NEW YORK, July 3 — The coronavirus pandemic has cast uncertainty over the real estate market, with a new study by OJO Labs finding that 54 per cent of would-be-buyers cite the inability to see homes in person as a reason for their hesitation to purchase a property.
Despite this delay in their home-buying plans, some 30 per cent of surveyed buyers reveal that they are looking at available listings more often than before their search was impacted by the pandemic.
While home-owners are turning to Instagram to find trendy design features that could increase the value of their property in the market, some “on-trend” home improvements are more likely to put potential buyers off.
A recent study, conducted by Rated People with 1,038 UK homeowners, notes that prospective buyers are less likely to buy a property with rooms painted in dark blue (52 per cent) and dark grey (49 per cent).
Although popular on Instagram with more than 2,180 posts with the tag #bluekitchencabinets, dark blue kitchen cupboard doors are likely to discourage homeowners, with 41 per cent of those surveyed indicating it could put them off.
Additional interior design trends that could affect the desirability of your property in the market, according to the homeowners queried, include a bathroom with only a shower (43 per cent), black taps (35 per cent), dark grey window frames (32 per cent), as well as painted floors (35 per cent).
While patterned floor tiles have experienced a boom in sales in recent years, 29 per cent of surveyed homeowners are put off by this design, which the report points out is not too time consuming or labour intensive to tweak.
And indeed, whether they are putting their properties on the market or not, many homeowners across the world are seeing the coronavirus-imposed quarantine as an opportunity to go to their local home supply and hardware stores and launch a few DIY projects around their home.
When it comes to deciding which home improvements to invest in, it is worth noting that functional additions like a downstairs toilet (58 per cent), built-in storage (54 per cent), a separate shower cubicle (52 per cent) and a kitchen island (37 per cent) are more likely to attract prospective buyers. — AFP-Relaxnews
