6 Home Trends For 2024

Zillow’s research team analyzed more than 300 design styles and home feature keywords in for-sale listing descriptions and compared them to a year ago to develop a prediction on six home trends for 2024. Here are the results:

1. Brutalism

Brutalism interiors describe a rough surfaces and utilitarian feel, mixing materials like wood, iron, and brass with plants. In the 1950s, brutalism was commonplace, though homes then were definitely more stark and gloomy than this new wave.

2. Sensory gardens

Sensory gardens are designed to do exactly what they sound like: engage all five senses and help you connect with nature. Many think they have therapeutic benefits, which makes them an obvious fit for being in a personal space. Typically, you might find plants like lavender or water features like a trickling stream in a home’s sensory garden.

3. Cold plunge pools

Hot tubs are so last year. I have seen my fair share of cold plunge pools going into homes in the last 12 months, and I agree with Zillow that this trend will remain hot (ironically). Cold plunges allegedly reduce inflammation and improve circulation, so it’s a big thing in home wellness spaces these days.

4. Pickleball courts

This will surprise nobody, given the pickleball fervor that has swept the nation! I have seen this in high demand, too (and would like one for my home, too, if I could!). More reasonably, home buyers are looking for neighborhoods with pickleball courts listed as a nearby amenity, much like they might have looked for tennis courts in the past.

5. Murano glass chandeliers

Homebuyers are trying to add some big personality to their houses through unique decor choices. Murano glass chandeliers – named for where they are handcrafted (Murano, Italy) – have been around for centuries and their quirkiness and intracy are enticing homebuyers across the country.

6. Murals

Finally, hand-painted murals are speaking to homebuyers who want to make a statement in one or more rooms of their house. Murals can be super personalized to a home owner or their home and are a fun offshoot of typical wallpaper or paint.

My stager Ashley Provost has also shared some design trends for 2024. Wallpaper is making a come back, along with accent walls. Curved furniture and arches will also be in. Grey is out, natural wood floors are in. Then there is color – Pantone’s color of the year is Peach Fuzz – oh no … however I have heard blue is a hot color from our namesake BHG Magazine, but I am seeing a lot of fern/moss in clothings. Color is such a personal thing and hard to stay on trend because it seems to change every year, although grey stayed with us for a long while.

A New Listing In Rossmoor!

This 1-bed, 1-bath unit (3317 Tice Creek, Unit 4) in Rossmoor has a private fenced-in patio that allows level-in entry from the street. It is a delightful Cypress Co-Op (Entry 12) unit ready for a new owner to enjoy.

Luxury vinyl plant flooring and a fresh coat of paint enhance the home’s appeal. The kitchen shines with recessed lighting and quartz countertops. A remodeled bathroom with a convenient shower stall, updated fixtures, and a tiled floor awaits your relaxation.

The unit is surrounded by mature hedges and has an area for flowers, creating a serene haven perfect for soaking in the sunshine or creating a charming garden retreat. You’ll also appreciate the ease of sidewalk access for bringing in groceries or avoiding the stairs. Carport #1601-1 is conveniently located directly across from the unit. As a bonus, you’ll find 10 guest parking spaces and the community laundry room just a few steps away.

Rossmoor stands as the premiere active-adult community in the Bay Area, offering a plethora of amenities to enhance your lifestyle (Examples: six clubhouses, two golf courses, four swimming pools, a well-equipped gym, a movie theater, art studios, bocce ball and lawn bowling, tennis and pickleball courts, a variety of clubs, and much more!).

A closing on 7007 Mariposa

I recently sold a home at 7007 N. Mariposa in Dublin. One cool thing about it is that this is the fourth property I have either helped sell or buy for this same family.

Each time they bought, I said, “you will be moving in four or five years!” They have a growing family so a move-up buyer makes sense. This home I just sold had only a small side yard and no driveway, but as you can see by the pictures, they had a beautiful home that went quickly. So off they went to find the unicorn house that has it all.

They are now in contract on new construction and I have a feeling they will be staying in this one for a long time. I’m so happy I was able to help them out again. Though one of the kids was sad to leave, I believe they will love their new home and their new baby brother or sister due to arrive next year Congrats to all!

5 Tips from Ty Pennington

You all remember Ty Pennington from Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, right? Well, I recently read a short blog about his five tips to make a home’s exterior look brand new, regardless of how old the actual home is! Without further ado, here are Ty’s tips:

1. Paint

Nothing packs as much impact as a fresh coat of paint. My favorite new trend-black siding! No need to tear off and do a full replacement. If your vinyl siding is in good shape, paint it!

2. Clean

We tend to put off cleaning the windows, but don’t! Clean windows make your house look well-loved and cared for.

