What are buyers looking for? From mundane to gadgets.

November 20, 2008

Just today I came across an ad for a garage lift (Garage Lift) showing how you can park two cars in a single car garage with the help of a nifty lift that tucks one car away in the basement. Supposedly saves you money from building an additional garage…Knowing my luck, I’d crush the car on top trying to get mine out from the basement! I can see where it might be a valuable addition to homes with a tight footprint in high cost areas, but for most of us with the luxury of ample lot space, a double car garage is the much more easy alternative!

Kitchens and baths are still extremely important. Kitchens that can double as a living space are incredibly popular. It’s difficult to cram party goers into an 8x8 foot space while you finish up cooking the appetizers. Updated appliances make cooking easy and fast. I built a new home a few years ago and I wouldn’t trade my Advantium microwave/halogen oven for anything – same goes for my induction cook top. Having set fire to my previous kitchen I appreciate the fact that nothing will burn on the cook top! However, guests who bring over a ceramic saucepan with their potluck are a little bemused as to why my stove doesn’t work for them but it works for me – “Magic!” I say.

Buyers are looking for bright, inviting kitchens, with plenty of space for all the gadgets they’ve accumulated over the years. Many cooks drool over walk in pantries and space for a matching fridge and freezer. Solid surface counters are still one of the most desirable features, but now there are other options such as composite granite, cork, stainless steel to choose from. Islands are starting to look like furniture and freezer, refrigerator and warming drawers still remain popular, and are even migrating out of the kitchen into other areas of the house. I wish I’d gone with a warming drawer instead of a heated towel rack in my bathroom – the rack only warms the section of the towel it touches. Hardly worth turning on in the morning. And talking of bathrooms - over 50% of Japenese now have some kind of water washing toilets. Charmin beware. You can find these nifty toilet seats on Amazon for less than $500 - it's worth watching the promotional videos! (Toto Washlet)

Many buyers appreciate good lighting – from well designed artificial light to energy efficient windows that let in sun and open the home to views. Other improvements are integrated sound, ipod docks and of course, home theaters. With motorized screens, projector lifts and darkening shades, it is possible to combine a living space with a home theater with a flip of a button. During the day, a formal living room – by night a ground shaking cinema showing the latest Indiana Jones movie!

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Local Information for Lawrence, KS

Latitude: 38.959902 -- Longitude: -95.253199

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Lawrence is a river city in Douglas County, Kansas, 41 miles (66 km) west by south of Kansas City, along the banks of both the Kaw and Wakarusa Rivers. It is considered governmentally independent and is the principal city of the Lawrence, Kansas Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Douglas County. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 80,098, making it the sixth largest city in Kansas. Lawrence is the county seat of Douglas County, and is the home of the University of Kansas and Haskell Indian Nations University. -- Source: Wikipedia.com

Kansas 2000 Census Population Profile Map

	Lawrence	Kansas	United States
Population	80,098	2,688,418	281,421,906
Median age	25.3	35.2	35.3
Median age for Male	25.1	33.7	34
Median age for Female	25.7	36.5	36.5
Households	31,388	1,037,891	105,480,101
Household population	72,141	2,606,468	273,643,273
Average household size	2.3	2.51	2.59
Families	15,737	701,547	71,787,347
Average family size	2.93	3.07	3.14
Housing units	32,761	1,131,200	115,904,641
Occupied units	31,388	1,037,891	105,480,101
Vacant units	1,373	93,309	10,424,540

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