Cook tops move to the center of the kitchen

The home of the future doesn’t include Jetson-style hovercraft or robotic maids — yet — but there are some key changes worth looking for if you’re a builder.

Based on responses to a recent survey by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), here are some ways in which builders can expect homes to change by as early as 2015:

* Single-family homes will get smaller (74 percent of respondents said).
* Homes will have more “green” features (68 percent).
* Homes will have more technology features (29 percent).
* Homes will have more universal access features (20 percent).
* Homes will have more outdoor living features, such as kitchens and fireplaces (10 percent).
* The average home size will be roughly 2,150 sf.
* Living rooms will merge with other spaces in the home (52 percent), vanish to save on square footage (30 percent), or become a parlor/retreat/library or music room (13 percent).
* If the living room doesn’t vanish, it will likely decrease in size (76 percent).
* Also downsizing are the entry foyer (66 percent) and dining room (63 percent).
* Features “very likely” to be included in a new home in 2015 include a kitchen-living room combo (“great room”), walk-in closet in master bedroom, laundry room and two-car garage.
* “Unlikely” features include three or more bathrooms, mudroom, unheated porch, dining room, skylights, three-car garage, four or more bedrooms, media room and two master bedroom suites.
* Home buyers are “somewhat likely” to want universal design features such as step-less entries, three-foot-wide doorways and four-foot-wide hallways, step-less showers that have seating, non-slip floor surfaces and grab bars in bathrooms.
* People seem likely to lavish more attention on the kitchen, ensuring that room will keep its status as the home’s social center. Survey respondents said they are “very likely” to want double sinks, recessed lighting, table space for eating and breakfast bars. They’re “somewhat likely” to want a central island, walk-in pantry, recycling center and desk/computer area.

I see the same trends in home buying.

Although anchors are in place at most new developments, including the 500,000-sf Domain II, lenders continue to show restraint when considering small business loans, limiting owners’ ability to fill in-line space.

“Sidelined investors with capital are poised to re-enter the retail market, although significant activity is not anticipated until mid 2010, when a pricing floor will emerge,” said J. Michael Watson, regional manager of Marcus & Millichap’s Austin office.

Some findings from the Austin Retail Research Report:

Employers will increase payrolls by 2.5 percent, or 19,100 jobs, in 2010.
Developers are projected to add 1.6 million square feet of retail space to the market this year, more than double deliveries in 2009.
After a 40 basis point rise last year, vacancy is expected to push up 50 basis points to 10 percent by year-end 2010.
In 2010, asking rents are forecast to retreat 1.3 percent to $19.68 per sf, while effective rents will slip 4.1 percent to $17.12 per sf.

TEXAS’ EXISTING HOME SALES DOWN IN JANUARY

TEXAS (Real Estate Center, Reuters, CNNMoney.com) – A total of 10,217 existing single-family homes were sold in Texas last month, a 5 percent drop from January 2009, according to MLS data compiled by the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University.

The median price was up 4 percent to $137,100 during the same period, and the state finished the month with a 6.5-month inventory of existing homes.

Here is how select Texas cities fared in January (data current as of Feb. 25, 2010):

Additional home sales data for these and other major Texas cities are available on the Center’s website.

At the national level, the National Association of Realtors reported this week that single-family home sales fell 7.2 percent to an annual rate of 5.05 million in January from a pace of 5.44 million in December. That was 11.5 percent above the January 2009 pace.

Meanwhile, new home sales also fell at the national level. The seasonally adjusted annual rate of new home sales plummeted 11.2 percent to 309,000 last month, compared with a revised rate of 348,000 in December. According to Census Bureau data, that’s a 6.1 percent decline from January 2009.

Texas has a Gubernatorial election on the horizon and I am curious to how this will affect our business climate.