3. Repair

Cracked and missing concrete is not just an eyesore, it’s a safety concern. While it may be costly to pour a new driveway or sidewalk, it will pay you back in reducing that safety risk.

4. Fertilize

It’s autumn, and that means it’s time to prep for summer! Fertilizing your grass now will help fill in thin spots and grow deep roots so your lawn survives winter. Plant your bulbs now if you are considering selling in the spring.

5. Tuckpoint

If you have a brick house, protect it from moisture intrusion by having it professionally tuckpointed. That said, there are very few brick homes in our area (more stucco).

To read the entire piece from Ty, check out his extended tips here.

A whirlwind process!

Recently, I represented the buyer on 9 Hansen Ct. in Moraga. My clients were very motivated, just moving back to the Bay Area from Texas. They were also living in a parents’ 2-bed home with four additional people and a daughter needing to be registered for high school. So all this put the house-hunting process on high alert.

As an agent, you often learn about critical information, or those that inform the decision-making process, as you go. In this case, it was how important being close to the high school would be, as the daughter would have to get there in the mornings and she doesn’t drive yet.

We put one offer in on a duet by Rudgear Park, but got beat out on a home with multiple offers. They had been eyeing Hansen, which had just reduced the price, so we negotiated down a bit more and then started doing inspections. The house had been beautifully updated after being a rental for 20 years, but we found the sprinklers had been leaking and there was water under the house. After the sellers addressed the sprinkler issue we got a credit for a few other repairs and closed the day after school started.

Luckily, this home is a block from Campolindo and the daughter was able to register, but proof of closing was required within the month. Now they are just waiting for their furniture to be delivered.

Buying or selling can be stressful at times. It is my job to consistently communicate the process and help mitigate some of the stress. Here are reviews on how I do just that. If you are thinking about buying or selling a home, let’s chat!

When appraised value is not market value

Sometimes, when the market is in a state of extremes, appraised value does not equal market value. Things are not appraising equally right now because the market stalled at the end of 2018, so homes sat and price reductions occurred. Now that the rates have dropped, buyers are back out, prices are up, but the comps are still off. Here is my friend Jay Vorhees at JVM Lending with more:

Image result for home appraisal — HomeLight

Because the market is heating up again, we have had several appraisal issues recently where there were simply no comparable sales available to support the contract price (despite multiple offers at that price). Because the agents involved in the transactions were frustrated, I thought it was necessary to repeat this blog.

Ten offers over $1 million; appraisal comes in at $850,000

We once had a transaction in Berkeley, CA involving a property that was listed for $850,000, and there were more than 10 offers for over $1 million. The market value for that property was clearly over $1 million because there were so many buyers willing to pay over $1 million in an open market. The appraised value, however, was much less because the highest priced comparable sale in the area was only $850,000. The appraiser knew about the other offers and he knew the market value was probably over $1 million, but he was constrained by appraisal guidelines.

The appraiser could only use comparable sales within one mile of the subject property that closed within the last three months. He could not correlate to the other offers or similar pending sales at all. So, the appraisal came in at $850,000 and this is clearly a case where the appraised value did not equal the market value. This happens all the time in “hot markets” where there are multiple offers and prices are increasing too fast for comparable sales data to keep up.

Why appraisers can’t “push” values

Further, if appraisers push value too far in an attempt to support a contract price, other issues arise. An underwriter will likely call for a full review of the appraisal that will probably result in a significant cut in the value. Or worse, if the appraisal makes it past underwriting, investors may refuse to buy the loan on the secondary market because they are unfamiliar with Bay Area markets and the property appears overvalued on paper.

In any case, prior to the meltdown in 2008, appraisers could correlate to other offers and even pending sales to some extent, but nowadays they are not allowed. Appraising is all about closed sales and tight appraisal guidelines, and not always about estimating market value.

Two Condos, Two Sellers!

I recently closed on two homes with my clients, and wanted to share their stories. I helped Kevin (below) buy a condo before he got married, back in the downturn of the market in Roundtree. I sold his cousin’s house and helped them get into another home, so they referred me to Kevin.

Fast forward a few years Kevin and Katie married and had a baby girl who starts kindergarten in the fall, and they moved into grandma’s house (whose home I also helped with when she moved up from Southern California). They had been renting out their condo and decided it was time to sell. They had done some remodeling and we staged the home. It looked great, was listed at $350,000, was on the market for 11 days and sold for $360,000. I feel so grateful to have met this extended family.

I met Jill (below) through a referral from her goddaughter indirectly through another client I had helped last year. She also was renting out her condo in Martinez and realized it was time to sell. We did a few improvements (painted kitchen cabinets and added granite – see the before and after kitchen pictures below). Farm Lane was listed at $387,000 and sold for the list price after being on the market for 15 days.

