Homebuyers willing to make sacrifices for must-have features

Buyers are seeking some surprising key home features, and are willing to make sacrifices to get them, according to the latest PulteGroup Home Index survey.

The kitchen was the most important area when choosing a new home, according to 29 percent of respondents. Following closely behind the kitchen – the bedroom. The master bedroom ranked as the second most important room in a new home at 22 percent. And the living room was cited as the third most significant in their decision-making at 18 percent.

“As consumer confidence improves and the appetite for home buying increases, consumers today aren’t just looking for the biggest house on the block.  They’re looking for more efficient use of space and a greater area allocated to ‘workhorse’ spaces, like the kitchen,” said Ryan Marshall, executive vice president of homebuilding operations, marketing and sales for PulteGroup, Inc., in a statement. “Homebuyers want unique features and amenities and will do what it takes to find the home they truly want, even if they have to pay more for a move-in ready home.”

The survey also found that many buyers would give up appealing draws about a property in exchange for certain amenities. Thirty-five percent of those surveyed say they’d give up better schools and proximity to entertainment and shopping.

In addition, 51 percent surveyed say they want their next home to be larger than their current residence, and 64 percent say they prefer a move-in ready home.

Among the most important features home buyers identified:

• “His and her closets” in the master bedroom (31 percent) and spa-like master bathrooms (23 percent)
• A large eat-in kitchen area (23 percent) and a kitchen island (22 percent)
• At least one bathtub in a home (54 percent)
• The most important areas to homebuyers when choosing a new home: kitchen (29 percent), bedroom (22 percent), and living room (18 percent).

The PulteGroup survey polled 1,004 U.S. adults ages 25 – 65 to better understand their sentiment about the U.S. economy and how current housing conditions are impacting future homebuyers. The survey was conducted online by Russell Research from February 18-25, 2014.