It’s Wednesday, January 27, 2010-another nice day in Bellingham, WA. The Fairhaven District in Bellingham is quite popular on nice days (well, to be honest, even rainy days): Boulevard Park offers the beauty of the bay, a coffee shop and walking trail. Fairhaven offers a variety of restaurants: The Book Fare Café above Village Books, Avenue Bread, The Colophon Café, The Big Fat Fish Co., Dirty Dan Harris Steakhouse, Skylarks Hidden Café, Mambo Italiano and a host more. Oh, and don’t forget, we’re located here if you have any real estate concerns!

Heather McCune, Director of Marketing for Bassenian Lagoni Architects in Park Ridge, Ill, says that buyers today want cost-effective architecture, plans that focus on spaces and not rooms and homes that are designed “green” from the outset.

Carol Lavender, President of the Lavender Design Group in San Antonio, Texas, states that for many buyers their next house will be smaller than their current one. She feels large kitchens that are open to the main family living area, old-fashioned bathrooms with clawfoot tubs and small spaces such as wine grottos are design features that will resonate today.

There are 10 “must-have” features for today’s home per a survey taken by Paul Cardis, CEO of AVID Ratings Co.

• Large kitchen with an island
• Energy-efficient appliances, high-efficiency insulation and high window efficiency. Among the “green” features touted in homes, these are the ones buyers value most, said Cardis.
• Home office/study. According to Cardis, it seems people prefer this space to a formal dining room.
• Main-floor master suite. This is a “must” feature for empty-nesters and appears to be getting more popular for buyers in general.
• Outdoor living rooms. The idea of an outdoor room is even more popular than an outdoor cooking area. (Not too sure about this! Don’t quite understand how an outdoor living room works!)
• Master suite soaker tubs. Whirlpools went down a notch in the latest survey. Oversize showers with seating moved up in popularity.
• Stone and brick exteriors. Stucco and vinyl don’t make the cut.
• Community landscaping, with walking paths and playgrounds. Forget about golf courses, swimming pools and clubhouses. Buyers in large planned developments prefer hiking among lush greenery. (Don’t know about this one either…clubhouses are nice for entertaining and some of us rather like swimming pools!)
• Two-car garages. A given at all levels! **

 ** Top 10 Must-Have Features in Today’s New Homes/RISMedia - http://rismedia.com distributed by McClatchy-tribune Information Services, 01/24/2010.