A New Buzzword, "Livable"
April 19, 2010
I have recently read several articles about what buyers are focusing on when they are looking for a home. The word most often used is "livable" spaces. One article even alluded to buyers being willing to give up some luxury amenities if the home had the right spaces to fit their lifestyle.
So what are some of these spaces that make a home more "livable"?
Large kitchens are still a desire, but a kitchen that is open to a family room or is a part of a "great room" is still acceptable even though the kitchen itself may be more of a galley-type kitchen.
Larger secondary bedrooms have become more desirable. If you remember, houses built in the late 19703 and early 1980s had minimum sized secondary bedrooms.
Livable also includes energy saving features such as dual paned windows and energy star appliances.
Some buyers would even forgo the dramatic entry with the sweeping staircase for the space of the entry being used in other rooms and the staircase being functional rather that too dramatic that it uses up space.
Using "livable" as a new tool for assessing a home. Just as "beauty" is in the eyes of the beholder, so is "livable". What is livable for a family of four may not be "livable" for a family of seven, or a family of one. Still looking at a home as "livable" brings the assessment back to why we want a home in the first place. It is the place where we will LIVE.
I have recently read several articles about what buyers are focusing on when they are looking for a home. The word most often used is "livable" spaces. One article even alluded to buyers being willing to give up some luxury amenities if the home had the right spaces to fit their lifestyle.
So what are some of these spaces that make a home more "livable"?
Large kitchens are still a desire, but a kitchen that is open to a family room or is a part of a "great room" is still acceptable even though the kitchen itself may be more of a galley-type kitchen.
Larger secondary bedrooms have become more desirable. If you remember, houses built in the late 19703 and early 1980s had minimum sized secondary bedrooms.
Livable also includes energy saving features such as dual paned windows and energy star appliances.
Some buyers would even forgo the dramatic entry with the sweeping staircase for the space of the entry being used in other rooms and the staircase being functional rather that too dramatic that it uses up space.
Using "livable" as a new tool for assessing a home. Just as "beauty" is in the eyes of the beholder, so is "livable". What is livable for a family of four may not be "livable" for a family of seven, or a family of one. Still looking at a home as "livable" brings the assessment back to why we want a home in the first place. It is the place where we will LIVE.
posted by shirley harry at 7:37 AM
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