Does Your Home Have What Buyers Want?

With the rise in remote work, many Americans are rethinking what’s important to them in a home. Companies all across the country are choosing to delay re-opening or are choosing to have their employees work remotely full-time. With this changing work environment, many of today’s buyers are looking for more space to support their work-at-home needs. 

As a seller, you might be thinking you no longer need the extra room you have in your house. But what we’re seeing in a lot of homebuyers out there in today’s market is that they DO want that extra room… and that’s great news for you!

As many as 66% of organizations are delaying reopening their offices due to new COVID-19 variants.

According to research from Price Waterhouse Coopers, nearly one-fifth of employees want to be fully remote in the future. The study also finds that many people are leaving jobs to seek out remote work opportunities:  

“Among employees looking for new jobs, almost one in ten say it’s because they moved away from the office while working remotely and don’t want to go back on-site.”

So more Remote Work Means a Greater Need for Home Office space. One of the biggest priorities of today’s buyers is finding a home with more space so they can comfortably work from home. The 2021 Home Design Trends Survey from the American Institute of Architects finds that 69% of surveyed individuals still want at least one office at home. But what’s interesting is these studies also found more people are looking for multiple spaces in their home for remote work and virtual meetings- not just a single home office. 

In 2020, only 24% of buyers surveyed said they needed multiple home offices. By 2021, that number grew to 48% of homebuyers looking for multiple spaces for their home offices. That’s a pretty big jump in only a year and it really goes to show how quickly homebuyers’ needs are changing.

So what does this mean for you, as a seller?

If your house has extra space that you no longer need, buyers are interested, and NOW may be the perfect time to sell. We can help you highlight many of the most sought-after features in your listing, including home offices. On the other hand, if you have extra room without a purpose, consider staging it as an area where remote work can happen. Remember that many buyers are looking for not just ONE home office, many are looking for multiple home office spaces.