Markets
Designing To The Trends: What Works In Home Sales?
Despite nearly a year of economic anxiety, 2021 promises to be one of the best years in recent history for the housing market across multiple metrics. According to research by the real estate experts at Redfin, mortgage rates will hold at 3%, and home sales will increase with only moderate price growth. We’re also expected to see a spike in new home construction, and high relocation rates, which means real estate agents will be busy. Still, even when home sales are at their best, issues like styling can make or break a sale.
Improve With Caution
There’s a lot of advice out there about how to improve your home before putting it on the market, but one thing that homeowners have uncovered in recent years is that they need to be strategic. Many of the most desirable improvements, including factors that could lead their home to sell much more quickly, are expensive and ultimately don’t boost the sales price enough to be worth the cost. However, there are many budget-friendly home improvements that can help elevate a property’s appearance, such as inexpensive hardware swaps. These updates can make a home look modern without excess cost, nor do they make the space so distinctive as to limit who it will appeal to.
Modern Matters
Overall, when making home improvements to sell a property, the goal is to ensure it looks well cared for and modern, but isn’t excessively trendy. For example, fireplaces, even modern fireplace styles, are timeless and welcoming, which makes them a good choice for homeowners looking to update a central area, such as a living room or den. Similarly, you’ll rarely find people object to bamboo flooring, which is an affordable alternative to hardwood, and much more widely appreciated than linoleum, carpet, or tile.
Minimize Signs Of Aging
While it’s not a good idea to lean too hard on up to the minute trends, which are likely to fade within a few years, it’s at least as important that homeowners looking to sell their property address major signs of ageing. Certain characteristics, including elaborately patterned wallpaper and popcorn ceilings, are so clearly outdated as to raise questions about how well the home has been maintained. And although it’s the job of the home inspector to raise the alarm on major structural problems, potential buyers won’t click through more than a few pictures – and certainly won’t come out in person – to see a home that looks like it’s been frozen in time since the 1970s.
Are There Timeless Trends?
Returning to the matter of modern styling and whether it’s wise to follow trends, there are a few features that are likely to migrate from trendy to timeless over the next few years, and homeowners looking to make bigger upgrades should be mindful of these in their design work.
In particular, smart home technology, especially safety-focused devices, will soon be a standard feature on new construction, and regularly installed in older properties. On the other hand, trends driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, such as “Zoom rooms” and gourmet kitchens will likely go the way of other popular designs from years past, fading into obsolescence.
Selling your home is a lot of work, and you don’t want to make it more challenging, or drag out the process longer, by tackling too many renovations or pouring your personal style into space. No, when you’re headed to the market, subtle, timeless styling is the way to go. Upgrade where needed, and leave the rest alone, and you’ll be fine.
