When I entered the real estate industry 35 years ago, I quickly learned that there are three things that affect the value of a home; location, location, location. Well, it appears that, while a lot of other things have changed, such as the manual typewriters and carbon paper in our office have been replaced with Mac Book Pro’s and electronic documents, nothing has changed when it comes to what is important to home buyers, it’s still location! A survey conducted by Demand Institute proved this with 47% of respondents indicating they agree with the statement “the location where I live is more important than the home itself” and only 20% said they disagreed with it, the other 33% neither agreed nor disagreed.
Top Location-Related Reasons People Move:
- 30% said for a safer neighborhood
- 27% want to be closer to family
- 26% want a change of climate
- 25% want to be closer to work
- 23% moved for a new job
Suburbs over City:
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The survey showed that most households currently live in the suburbs and have indicated they will stay there when they move plus, more movers say they will be moving farther from the city rather than closer to the city.
- 30% of households indicated they currently live in a city
- 27% said their next home would be in the city
- 47% of households indicated they currently live in the suburbs
- 50% said their next home would be in the suburbs
- 23% will move rather from the city than they currently live
- 59% will stay the same distance from the city
- 18% will move closer to the city when they move
What are most important characteristics of location?
- 83% said a safe neighborhood
- 70% a quiet neighborhood
- 67% a well-kept neighborhood
Other features or priorities movers are looking for (% that said amenity is “very important”):
- 39% – Amenities/Services in walking distance
- 34% – A good school district
- 32% – Close to work
- 26% – A diverse neighborhood
- 25% – near public transportation
