By Melissa Dittmann Tracey, REALTOR Magazine
Married couples no longer hold the majority in households. In 1960, married couples made up 75 percent of total households. In 2010, that percentage has dropped to 48 percent, according to U.S. Census data.
Meanwhile, “family households”–which includes married couples with no children–has bloomed from 45.1 million in 1960 to 77.5 million in 2010. And non-family households (people living alone or households where no one is related) has soared–increasing nearly five times in the last 50 years–from 7.9 million in 1960 to 39.2 million in 2010.
“These significant demographic shifts create opportunities to design and sell homes to a growing group who cannot find what they want in the resale market because the resale market was primarily built for families,” according to a report by John Burns Real Estate Consulting.
So given the growth in non-family households, what do these potential home buyers desire? Here are some of the findings from John Burns Real Estate Consulting:
By Melissa Dittmann Tracey, REALTOR® Magazine
So what home features are buyers asking for the most in their search for a new home?
AVID Ratings Co., a firm that provides surveys and employee training to home builders across the United States and Canada, conducts an annual survey of home buyer preferences.
The company found the following hot home features reign supreme in today’s market:
1. Large kitchens with an island.
2. Energy-efficient appliances and high-efficiency insulation and windows. (These were the most sought-after “green” features from buyers.) Continue reading »
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