The National Association of REALTORS® has just released the 2007 Profile of Buyers’ Home Feature Preferences, the first such study since 2004.
The findings of this survey have implications for both homebuyers and homesellers.
Since the 2004 survey, oversized garages saw the biggest growth in terms of what recent buyers consider very important in a home. It seems the building trade has been slow to configure garages to match the sizes of today’s popular vehicles--trucks and SUV’s. As a full-time REALTOR®, it’s my experience that many people–most people?–don’t actually use their garages for vehicles but rather for storage or extra living space. If you’re selling a home, be sure to take time to de-clutter your garage so buyers can see how spacious it really is. If you’re buying, be sure to see if your vehicle(s) fit into the garage of the home you’re purchasing.
A walk-in closet in the master bedroom also ranked high among today’s home buyers, with 66% of respondents in the South giving high marks to this feature. It seems we can’t have too much closet space these days, so if you’re preparing your home to sell, be sure to clean out every closet, eliminating all but the most necessary items (think hotel closet).
You may be surprised to know that central air conditioning ranked as "very important" to 3/4 of the respondents! It never occurred to me that anyone would NOT rank central air conditioning as an essential feature, sort of like indoor plumbing. Guess they’ve not lived through many record-breaking 100+ degree days like we’ve had here in Northeast Georgia recently. Sellers, the message is clear: If you don’t have it, get it!
Both hardwood floors and granite countertops showed increased popularity in the 2007 survey compared to 2004. Today’s hardwood floors are not your mother’s hardwood floors–no Johnson’s Paste Wax or buffing machines required to keep today’s floors beautiful. As for granite countertops, I’ve personally resisted upgrading my countertops but am now really, really interested in doing so. It looks as if the kitchen’s importance in a home is not going to diminish anytime soon, so if you haven’t upgraded your kitchen, do so. Not only will you enjoy using your new kitchen, it’s a sure bet your updated kitchen will be one room that will help your home re-sell in the shortest amount of time and for the highest price possible.
Another result of the study shows that more consumers than ever before are relying on the expertise of professional REALTORS® when buying and selling residential real estate. With the proliferation of homes on the market, both new construction and re-sale, there’s never been a time when the experience, knowledge and skills of a REALTOR® have been more vital in representing home buyers and sellers. Just this week, I even heard consumer advice guru Clark Howard say so!
Whether you’re thinking of selling or buying, please give me a call if you’d like more information on the features today’s buyers are seeking in residential real estate. After more than a decade of real real estate experience, I’m an expert at helping you make the right move!
Jennifer Skogman is a full-service Broker Associate with Coldwell Banker Heritage Real Estate. She can be reached at 678-316-9109 or by email at jskogman@bellsouth.net, or you may also visit her website at http://www.jenniferskogman.com/.
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