The kitchen is a prime attraction when buyers are shopping for homes, but it’s not just a place for cooking. It’s also an area for entertaining and even working.

Consumers ranked efficiency and functionality as the most important aspects of the perfect kitchen, according to a survey of more than 1,000 Americans from HomeAdvisor. The perfect kitchen, most respondents say, also has a gas stove with four burners and an overhead hood.

But Americans were more forthcoming on their pet peeves in the kitchen, which likely applies more to when house guests are over. Many of the pet peeves revolved around dishes or cluttered countertops.

Read more about the latest kitchen design trends:

• 5 Kitchen Trends to Watch
• Hot Home Trend: The Textured Kitchen Island
• 4 Simple Ways to Show Off the Kitchen
• Kitchen Pantries a Sought-After Amenity

National Association of REALTORS®
Reprinted with permission

Since the pandemic began, more homeowners have been adding plants inside their homes—a closer tie to the outdoors after being cooped up indoors more. Studies have suggested that the extra houseplants are making people better at their jobs and happier too.

A recent study conducted by Cinch Home Services, a home warranty firm, found that people with five or more houseplants are more likely to indicate feeling satisfied with their jobs, productivity, happiness, and creativity.

“Bolstered by the pandemic—and being stuck inside more than they were used to—many people reported buying even more houseplants in the last 18 months, possibly to the point of having to hide their purchases from their significant others,” researchers note in the Cinch Home Services study. “Still, people we polled reported being happier and more creative and content with their jobs when they had five or more houseplants, so it’s possible the more green you have in your home the better.”

The average person owns about five houseplants, according to the survey of about 1,000 respondents. Highly extroverted people tend to own more—6.8 houseplants, on average.

The most popular reasons to add plants: to have greenery (56%), for aesthetics and decor (51%), as a hobby (43%), to boost their mood (43%), to reduce stress and increase relaxation (35%), and to improve air quality (35%).

In fact, certain houseplants tend to be linked to certain personality traits, the survey found. For example, people who scored higher in neuroticism were the most likely to be associated with the fiddle leaf fig plant. The plant has the reputation of being one of the most difficult plants to keep alive indoors.

On the other hand, people who tended to score higher in agreeableness and conscientiousness were more likely to have English ivy. Those who tend to score higher on openness within their personalities tend to gravitate toward succulents, cacti, and spider plants, the survey found.

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Classic white remains the most popular color choice in kitchens, but homeowners continue to experiment with wider palettes for that room and other areas of the home.

“With white kitchens, there’s never a risk of looking dated in a few years, while the sleek minimalistic feel is effortlessly complemented by dark counters or contrasting kitchen accessories,” says Living Cozy, a home design resource, which analyzed global search data about design over the last 12 months.

White also ranked in the three most popular for several rooms in the house that might “benefit from the illusion of more space,” such as pantries, home offices, and laundry rooms, according to the study.

Green is becoming a more common choice in kitchens, ranking second. It has emerged as one of the trendiest colors of 2022 and also ranks within the top three for all interior areas to redecorate in. Shades of sage, olive, and jade are trending, the study shows.

Blue is the third most popular kitchen color of 2022, including shades of teal, turquoise, and light blue.

An unexpected color is making more headway in bedroom design: black, according to the Living Cozy study that tracked Google searches. 2022 is seeing a rise in popularity in black-painted bedrooms, including shades of charcoal and dark gray.

In the bathroom, black colors reigned again. In more than 2.2 million worldwide Google searches for bathroom colors in 2021, black was the clear winner, according to Living Cozy.

“Black bathroom ideas are stylish, modern, and chic, and are taking over the traditional chrome and gold colors that have dominated bathroom design for years,” the researchers note. “Bathrooms in 2022 incorporate dark black design elements through fixtures, feature walls, and flooring.”

In the living room, green is trending, according to the study. “Using green in your living room design can be the perfect way to bring an essence of nature indoors without the need for plants,” the designers note. “Layering different shades of green works best, from incorporating dark hues to featuring light pistachio shades.”

National Association of REALTORS®
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Simple kitchen and bath improvements can leave home shoppers swooning over a listing, according to a new study by Knock, a site about homeownership.

