In an attempt to social distance, homeowners spent a lot more time in their homes last year, especially in their kitchens cooking, cleaning, and eating well. Zillow Research analyzed closed home sales in the United States in 2019 and 2020 and found homes with features related to high-end kitchens and luxurious bathrooms in their listing descriptions sold for more than otherwise expected.
Specifically, listings that mentioned steam ovens topped the list for sale price premiums, selling for about 4.9% more than expected. Pizza ovens (3.4%), new appliances (3.2%), quartz (3.2%), smart appliances (3%), and butcher blocks (2.7%) also made the top 10 list.
Outside the kitchen, listings that mentioned “curbless”—for showers flush with the bathroom floor— fetched 3.6% more. “Modern farmhouse” styles also brought in about 3.6% more than expected, and heated floors or radiant heat—to warm your feet on a cold bathroom floor—were associated with a 3.2% sale price premium.
At the other end of the spectrum, self-described fixer-upper homes fetched 12.9% less than expected; those that admitted needing some “TLC” brought in 11.1% less; and ones marketed for their “investment” prospects sold for 4.5% less than expected.
And while 2020 also brought a wave of newly-adopted pandemic pets, and despite the premium associated with “dog house,” “pet-friendly” listings experienced a 2.2% discount. “Bike parking” was associated with a 2% negative premium. This could be because these features were correlated with small indoor spaces in large multifamily buildings, which otherwise underperformed larger single-family homes in 2020.
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