What do homebuyers really want in a new house?
Any business creating a product will succeed better when it understands what its customers want. Meeting the perfect balance of cost, features, and value promises the highest interest and conversions. In the new construction home industry, creating a new home that checks all these boxes is a smart business move.
By collecting data from prospective homeowners, builders can create homes with features home buyers actually want. We collected information from a recent survey from the National Association of Home Builders and Architectural Digest’s 2024 Homebuying Trends and made a short list of the top five features new construction buyers want in home design and functionality.
What Homebuyers Actually Want
The following data comes straight from the NAHB’s free preview of their 2021 eBook, “What Homebuyers Really Want.” To get the full book, purchase it here.
Basic Characteristics
- Size: A median of 2,022 square feet of finished living area.
- Design: 32% of respondents want a traditional home, followed by 24% contemporary, 16% transitional, and 14% modern.
- Floorplan: Single-story: 61%, two-story: 42%, or townhome: 20%
- Cost: The average American homebuyer’s budget is $313,141.
Interior Design
- Floorplan preference: The majority of respondents prefer open layouts. 85% want a kitchen-dining combo, 79% want a kitchen-family room combo, and 70% family-dining combo.
- Most-wanted room: 87% of buyers want a laundry room, with 63% wanting it on the first floor.
- # of Bathrooms: Most want at least two bathrooms. 80% of the respondents want a full bath on the main level.
- Parking: 42% of home buyers would prefer a two-car garage over any other parking option.
- Most-wanted convenience: 83% of people surveyed wanted ceiling fans, with 49% calling them essential.
- Most-wanted staple: When it comes to house basics, 83% of buyers preferred energy-star windows.
Exterior Design
- Most essential outdoor living element: Exterior lighting takes the prize at 87%, followed by patios which 82% of respondents want.
- Savviest outdoor perk: While not deemed essential, 75% want a deck, with 46% calling it desirable.
Building What Buyers Want
Homebuyers want a combination of amenities that add up to quality construction. Builders can deliver incredible products that delight potential buyers by creating a home that adheres to current design trends while meeting practical needs.
Alicia Persson is a Content Strategist SEO writer at Marketplace Homes, utilizing previous years of experience on real estate teams that specialized in investments and property management. Before she joined Marketplace Homes, she was also a freelance writer for 7 years, leading to a specialization in real estate and home living content for boutique digital marketing agencies. During her writing years, she learned the basics of SEO and gained experience writing for many different clients, making her versatile at creating diverse content.
She is a proud University of Virginia master’s graduate and enjoyed her undergraduate years at the University of Mary Washington. When Alicia is not writing, she plays keytar and sings in a local 90’s rock cover band, or she spends time with her amazing family.