Homes are selling fast, but certain home updates can help them sell even faster. An updated home can sell an average of 30% faster than a home without improvements, the analysis shows.

Knock compared the average days on the market for homes that are updated before being listed with those that sellers leave as is. It pinpointed which home updates tend to result in the fastest sales.

“Getting a home ready for sale can be a stressful experience, and the supply chain constraints and contractor backlogs brought on by the pandemic have made it even more difficult to get work done,” says Sean Black, co-founder of Knock. “Three years ago, homeowners had to put a lot more work into their home before listing it. However, even in the current market with homes selling in record time, the data continues to support the benefits of getting your home show-ready.”

Knock was selected for the 2021 REACH class, a technology accelerator program through Second Century Ventures, the strategic investment arm of the National Association of REALTORS®.

Homes with modern renovations sold in an average of eight days, compared with an average of 12 days without improvements. Homes with two or more improvements sold in an average of six days, according to Knock.

The most common home improvement: interior and exterior paint. Seventy percent of sellers painted their walls, spending an average of $3,500.

But freshly painted kitchen cabinets, which cost an average of about $1,319, really help buyers fall in love with a house, the study shows.

Here are the updates that consumers say they most loved about a house.

National Association of REALTORS®
Reprinted with permission

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to inspire changes within the home. Here’s a toast to one of the latest: the return (and update) of the at-home bar.

Key Takeaways:

• Homeowners should find the best spot for mixing and pouring, with room for all the bar accessories.
• Decide if it’s mostly for liquor storage or if they want to provide full service with a sink and refrigerator.
• They can add some glam to the decor with a luxe stone countertop, mirrored backsplash, and good LED lighting.

In addition to spurring designated work-from-home spaces, larger kitchen islands, and more relaxing outdoor living areas, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought back the at-home bar trend in a renaissance of home entertaining.

What started with Zoom cocktail gatherings and mixology events has stirred more homeowners to create an at-home bar.

In its 2021 Houzz Emerging Home Design Trends Report, Houzz, an online design source, found that searches for home bars and wine cellars both were up nearly four times from the prior year.

“People have been relying on their homes to provide new avenues of activity and entertainment since the beginning of the pandemic,” says Julie Noble, senior communications manager.

The concept isn’t new, however. At-home bars were a centerpiece for entertaining guests in the 1950s and 1960s. A certain cohort may recall the scene in the 1967 movie “The Graduate,” when Mrs. Robinson sat down at her home bar and asked college grad Benjamin what he wanted to drink.

Today, homeowners have adjusted their room designs and decors themselves to bring together the furnishing needed for a bar. Some are as simple as bottles of liquor and wine, along with an ice bucket, glasses, napkins, stirrers, and coasters on a counter or big tray. Others are professionally designed with added features such as shelves, cabinetry, a sink, and a refrigerator or wine cooler.

The interest in home bars also led to the return of stylish bar carts, which can roll into different rooms and outdoors.

Dallas-based architect Eddie Maestri of Studio Maestri is among the professionals who have found the at-home bar to be an increasingly popular client request.

“Every single project we have currently involves a bar of some sort,” he says. “We are doing a lot of floating shelving on brass, incorporating mirrors into the back wall, for sure. Whether it has a sink just depends on the space and if the client wants one.”

Maestri, himself, has an at-home bar with a sink and ice maker. He also just completed a project for a client converting a dining room into a bar.

The styling of home bars has also evolved, says real estate salesperson Jennifer Ames Lazarre of Engel & Volkers in Chicago.

“They used to be a formula: base cabinets, upper cabinets with glass doors, granite top, sink, and refrigerator,” she says. “Now, they are often more artfully designed with floating shelves, LED lighting in a channel on the underside of the shelf, and beautiful hardware.”

Professionals like Chicago kitchen designer Mick De Giulio of de Giulio Kitchen Design agree that the at-home bar is being requested more often. He prefers to call it a beverage center. In addition to the pandemic trend of entertaining at home, De Giulio believes homeowners are also seeking an organized arrangement of living areas in an open plan.

