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My tiny current kitchen break all the "rules." Seventies cabinetry painted taupe, granite counter tops w/ a very basic edge treatment, taupe walls w/white trim, inexpensive tile floors, & white appliances. Yep, and we bought the house from a flipper! I like it, but after reading this thread I'm just not sure how I can possibly continue living this way.
Seriously, folks, I live in an older neighborhood, where the houses range from $300k to $600k, and I can't think of anybody with stainless steel anything, other than sinks. We all have white appliances. A huge number of us still have ugly 70's cabinetry, although most have painted it. Maybe this fascination with stainless and HGTV is a entry-level buyer thing. I was more interested in whether or not the kitchen was clean, functional, and in good working order.
My tiny current kitchen break all the "rules." Seventies cabinetry painted taupe, granite counter tops w/ a very basic edge treatment, taupe walls w/white trim, inexpensive tile floors, & white appliances. Yep, and we bought the house from a flipper! I like it, but after reading this thread I'm just not sure how I can possibly continue living this way.
Seriously, folks, I live in an older neighborhood, where the houses range from $300k to $600k, and I can't think of anybody with stainless steel anything, other than sinks. We all have white appliances. A huge number of us still have ugly 70's cabinetry, although most have painted it. Maybe this fascination with stainless and HGTV is a entry-level buyer thing. I was more interested in whether or not the kitchen was clean, functional, and in good working order.
The whole point of this discussion was to help people understand what is happening in the current market for existing homes.
If you are not currently trying to sell, the appearance / functionality of your kitchen is not an issue.
If you are trying to sell and your potential buyers are coming out of a another domicile that is "all dolled up" or they will be comparing your place to others that have taken the HGTV route than those things will have much more effect on the desirability of your home.
I can't tell you how many rentals I have seen of late that have really nice kitchens. Now if I get picky I can point out that some of these have appliance packages that are "all show and no go" with SS only for appearance and no more functionality and thin overlay granite which will less expensive is also subject to more damage than a nice thick slab, but in the busier parts of the market the MAJORITY of buyers are swayed by appearance and not durability / function...
The whole point of this discussion was to help people understand what is happening in the current market for existing homes.
Although it may have turned out that way, I don't think that was the original intent of this thread at all; however, you have a good point about the busier parts of the market right now. Entry-level houses are selling at a much faster clip than those at the half-million mark. My neighborhood doesn't qualify as entry-level (neither is it high-end) and perhaps that makes a difference in what appeals to potential buyers. None of the houses that have sold recently around me were pergraniteel (pergo, granite, stainless). Truly, stainless looks out of place in a 30-year-old tract house. As I said before, when I bought last year, clean, functional, and in good working order were a lot more important than any particular finish.
That said, I have noticed that some potential buyers in my neighborhood have been wooed away to newer sections of the metro area, where huge pergraniteel kitchens and walk-in closets reign. It's a shame. They don't know what they're missing.
Do you think younger buyers are more swayed by trends? Or do you think buyers across the board are vulnerable to the HGTV/Pottery Barn effect?
Last edited by formercalifornian; 09-01-2009 at 10:03 AM..
[quote=chet everett;10554741]If you are not currently trying to sell, the appearance / functionality of your kitchen is not an issue.
If you are trying to sell and your potential buyers are coming out of a another domicile that is "all dolled up" or they will be comparing your place to others that have taken the HGTV route than those things will have much more effect on the desirability of your home.
quote]
Good points Chet...unfortunately, I can't give you more reps at this time.
We put in granite after we moved into our box about 3 years ago. I hate it and wished we had gone with concrete like our former home. I am tired of it already.
We put in granite after we moved into our box about 3 years ago. I hate it and wished we had gone with concrete like our former home. I am tired of it already.
After you moved into your box? hmm did you pick an ugly color, quality? I can't imagine "hating" granite...too shiny and happy looking to frown over.
It ain't just the kitchens and closets, but it helps.
Show me any neighborhood with lots of homeowners that have kids older than kindergartern and younger than college in desirable schools and I will tell you that neighborhood is going to have lower than average mobility.
People will pull up and "upgrade" for any number of things when they are not tied to an area. Once they get rooted their mobility will fall.
You get your "empty nester migration cycle" but for those who fill their house with memories and STUFF they are not going to haul that all away -- if they have the income /assets they might remodel / renovate so their old house has all the "bells and whistles" of new.
There are lots of cracks in the cycle due to the crisis, but there are also signs that immigrants and others will gladly step in where the "nothing down" dumb buyers got burned...
Quote:
Originally Posted by formercalifornian
Although it may have turned out that way, I don't think that was the original intent of this thread at all; however, you have a good point about the busier parts of the market right now. Entry-level houses are selling at a much faster clip than those at the half-million mark. My neighborhood doesn't qualify as entry-level (neither is it high-end) and perhaps that makes a difference in what appeals to potential buyers. None of the houses that have sold recently around me were pergraniteel (pergo, granite, stainless). Truly, stainless looks out of place in a 30-year-old tract house. As I said before, when I bought last year, clean, functional, and in good working order were a lot more important than any particular finish.
That said, I have noticed that some potential buyers in my neighborhood have been wooed away to newer sections of the metro area, where huge pergraniteel kitchens and walk-in closets reign. It's a shame. They don't know what they're missing.
Do you think younger buyers are more swayed by trends? Or do you think buyers across the board are vulnerable to the HGTV/Pottery Barn effect?
It ain't just the kitchens and closets, but it helps.
Show me any neighborhood with lots of homeowners that have kids older than kindergartern and younger than college in desirable schools and I will tell you that neighborhood is going to have lower than average mobility.
People will pull up and "upgrade" for any number of things when they are not tied to an area. Once they get rooted their mobility will fall.
You get your "empty nester migration cycle" but for those who fill their house with memories and STUFF they are not going to haul that all away -- if they have the income /assets they might remodel / renovate so their old house has all the "bells and whistles" of new.
There are lots of cracks in the cycle due to the crisis, but there are also signs that immigrants and others will gladly step in where the "nothing down" dumb buyers got burned...
I hadn't thought of it that way, but I agree that once you have kids, it's schools, schools, schools, and kitchen finishes cease to be so important. Parents will tolerate quite a bit for an award-winning elementary.
As far as mobility dropping once you have kids, though, I think it depends. In many metro areas, there is a large contingent of middle class tech & finance workers, who seem to travel in packs...from the Bay Area to Research Triangle Park to Denver to Chicago to San Diego to Seattle to DC... from their late 20's through early 50's. These are prime child-raising years. I realized the other day that about a dozen of the moms waiting to pick up their kids from school had lived within 50 miles of me in northern California, and another four had lived in the same region of Maryland. We're completely in-bred, and it's frightening. We all joke that we're never moving again, but deep down we realize it's not true. Someday, the moving vans will once again pull up to our driveways, and we'll be off to our next landing places. And, on the other end, we'll probably see a familiar face or two in the crowd.
So, how does that impact our home-buying preferences? Neutral finishes and flexible floorplans are the name of the game. But, really it's all about the schools.
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If you are not trying to sell...
