Do You Know What Your Buyers Want?

Spring has Sprung!

Climbing Roses are starting to climb, tulips are at full height...Spring on Cape Cod...one of the most beautiful in years!

Cape Cod Real Estate Updates:
Please join me for a day filled with open houses this coming weekend, Saturday, May 19th. The first is a home for sale in Dennis Port just 4 homes from Swan River. This home has been tastefully updated and offers instant access to summer fun!. This might be an ideal First Time Home Buyer property. You can get 97%, 100% to 105% financing with full documentation loan. These rates start as low as 5.375% Fixed for 30 years, if you qualify according to income limits. The second is a classic Cape Cod antique home for sale in move in condition. Imagine, a home built in 1780 that is rich with history that only requires new owners to claim this classic showpeice.

Do You Know What Buyers Want?

“Bigger isn’t better” is the message architects say they’re getting from consumers.

“Households are putting less focus on the amount of space in their homes and more on how that space is being used,” concludes the American Institute of Architects in its most recent quarterly Home Design Trends Survey.

“Rising home energy costs and concerns over affordability are resulting in a decrease in extra interior spaces that add to heating and cooling expenses,” observes AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker. More than one-quarter of residential architects report that home sizes are decreasing. Slowing, too, is demand for volume created by higher ceilings, with only 31 percent of those surveyed reporting demand for higher ceilings compared with 47 percent in 2006 and 51 percent in 2005.

Flexible Designs

Compared with previous generations, Baker says “home owners are looking to use their homes differently and therefore are looking for different layouts.” Driving these changes are growing demands for accessibility: wider hallways, fewer steps, and homes with a single floor design. Almost three-quarters of architects, 74 percent, report increasing demand for accessibility.

Also high on consumer wish lists are rooms that can serve multiple needs of a household. More than two-thirds, 67 percent, of architects report increasing demand for multifunctional space, and 56 percent point to a growing trend toward more open space layouts.

Outdoor Living Still in Demand

Although lots are growing smaller, outdoor living continues to be strong, with two-thirds of architects noting this is a trend. Also in demand are spaces to help merge indoor and outdoor living.

Updated landscaping and outdoor amenities — such as fireplaces, gazebos, courtyards, swimming pools, and tennis courts — continue to become more desirable for consumers. There’s also strong demand for fences, walls, and outbuildings, such as barns, sheds, storage facilities, according to AIA.

— By Camilla McLaughlin for REALTOR® Magazine Online