“Beverage centers can include not only traditional barware, ice makers, sinks, and liquor storage but also refrigerated drawers for beverages and wine storage,” he says. “Companies like Sub-Zero have manufactured modular wine and refrigeration units in many more sizes and configurations, and now have the ability to mask the fronts with cabinet and furniture-like facades, allowing for bars that don’t look like bars but blend seamlessly into the surroundings.”

And Los Angeles–based designer Lori Gilder of Interior Makeovers Inc., who has seen an increased interest in home bars over the last few years, thinks the trend simply is another way homeowners reassessed their living spaces.

“We repurposed and redesigned unused living rooms by transforming them into new areas to entertain family and friends, indoors and outside,” she says. For some clients, Gilder has nestled dry bars into existing nooks, and for others, she set up more elaborate wet bars that included a sink, refrigeration, and display shelving for barware.

People’s “entertaining aesthetic tells a personal story,” Gilder says. To make the areas attractive, she carefully chooses finishes, woods, metals, stones, glass, wall coverings, integrated lighting, and hardware.

Where to put a bar varies according to how homeowners use their homes. Designer Jodi Swartz of KitchenVisions in Natick, Mass., has one large installation going into a basement. Typically, she places bars in a kitchen as a beverage center, or outside that room in a butler’s pantry, in an alcove, along the buffet wall of a dining room, or even behind a door in a closet. She tends to include a sink and refrigerator and often a dishwasher. For decoration, she might line a backsplash with tiles, a full splash of quartz, or a mirror, possibly an antique. She rarely uses wallpaper since it can easily get splattered.

Designer Krista Watterworth Alterman of Krista + Home in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., considers a custom bar to be a terrific way to use a fun nook or an unused area in a living room. “I like to add a bar to break up a very large space—it adds zones that are perfect for entertaining and connecting,” she says. Other additions include a lot of storage, open shelving, and an ice machine or wine fridge.

The popularity of the at-home bar has also helped designers boost business. Case in point: Renee and Marc Simon, owners of foo-BARS Designs in Ocala, Fla., experienced a 100% year-over-year sales increase for their furniture business, which started out making reception desks, then shifted to handcrafted bars. The bars vary in shape and size up to 14 feet. Most use pressure-treated lumber when designed for the outside and pine for bars inside a home; some are stained and others are painted. Others incorporate corrugated metal. And while many clients live in Florida, the couple has worked with homeowners in New York and California.

For now, nobody seems to know whether the home bar will remain an important part of more homeowners’ wish lists or fizzle when the pandemic ends.

How to stock a home bar?The site The Spruce Eats, offers suggestions. Cheers!

National Association of REALTORS®
Reprinted with permission

More than three-quarters of Americans who have a yard say the family yard space is one of the most important parts of their home, according to a poll of 1,700 consumers by the TurfMutt Foundation. Since the pandemic began, homeowners are showing more appreciation for their yards and spending more time in them, the poll found. 

What’s more, 72% of consumers say a spacious yard would be at the top of their wish list if they were searching for a new home. Homeowners are more willing to invest in their yards and are using them for everyday activities, including work-from-home office space, according to the survey.

“What we are seeing with Americans is greater reliance on the backyard as an extension of the home,” says Kris Kiser, president and CEO of the TurfMutt Foundation. “It’s not just a place that looks pretty—it’s a place to live and do daily activities such as working, dining, and relaxing. They’ve discovered that ‘backyarding’ is a better way to live and there’s no turning back. They are also willing to hire professionals and invest money into yard improvements.”

Eighty-four percent of respondents say they plan to invest more in their yard in 2022, including by purchasing plants, trees, flowers, vegetables to plant; purchasing items to maintain or improve their grassy areas; and installing or updating hardscaping themselves, the survey shows. Other popular projects include interest in installing a fence (19%) or a shed (15%) or adding a swimming pool (10%).

Besides refocusing the yard space for entertaining, relaxing, or doing hobbies, a yard also has become a place to work from. Fifty-eight percent of respondents said they’ve spent time performing job-related functions in their yard during the pandemic, with men doing so more often than women

National Association of REALTORS®
Reprinted with permission