Amidst elevated mortgage interest rates impacting home prices, the current climate urges investment in home enhancements that augment property value, particularly for prospective sellers.
Pride Of Place
Zillow recently unveiled its annual lineup of data-informed trends projected to elevate home worth in 2024. Taking pride of place among some weird and wonderful items were pickleball courts, rubbing shoulders with cold plunge pools, and the resurgent architectural style termed Brutalism!
Amanda Pendleton, Zillow’s home trends expert, highlighted the methodology behind these sought-after trends. “When certain keywords appear in a rising share of listings, it’s a signal that today’s home buyers may be gravitating toward those features,” she said.
“Real estate agents are uniquely attuned to subtle changes in what buyers want, and they often get a first look at the latest and greatest features going into newly built homes. Savvy listing agents will highlight those trending, in-demand features when marketing a home for sale.”
2024 Trends
Guided by these insights, Zillow delineates the trends anticipated to amplify property values in 2024 significantly:
1. Brutalism: An architectural design ethos characterized by its use of unadorned, exposed materials like concrete and steel. Notably prevalent in the mid-20th century, Brutalism is witnessing a substantial resurgence – Zillow recorded a staggering 452% surge in listings referencing this term.
2. Sensory pathways and gardens: Crafted to engage all senses while purportedly possessing therapeutic benefits. These multifunctional and aesthetically pleasing outdoor spaces experienced a noteworthy 314% upsurge in listings over the past year.
3. Cold plunge pools: A burgeoning wellness trend highly endorsed by influencers for its purported circulatory benefits and anti-inflammatory properties. Once exclusive to spas and wellness retreats, DIY and home-based cold plunge pools are currently in vogue. Zillow observed a 130% rise in listings mentioning this feature.
4. Murano glass chandeliers: Lavish artistic fixtures crafted on an Italian island. Favored by designers and Gen Z, listings showcasing these bespoke light installations witnessed a 58% increase, as per Zillow’s data.
5. Murals: A maximalist design trend that continues to hold sway. Murals are now present in 18% more homes listed for sale compared to the previous year.
“Grown Exponentially”
Ryan Lundquist of the Sacramento Appraisal Blog talked about how he sees pickleball becoming more and more prevalent in real estate listings, “Pickleball has grown exponentially as a sport, and we’re seeing that reflected in real estate listings in the Sacramento region.
“The sport has been mentioned nearly 900 times in real estate listings through the years. Last week I tweeted that pickleball has been brought up 480 times, but it turns out it’s important to search “pickleball” and “pickle ball” in MLS to capture the full picture.
“It looks like 2023 is going to outpace previous years, which is impressive since sales volume has been down substantially this year.”
“MLS” stands for Multiple Listing Service. According to nar.realtor, an MLS is “a private offer of cooperation and compensation by listing brokers to other real estate brokers. In the late 1800s, real estate brokers regularly gathered at the offices of their local associations to share information about properties they were trying to sell.”
The growth is pretty evident.
A Sought-After Amenity
Now, we look at the same data in a different way by analyzing individual sales.
Two properties priced above $4M were disregarded as outliers. One of these units, valued at $4.3M in Loomis, features a pickleball court in its backyard.
Pickleball is increasingly highlighted, indicating a trend in neighborhoods incorporating these courts. Local tennis courts are being repurposed for pickleball, which might upset tennis enthusiasts.
Pickleball certainly is a sought after feature within the home buying decision-making process. For more on whether they boost property values, click here.
