Thursday, December 18, 2008

Cottage Industry: Small, Well Designed New Homes Are in Demand

A recent article in Builder Magazine stated that "small, modestly priced new homes are gaining popularity points." The article cites the following reasons:

- Tighter lender standards have left buyers able to afford less

- The threat of higher energy prices and global warming have tempered buyers' willingness to pay for conditioned space they don't use

- The average American household is shrinking as more homeowners enter their retirement years, get divorced, delay having kids, or choose not to marry

Additionally, particularly in urban areas, we believe that buyers pay attention to - and appreciate - spaces that are efficiently and well designed.

Does this mean that as the housing market climbs out of its current recession, a premium will be placed on small, efficiently-designed new homes? According to Builder Magazine, this is perhaps the case, as long as the home is also priced right, and offers the kind of amenities that buyers are seeking.

In the long term, this kind of consumer trend could result in a renaissance for cottage-style/smaller homes, which would be a boon for builders and real estate agents that have long focused on the efficiencies found in urban living.

Progressive Urban Real Estate has always focused upon selling efficiently-designed new homes in the urban communities of Northesat Ohio. Visit our website to view the new construction and rehabbed home opportunities that are available in Cleveland as well as the inner ring suburbs.

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