Our western Chicago real estate is getting a small glimpse of the 2008 trendy home styles but we really have not seen it all….yet! None of our Naperville homebuyers has asked to see a floating home….yet! However, we hear that floating homes are all the rage in the quiet waters of places from Vancouver to Louisiana—no lawns to mow and beautiful reflective sunsets over the lapping “yard”.
Also fashionable are “off-grid” Naperville homes that sport solar panels, windmills, and inverters. Yes, hybrid home-energy options that offer partial off-grid options will do—anything to help the growing number of eco-conscious folks to be environmentally responsible. Responsibility for some buyers of Naperville real estate begins with easier fixes like using healthy paints and light bulbs/fixtures and recycling.
Along the same healthy lines, some buyers are requesting non-smoking neighborhoods. How do we come up that those in today’s free society? Check into neighborhood rule. Some Homeowner Associations are rewriting the by-laws and declarations to include smoke-free common areas, building-code ventilation systems, fresh-smelling hallways, and entryways. When we did not know of the detrimental effects of smoking and second-hand smoke, we could tolerate more of the stuff in our environment. Ignorance is an odd kind of bliss….
Homebuyers are asking about reused construction materials, energy-friendly mechanical systems and appliances and how their potential new homes will reduce the use of fossil fuels and save the planet. How can we use technology to eliminate waste? Tech-savvy homebuyers want systems that allow them to turn the heat or air-conditioning up or down, turn off lights, and open and close blinds from a remote location.
What other amenities do they want at their fingertips? Master baths with freestanding bath thrones in soaking rooms set up for multi-tasking. The bathroom suites have handy multiple flat screen TVs and wireless internet , handy bathroom serving bars with wine coolers and espresso machines, and some want in-home hair salons—eliminating the waste of time and gas?
Homebuyers want the feeling of space and they are looking outside for living areas. How about a massive cut-stone fireplace on the patio floored with heated tile, outfitted with a full-size kitchen, and decorated to the tee? Outdoor spaces may feature weatherproof artwork, fabrics, and finishes only seen indoors in the past.
However, the outdoors is not the place to bathe the dog; nor is the kitchen or the work sink. Homebuyers want dedicated dog showers. The dog shower can be in the mudroom or utility room, in the corner of the garage or basement, but only the dog uses the ceramic shower built just for him/her.
One last element for today’s boomer shopper is the sleek elevator, an almost invisible little comportment that conserves on hip and knee power.
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Naperville
