rooms of the house. Home builders and their consultants will tell you flat out that the kitchen can make or break a home sale, and that homes with fewer than two bathrooms can draw a significantly limited audience. More than 80 percent of those surveyed indicated a preference for two or more bathrooms.
•Nearly 80 percent of survey respondents consider a walk-in pantry a “must-have,” while more than 70 percent feel that way about an island work area in the kitchen. Other highly favored kitchen features include a built-in microwave oven, extra-long counters and newly popular “warming drawers” that keep meals palatable for on-the-go family members who are perpetually late for dinner.
•The most popular bathroom features include a linen closet as well as an exhaust fan, separate shower enclosure, dressing/makeup area and private toilet compartment. Ceramic tile walls also are high on the preference list. In high-end homes, add a whirlpool tub and multiple showerheads to the mandatory file.
•Studies have also shown that it’s a good idea to plan ahead for accessibility issues in the kitchen and bathroom. Thoughtful extra features — such as reinforced walls for grab bars, raised sinks and appliances, lowered light switches and lever door knobs — all allow for universal access by those with and without mobility impairments and add valuable flexibility to your home, allowing for what’s known in housing parlance as “aging in place.”
Beyond Basics: Specialty Rooms, Outdoor Amenities
•Elsewhere in the home, several not-so-obvious features can be extremely important for motivating home buyers. In particular, the laundry room is the single-most desired “specialty area” in a new home. The second-most important specialty area is the dining room. Just over a third of survey respondents indicated they could do without a living room in their new home.
•The most important exterior features are, respectively, exterior lighting, trees, a front porch, a rear deck or patio, and a fenced yard. Beyond the basics, an outdoor amenity that is rapidly gaining in popularity is the outdoor fireplace/fire pit, for backyard barbecues and the like. Sought-after community amenities include, by order of importance, a park area, walking/jogging trails, open spaces, a lake, and playgrounds.
Showcase of Homes Coming
If you would like to see firsthand many of the trends and features we’ve touched on in this article, come out to the 54th Showcase of Homes at the stunning River Bluff Ranch, one of Spokane’s premier new developments.
Award-winning builders will be showcasing beautiful homes, each lavishly furnished, decorated and landscaped, and of course, with all of the “bells and whistles” that have come to be expected of a Showcase of Homes entry.
Brought to you by sponsors Windermere, Action Mortgage and Wendle Motors, the Showcase of Homes will be open Sept. 24-Oct. 3. For a sneak preview, visit our website at www.shba.com. From all of us at the Spokane Home Builders Association, we wish you and your family a safe and enjoyable Labor Day holiday.