As the housing market continues its rebound, trends among builders and buyers are evolving. A key finding from the recent 2017 Builder Practices Survey from Home Innovation shows that the market is seeing a move toward central price points.
The survey shows that there was an overall reduction in the share of $500,000-plus luxury homes in the market from its record high in 2016. On the other end of the spectrum, there was also a dip in the share of multi-family housing, with the average cost/selling price per unit sitting at the lowest of all categories at $150,000.
Not only are people gravitating toward homes that are more modestly priced, but many of the finishes inside those homes are drifting away from high-end materials. The only finish that seems to be on the uptick, according to the survey, is quartz — the most expensive option — which increased from 9 percent to 13 percent in bathrooms and 9 percent to 14 percent in kitchens.
Other findings include:
- Jetted tubs were installed in 11 percent of homes in 2016, compared to 15 percent the year before.
- Natural granite and marble shower and bathtub surrounds fell from 12 percent to 9 percent in the past year.
- Engineered hardwood and ceramic tile each grew 3 percent in market share.
- Natural stone fell from 6 percent to 3 percent a share.
- Vinyl sheet flooring fell from 12 percent to 8 percent.