Then and Now: What was hot in 2019 isn't as hot anymore.

Real Estate Keywords

Point2Point tackles changing preferences in its report What 2021’s Most Popular Home Description Words Reveal About Post-Pandemic Buyers

Changing Tastes and Hot Items

• “Granite countertops,” “hardwood floors” and “stainless steel appliances” continue to rank high, but no longer occupy the main spots on homebuyers’ priority lists. While the practicality and beauty of these amenities have ensured their long-lasting desirability, they exited the top three this year.
• The most popular adjectives refer to spaciousness — a home feature that became an absolute must in the past months. In particular, “large,” “great,” “full” and “spacious” were all among the most used words to lure space-hungry buyers.
• Whether they were looking for a house or a condo for sale, “garage” and “parking” represented new buyers’ soft spots. The popularity of these home description keywords points to the fact that, during a year when planes were grounded and social distancing wreaked havoc, it was the car that helped people escape the confines of their homes and find comfort elsewhere.
• The other most used phrase in home descriptions was “full bathroom.” With the increasing emphasis on health measures like hand washing, the importance of bathrooms, half baths, mudrooms and other types of transition spaces increased exponentially.
• Renters are leaning toward practical home features — perhaps even more than homebuyers. For instance, “garage” and “parking” were some of the most used terms, together with “washer/dryer,” “fitness center” and “pet-friendly.” “Convenient location” was also of utmost importance. 

Top 25 Housing Buzzwords in 2021

In 2019, “granite countertops,” “hardwood floors” and “stainless steel appliances” dominated the collective imagination of home seekers. Two a years and a pandemic later, home description words paint a different picture: The three most widely encountered home features at the moment are “garage,” “walk-in closet” and “full bath.”

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Four keywords stood out: “garage,” “parking,” “walk-in closet” and “full bath.” They represent the perfect distillation of the pandemic reality — one in which everyone was forced to bounce between only two spaces: their home and some people-free patch of nature.

At home, the bathroom transcended its primary function, becoming the only truly private room in a perpetually full home. And, in order to venture outside, the car became indispensable. So, naturally, a garage or a parking space became equally vital.

By Price Range

Point2Point has a nice interactive chart that shows buzzwords by price range. 

• The top item under $100K, $100K-250K, $250K-$500K and $500K-$1M was "full bath". 
• "Hardwood Floors" was number 2 in all but the $250K-$500K where walk-in closet came in second.
• "Open Floor Plan" was number 3 in all but Under $100K where Parking came into play.  

There are more interactive graphs and charts in the article.