Five Home Buying Trends We Expect to See in 2021

 

 

The housing market saw a massive upheaval in 2020 as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. People have been fleeing cities while at the same time it has been a logistical challenge for anyone to move from A to B. 2021 paints a somewhat different picture as the virus is likely to wind down, leading to some very interesting trends. Whether you are thinking of buying a home or are simply interested in the state of the market right now, here is a detailed overview of what to expect from the home buying industry throughout 2021. Read on below for five emerging home-buying trends we expect to see over the coming year and what they could mean for you.

Virtual Tours

Imagine being able to go on a 360-degree tour across a prospective house or flat without ever leaving the comfort of your own home. This is not the premise for a science-fiction movie but is a current reality, molded before the coronavirus pandemic but rising massively in popularity as more and more prospective buyers can't physically make it into these spaces. Expect the sophistication of this technology to rise as it becomes an option for nearly all real estate agents to offer instead of merely sending some two-dimensional photos that give a limited overview of the type of space that clients are potentially buying.

Solar Roofs

With sustainability and smart environmentally-friendly living on the rise thanks to increased awareness of climate change, it is likely that we will see solar roofs grow enormously in popularity. This is especially true in hotter, sun-heavy areas such as New Mexico and Arizona, where solar roofs offer the opportunity for self-sustainable energy sources. If you already own a home and simply want to add a solar roof to it, one great option to help you get started are Custom Solar and Leisure, who will be able to meet every one of your solar panel related needs.

More Sales

After the relative lack of housing sales found in the challenging year of 2020, 2021 - which should see the vast majority of Americans vaccinated against the coronavirus - promises to provide a rebound, thus resulting in far more sales. People will have had a lot of time to truly think about what they want out of life, using the time to save up for a mortgage, thus meaning increased demand for housing. This doesn't necessarily translate into higher prices, however, inflation notwithstanding. One grim fact is that because of the unfortunate death toll, there are simply more empty places on the market, which will inevitably lead to lower prices in certain areas as well as more sales.

The Rise of Remote Work

San Francisco and New York are no longer considered as desirable places to live for young techies now that large companies are allowing more and more employees to work for them remotely. This has led to the rise of so-called Zoom towns in seemingly more desirable areas — such as the present go-to spot of Austin, Texas, or even somewhere as far-flung as Puerto Rico. While these companies have stated that they will implement a regional pay-scale, these employees figure that the relatively lower cost of living in these areas is more than worth it. This in turn, will lower housing prices in cities like San Francisco and New York, especially when combined with:

More People Moving to the Suburbs

With city life stopped to a halt and major cities such as New York and LA seen as major breeding grounds for the coronavirus, more Americans have decided to move to the relative expanse and safety of the suburbs. There is no reason to expect that this will change in the year to come, with the prices of suburban homes likely to rise as a result.

The flip side of this move may be that houses in these once expensive cities will decrease in price, likely to be filled in with young people once again, gaining a reputation for being hip areas again, before eventually becoming gentrified once more and becoming extremely expensive. The fascinating part of this is that while the coronavirus pandemic and the profound changes it has wrought feel seismic, these trends follow housing patterns that have occurred multiple times over the past decades. The housing market operates on a cycle. For those looking for a house in a major city, 2021 may be the year to finally strike!

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