JVM Lending: Too busy for big houses!

I loved this blog from our friend Jay Vorhees at JVM Lending. It covers the trend in real estate towards smaller homes. I have been thinking of doing a blog on tiny homes and this may be the impetus to sit down and write about that trend! With millennial buyers angling that way and boomers finally wising up and heading that way too, the market for large houses is changing. Read on:

I hike for five or six miles every weekend in the hills around one of the Bay Area’s most high-end housing developments. The homes are huge, stunning, and fun to see, but the best part is the extremely elaborate backyards with vineyards, gazebos, massive pools, outdoor kitchens, terraces, fruit trees, play sets, sport courts, and immaculate landscaping.

The cost for those yards alone is often in excess of $1 million. And this is what I find most interesting – in over nine years of hiking, I have seen people in those backyards maybe five or six times; despite their beauty and allure, the yards are literally devoid of human beings.

I know several families who live in the development, and I know exactly why they are never in their backyards. With sports practices, games, private coaching, tutoring, volunteering, homework, social obligations, etc., they are far too busy to ever find time to venture into their outdoor paradises.

So, that is point #1 – families looking to buy their ultimate dream home might do well to remember that they may be far too busy to enjoy it. Point #2 was illuminated in a recent WSJ article called A Growing Problem In Real Estate – Too Many Big Houses.

It turns out that far too many baby boomers built monstrous dream homes that they no longer want or are able to take care of. According to the article, in February in Scottsdale, AZ alone, there were 390 homes on the market at prices in excess of $3 million. The market for large homes is dwindling because more and more boomers are wising up and moving to smaller homes with much less maintenance, and younger buyers aren’t interested in the large homes either.

Another problem is that we old people like earth tones, crown moldings, and other styles that younger buyers hate, only making boomer homes that much less appealing to younger buyers (when my wife Heejin and I stay in modern AirBNBs, I drive her crazy with my non-stop complaining about the concrete floors, stark colors, and what seems like ridiculously cold decorating to me; and don’t even get me started about those silly little pedestal sinks…).

Anyway, if you have a client looking to build or buy their monstrous dream home, you might remind them that they either might be too busy or too old for a huge home.

Many of those boomers in the Walnut Creek area bought those big homes with big yards and as the kids grew up, they have sold and moved downtown to places like the Mercer on California where they can lock up for three months, not worry about a yard and travel or just walk downtown have dinner and a glass of wine and walk back home…more to come for that future blog!

Another closing at Tampico!

I recently closed a townhome on Tampico, and I’m so happy to have helped Tyler and Yana. They relocated about a year ago and decided to rent in San Francisco for a year and get a feel for the area. Tyler works down in Pleasanton and their San Francisco rent recently went up. They were very motivated to move back into home ownership.

We met one day over coffee and talked about the market, what they were looking for, timing, and the area they were most interested in. They loved Walnut Creek with Broadway Plaza, all the restaurants and overall vib. Since I had a previous appointment, we looked over some open houses in Walnut Creek and they decided to go look at a few. He called me later that day and said they really like a home on Tampico and wanted more information.

This home had been bought in July by an investor who flipped it. Timing is everything and the seller had the unfortunate experience of a soft second half of 2018. There had been a handful of price reductions until January where it was listed at $699,000, down from $775,000 – an opportunity for a buyer! It took a few days to get the financing and all the details, so about three days later we submitted an offer less than asking. In the beginning of January, the market again began to shift, this time upwards, and another offer was submitted and countered to $715,000. Their offer was accepted and then we started the inspections. They ended up with a $5,000 credit and some things that HOA needs to fix. Overall, it was a very smooth process and they are excited to be living in Walnut Creek with a yard for their dog and a nicely updated home! Congratulations!!!!

Congrats on the closing!

I met Lisa and Grant in the middle of November and by the middle of January, we closed on their new home. They lived in Daly City, work in San Francisco and just had a baby and decided it was time to buy a house – the East Bay is more affordable than the city or the Oakland area.

They were initially not in a hurry, but were very active right out of the gate; then I found out that it made sense for them to purchase before Lisa’s maternity leave was over in February, thus a couple of weeks later we were in contract! There was one other offer, we got a Seller Multiple Counter and in the end their offer was accepted.

After all the inspections were completed, they received a credit and a slight price reduction because of a couple of unfinished portions of a recent remodel job. I have to give a big shout-out to Tobi, the Escrow Officer at Fidelity, on this transaction. She went above and beyond to work through a title issue. Overall, the process was smooth, JVM (the lender) was on point, and they got the house before Lisa goes back to work.

They now are in the process of doing some repairs prior to moving in and putting their personal touches on the home. They were so excited! I wish them many wonderful memories and happiness.