Flipping a home involves more than just finding a good bargain on a structurally sound home. Buyers are very specific and online searches make it easier than ever to find homes with exactly the types of trendy designs that buyers want today. This year, there are seven design trends that we think flippers should be watching.
#1: Creatively Increasing Space with Hideaway Cabinets and Wall Storage
Buyers want more storage space without having to pay for the added square footage. One design solution is the creative use of hideaway cabinets and wall storage to compliment interior storage space. This trend is showing up throughout the house in kitchen, den, and bedroom designs.
#2: Making the Laundry Room Part of the Overall Home Design
Home designers are ticking up the amenities a notch with a seemingly small design trend that is having a big impact. Laundry rooms are becoming part of the overall design of the home. Instead of an empty closet sized room stuffed with a washer and dryer, the laundry room is getting its own color scheme and cabinetry.
#3: Widening Hallways and Entryways
Homebuyers love space and even if their place isn’t spacious, they want their home to feel like it is. Nothing does the trick better than a nice high arching entryway and doublewide hallways. In many markets for less than $3,000, a hallway can be widened or an entryway remodeled.
#4: Bringing the Outdoors Indoors (And Vice Versa)
The conscious effort to infuse the outdoors with “indoor” features has been trending for the last few years. Buyers are attracted to spaces with outdoor ovens and sofas. However, another emerging trend reverses the indoor/outdoor look. Bathrooms, living rooms, and bedrooms are being updated with doors and windows that bring more of the outdoors indoors.
#5: Adding More Smart Home Features
Modern homebuyers want more technology in their homes. Now that almost all Americans own at least one Smartphone, home designers are adding more and more smart features that work remotely with a wireless phone and include items like:
- Charging Stations in the Wall
- Smart HVAC Systems
- Programmable Lights
- And Wi-Fi Enabled Appliances
For millennials, who are currently the largest group of homebuyers, smart features that combine energy efficiency are at the top of the list. As technology changes, trends will change too, and flippers will have to consider these advancements when adding technology to their flips.
#6: Improving Overall Energy Efficiency and Conservation
Many studies about the changing buyer pool show that millennials care about how their homes are built. They want builders to use refurbished building materials that are eco-friendly and design features with conservation in mind. Additionally, homebuyers want to reduce energy usage both to conserve and to reap the savings from:
- Solar Energy
- Energy Efficient Windows
- Energy Efficient Appliances
- Energy Efficient Light Fixtures
- Car Charging Ports
Conservation includes what materials are used to create cabinets and flooring. Consumers are looking for green laminates to replace plastic vinyl that pollutes the environment. These laminates can also replace wood flooring to conserve trees.
#7: Prioritizing Home Office Space
Lastly, changes in work styles have created the need to prioritize home office space in home designs. Over the last decade, the number of self-employed individuals who work from home has grown by over 100% and is expected to continue to grow by up to 20% each year for the foreseeable future. More homebuyers than ever before will be looking for properties that include a home office.
Is Your Market Trending?
What types of design trends are you seeing in your local market? We’d love to hear from you! Share the home design trends you’re seeing in your community and how you think flippers could adopt these trends!
