New Home Sizes Down; Cents & Sensibility. Reports from the National Home Builders Association are find that first time Buyers and our ever increasing 55+ population have different preferences for New Homes. They want less square footage, less costly upgrades and more green amenities. The following is from the New York Times...
House Must-Haves
Builders, attempting to respond to those consumer demands as well as hold the line on prices, told the NAHB surveyors that they were most likely to include these features as standard in their houses this year:
- Walk-in closets in the master bedroom.
- Laundry rooms.
- Insulated front doors.
- Great rooms.
- Energy-efficient windows.
- Linen closets.
- Programmable thermostats.
- Energy-efficient appliances and lighting.
- Separate shower and tub in master bathrooms.
- Nine-foot ceilings on the first floor.
Among the things that builders said they were least likely to add to houses in 2010:
- Outdoor kitchens.
- Outdoor fireplaces.
- Sunrooms.
- Butler's pantries.
- Media rooms.
- Desks in kitchens.
- Two-story foyers.
- Eight foot ceilings on the first floor.
- Multiple shower heads in the master bath.
- Smaller kitchens.Cents & Sensibility.
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