As a professional in the real estate industry, all you hear time and time again is the importance of finding clients, nurturing them and building long-term relationships with them. But how often do we explore the need to find the right properties?
At the end of the day, it’s the properties that need to be rented out or sold. As much as having fantastically responsive and flexible clients is – not to mention how imperative they are to keep your business thriving – what happens when we get to a stage where we can be selective about the homes we have listed on our books?
The latest trends in the US real estate market have shown a huge drop in inventory levels in those states where sales rates have skyrocketed. It’s all well and good having the most property listings in the area, therefore providing a wider selection to your potential buyers, but if they’ve been sitting around for a year and showing no signs of change except for a thicker layer of dust (or worse – cranky sellers) is it worth continuing to invest in the marketing and resources required to keep this on the market?
In this post, we’re going to take a look at open floor plan properties in particular, the pros, the cons and the value of having this type of property in your inventory.
What is an open plan property?
An open plan property is simply one that eliminates walls between two or more rooms – the floor plan is open as opposed to being closed off. Your typical open floor plan will consist of an open kitchen and dining area. However, properties also embrace open living room and dining, kitchen and living room, and even all three. In some luxury properties, you may even find an open plan bedroom and bathroom with a walled divider as opposed to a fully walled off separate room. Creativity of the construction is the only true limit when it comes to open plan, but these are the most popular rooms to find open within a property.
Open floor plans have been a popular architectural design choice since the ‘90s and continue to be present in new constructions and the renovation of older properties, providing a highly desired openness and free flow in the home.
Pros of an open plan property
Open floor plans can be a great feature when trying to sell a property, especially for those looking for big open spaces without the budget for the extensive square footage. You’ll often find a lot of natural light seeping in through various windows around the space, which would ordinarily be closed off to individual rooms. The flexibility provided with furniture is also a huge advantage for those who like to get creative. Social environments can be tailored for entertaining in the kitchen, without crowding the chef, or in the lounge with access to buffet plates in the dining area. This flexibility is also perfect for families – keeping an eye on your children playing in the living room while cooking dinner in the kitchen could be an essential selling point for some buyers.
When it comes to property stats, open floor plans increase the value of a property in almost all instances with a 7.4% average annual appreciation.
Cons of an open plan property
Of course, open plan homes aren’t for everyone and there are some objections you may face when trying to sell a property with such a feature. Some buyers don’t appreciate the openness that others do and feel that it actually leads to a lack of privacy by having no walls or doors to separate the activities in each room. On the same note, sound also carries throughout rooms, so things like music, TV, and children playing can cause a less than peaceful cooking environment in an open plan kitchen area.
Financially, keeping the open space warm or cool can cost more money than if it were smaller individual rooms. However, there are ways around this, with smart decorating and the use of ceiling fans and feature fireplaces.
As long as you’re aware of the kinds of selling blocks you may come face to face with when marketing a property with an open floor plan, there is no reason why you shouldn’t be able to make a sale. The biggest selling point, of course, being the average value increase it can lead to. If a buyer is unable to make the open floor plan work for them, they can rest assured that the value should increase inline with market increases if they choose to sell it on down the line.
What are your thoughts on selling homes with an open floor plan? We’d love to hear your experiences, good and bad. Join the discussion below.
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