
Kitchens, bathrooms, and bedrooms will always be hot buttons when home buyers decide how to personalize their homes. To remain relevant, builders must stay ahead of product trends in these areas. Consumer preferences and demands vary by demographics and geography, but designers track some universal trends that appeal to a broad range of buyers:
Gourmet Kitchens Lifestylist Suzanne Felber says most home builders, especially volume builders, underestimate what buyers are willing to invest in kitchens. “They will spend a minimum on carpet so they can get the kitchen of their dreams,” she says. Builders Design regional vice president Lesley McCarthy says most buyers at her design studio set aside several thousand dollars for countertop upgrades—almost always from granite (now standard in many if not most new homes) to quartz, a staple in the clean, open kitchens home buyers see on Houzz—before they begin to choose other features. Smart builders, says Mary DeWalt of Austin-based DeWalt Design Group, are offering environmentally friendly quartz countertops as standard or for a small upgrade.
Owner’s Entries No longer just a coat hook and place to take off boots, “drop zones” provide space for keys and electronics and a central command post for automated systems that architect Jerry Gloss of KGA Studio Architects likens to the robotics in The Jetsons. Consumers expect these systems, Gloss says, “just like they expect three-car garages.” That’s particularly exciting for design associates and customers at Toll Brothers, says chief marketing officer Kira Sterling, but she’s quick to warn there’s “no one-size-fits-all approach” to remote home management.
Outdoor Rooms Heated, covered outdoor rooms with cooking, dining, and living areas, fans and fireplaces are what Gloss calls an “I-deserve-it” upgrade. “Outdoor rooms are a fascination,” Gloss says, “probably the thing we get the most requests for, from production housing all the way through custom.” In the “Hot Spots Research Study” commissioned by gas grill and fireplace company Napoleon, consumers expressed a preference for homes that accommodate outdoor living.
More Windows No one wants to live in a dark house. McCarthy says most people want to blur the lines between indoors and outdoors, and many will incorporate as many windows as they can afford.
Smarter Lighting In Georgia, McCarthy says people are spending more money on lighting than she’s ever seen before, upgrading fixtures and installing abundant, dimmable lighting with LED bulbs. Jennifar Evans, director of design and coordination for Glenview, Ill.–based Edward R. James Homes, says Chicago area home buyers are seeking out smart, integrated lighting systems.
More Flooring Options Across the board, hardwood and tile flooring rules. Consumers are exploring bigger plank widths and broader color options in hardwood and experimenting with large-format tiles. DeWalt is not alone in her enthusiasm for engineered wood and “luxury vinyls,” which are particularly appealing to families with dogs. Frank Baliff of Southern Development Homes in Virginia likes laminate hardwood for its durability and “exotic looks.” In Chicago, heated floors, particularly in the bathroom, are an easy sell for Edward R. James.