What buyers want most in their next home

What do buyers want in their next home?

It is not an easy question to answer and the answer can vary greatly from one buyer to another. While personal circumstances and individual preferences will often dictate the answer to this question, this article seeks to identify which characteristics are generally most important to buyers when considering a home purchase.

I spend most of my time with two very different types of home buyers. The first group is first time buyers, which is pretty self explanatory. The second group is what I like to call “first-time promotion students,” which are those buyers looking to move into a home that addresses the shortcomings of their existing home. They are not necessarily second-time buyers, but they are often people who have outgrown their current home.

Storage space

I always tell my clients that you can never have too much storage space. A little cliche to be sure, but don’t let that diminish the truth in the statement. Believe it or not, a big consideration when it comes to “storage space” is the garage. More and more buyers are insisting on a double garage. Very few people use the garage for its intended purpose (to store cars), but it sure is a great place to stack a lot of other things. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that it usually includes access to a main floor laundry / mud room … yet another place where people store their stuff!

First time buyers: This is rarely a concern, as many of them don’t have enough ‘stuff’ to fill the main rooms in the house they’re considering, much less extra stuff to fill the storage space. The double garage is still highly sought after!

First-time promotion students: These people could teach beginners something or too. These are the buyers counting kitchen cabinets, opening closet doors, and looking for space under basement stairs, all in an effort to determine if there is more storage space than in their previous home. The double garage is really a must!

Other storage space considerations that rank high on most buyer’s lists are walk-in closets (especially in the master bedroom), basement cold storage room (or how my friends from Woodbridge like it say ‘the canteen’) and a large pantry in the kitchen.

Roofs

There is a major trend in new home construction when it comes to ceiling heights that have increased over the last 10 years. In 2005, 9-foot ceilings exceeded 8-foot ceilings as the standard in new single-family homes. Many luxury homes now come standard with 10-foot or higher ceilings on the main floor and 9-foot ceilings on the second floor and in the basement. The ceiling height helps the houses appear significantly larger and adds to the overall aesthetics of the house.

Both first-time buyers and newcomers consider this to be one of their most sought-after features.

Technology ready

It should come as no surprise that the availability of cable or satellite and high-speed Internet access are among the most important features for buyers. By extension, buyers value homes that enable technology, especially when it comes to new construction. Many buyers are expressing interest in homes that have been pre-wired for surround sound, built-in speakers, high-speed Internet over Cat-5 Ethernet cables, and HD digital satellite or cable over RG-6 cables. After all, what good is the latest 60 ″ HD plasma TV if it doesn’t have an HD broadcast?

Both first-time buyers and newcomers consider this to be one of their most sought-after features.

Room sizes

The size of the rooms has been gradually increasing over several years. Buyers tend to place a premium on 3 key rooms which include the kitchen, family room, and master bedroom. You can expect these 3 bedrooms to continue to increase in size for the next 10 years, while rooms like the living room and dining room are likely to shrink or disappear altogether. Many new homes ditch the living room and instead incorporate that space into the family room, also known as the “Great” room.

First-time promotion students: The size of the rooms is especially important as they have already experienced a deficiency based on the size of the rooms in their previous home.

Other notable

Some other notable features that home buyers find very important when buying a home include central air conditioning, recessed lighting, hardwood floors, energy efficiency, and the potential for profit if they decide to sell that home in the near future.

You may be wondering why it is important to know what other homebuyers want in a home. Of course, you, as a home buyer, will have your own priorities when it comes to the features that are most important to you, however, consider an important fact: knowing which features have the most general appeal in the market for the greatest number of buyers will certainly help you when needed. The time has come to sell that same house in the future.

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