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Although all-white cabinetry, speckled granite countertops and subway tiles have fallen from grace, there’s one thing today’s homebuyers can’t get enough of: kitchen islands.
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In remodeling marketplace Fixr’s 2024 home design survey, 61 percent of homebuilding and remodeling experts said kitchen islands are homebuyers’ most-requested feature, followed by walk-in pantries (43 percent), laundry rooms (31 percent), patios (30 percent), hardwood flooring (28 percent) and multi-zone HVAC systems (28 percent).
Full bathrooms on the main level, solar panels and landscaping, and Energy Star windows rounded out the top 10, with a fourth of experts saying those features made a home more desirable. The survey didn’t discuss the return on investment of these features; however, a 2019 Zillow study said minor kitchen updates — such as installing a new island — provide an ROI of 81.1 percent.
“A kitchen island has many perks, improving both the look and usefulness of your kitchen, as well as allowing bar seating,” the Fixr survey read. “It gives you extra countertop space for cooking and prepping meals, making things more efficient and organized.”
“Plus, with built-in storage options, an island helps keep your kitchen tidy by providing additional cabinets and drawers,” it added. “This makes sense considering 83 percent of experts said storage was the biggest kitchen priority in 2024.”
After kitchen islands, walk-in pantries are the second most coveted feature as they keep over-counter cupboards from becoming cluttered and offer additional food storage space.
“Continuing the theme of storage as a must, walk-in pantries are set to impress home buyers when looking around a potential new home this year,” the survey explained. “With its spacious design, a walk-in pantry helps reduce clutter by providing plenty of shelves and storage options. It gives you ample space to store food and kitchen supplies, keeping everything neat and easily accessible.”
Beyond features that maximize storage and organization, such as a dedicated laundry room and fully covered patio, professionals said buyers desire energy-saving features that reduce utility costs. The top eco-friendly feature homebuyers want is a multi-zone HVAC system, which enables homebuyers to set separate temperatures for each part of their home.
“It allows for precise temperature control in different areas or rooms, ensuring everyone stays comfortable. By only heating or cooling the spaces in use, a multi-zone system can reduce energy consumption and lower utility bills,” the survey read. “A multi-zone HVAC system enhances overall climate control, making your living environment more pleasant year-round.”
Beyond storage and energy management, Fixr’s survey respondents said homebuyers still favor open floor plans (53 percent). Hybrid floor plans (47 percent) are gaining traction as well since they give buyers access to the flow of an open floor plan with several dedicated closed spaces.
“Hybrid floor plans are great, as you get the benefit of open space (larger rooms, connectedness), but also the opportunity to provide for quieter moments, perhaps with a separate dining room or TV room that has doors,” Lewis Schoeplein Architects Principal Toni Lewis told Fixr. “This seems to be where many families have landed on the ‘ideal’ floor plan.”
