One of the most enjoyable parts of my day to day responsibilities in the world of new construction home sales is managing the selections and options for buyers. Helping people choose the finishes for their new home is a huge task. I have worked with people that truly agonize over every little detail of the home being built and others that don’t stress at all while having the attitude that finishes are just stuff.

The popular home upgrades and options offered will always vary from builder to builder. A builder that does not restrict the buyers in any way with homes upgrades and selections would be considered a custom builder. In today’s world with Pinterest and social media, many buyers are looking for the latest and greatest ideas. A custom builder can meet those wants and needs, but most often it will come with a higher price. Some buyers are okay paying more in order to get the things they want for the home they are building. A builder that offers upgrades and options with only a small range of choices would be considered more of a production builder. This builder will still deliver quality while working to keep the buyer grounded and offering choices that will be more limited. A production builder will try and offer value for the buyer while looking to stay in a particular price point.

Here are some of the popular home upgrades that are being seen in Cache Valley new construction homes currently being built in the fall of 2015. You may want to consider inquiring about a few of these things if building a new home is in your near future.

  1. Large flat kitchen island
  2. USB ports in bedrooms and family rooms. This is handy to plug in phones and tablets.
  3. LED Can Lights
  4. Additional Electric Outlets being added in places like the walk in pantry, walk in master closet, and additional garage outlets.
  5. Subway Tile in various colors and sizes is being used as kitchen backsplashes and also in bathrooms for tub and shower surrounds.
  6. Painted Gray Kitchen Cabinets are being put in homes and Painted White Kitchen Cabinets are still popular.
  7. Glass in a few kitchen cabinet doors is trendy
  8. People are picking a mix of Oil Rubbed Bronze, Chrome and Brushed Nickel in hardware finishes and it looks fantastic. In the past it was common to pick one finish and do that in the entire home.
  9. Nest Thermostats/Smart Home Technology seem to appeal to the twenty something crowd so temperatures and home systems can be adjusted easily from a smartphone.
  10. Cut & Loop Carpet, also known as “Sculptured Carpet” is rapidly replacing Cut Pile Carpet in many new homes. The Cut & Loop Carpet offers a variety of surface patterns and is a low cut carpet that does well in high traffic areas.

A local designer shared some advice for someone building a home and stressing about selections, options, and finishes. Limit the amount of information you are using to make decisions on selections and options. In many cases, people get overwhelmed with advice from friends and family and feel pressured into picking things because they are trendy but end up not being practical. The information they end up getting is not always accurate and people will end up choosing things they might not have picked or wanted. If you limit the places the information is coming from, you are more likely to pick things important to you and your family, because after all, it is your home.

For more about popular home upgrades and the options that your home needs, stay tuned to the J. Thomas Homes blog.