Housing choices and community design remain definite priorities for homebuyers, according to a new survey from the National Association of Realtors®.
NAR’s Community and Transportation Preference Survey found that homebuyers value walkability and mixed-used neighborhoods when shopping for a home: 89% of respondents said sidewalks and places to walk are important, and 82% said being within walking distance of parks and shops is important.
Specifically, more than half of respondents (63%) said they would be willing to pay more for a home that is walking distance to parks, shops and restaurants. In fact, 59% of respondents said they preferred a home in a walkable area rather than a larger home that required more driving.
“It’s clear that Americans place a high value on making sure the place they call home has the amenities they need to lead a happy and healthy life,” said NAR Executive Vice President and Chief Advocacy Officer Shannon McGahn. “NAR members know this intuitively, but having hard data like this is an asset in our advocacy efforts at the federal, state, and local level.”
In order to create more walkability and mixed-use neighborhoods, homebuyers want more intention behind community design. Specifically, 46% of respondents said it should be a high priority for local governments to make it easier to develop walkable communities, and 39% said it should at least be a middle priority.
In that vein, 63% of homebuyers said that small-lot single-family homes are a good idea for developing their communities, and 51% said townhomes, duplexes, and other attached housing are good options.
To read the full survey, click here.
