6 Trendy Home Features for 2024 — and 3 Trends Dying Out

As mortgage rates soar, selling a home is getting tougher in some places. That means that for the first time in a long while, sellers have to try a little harder.

If you want to sell a home, it helps to know which home features are in fashion and which are on the way out.

Recently, real estate website Zillow analyzed nearly 300 home features and design styles that have appeared in for-sale listing descriptions and identified those that are showing up far more frequently than they were one year earlier.

Zillow notes that listings that mention these trends still remain “very low” in terms of the total percentage of listings. But they are growing in popularity.

Here are some home features that are heating up among trendsetters — and a handful that are cooling fast.

6. Murals

Change in the share of for-sale listings mentioning this feature: 18% increase

Many homeowners can purchase the same stainless-steel refrigerator. However, it’s unlikely that anyone else will share the mural that graces the wall of your home.

The growing popularity of this type of artwork is part of a trend toward “personality-packed homes,” Zillow says.

5. Murano glass chandeliers

Change in the share of for-sale listings mentioning this feature: 58% increase

Murano glass chandeliers are pieces of handcrafted art made on the Italian island of Murano. Zillow says they are effective at “channeling the glamor of decades past.”

4. Pickleball courts

Change in the share of for-sale listings mentioning this feature: 64% increase

Unless you are completely unplugged from what’s trendy, you know that pickleball is all the rage from coast to coast. Some people love the game so much they want to ensure a court is nearby by installing one on their property.

3. Cold plunge pools

Change in the share of for-sale listings mentioning this feature: 130% increase

Online influencers have promoted cold plunges as a way to get the blood flowing and to reduce inflammation. Now, that wellness trend is spreading to homes, making such pools available to anyone looking for quick endorphin boost and adrenaline rush.

2. Sensory gardens or pathways

Change in the share of for-sale listings mentioning this feature: 314% increase

The COVID-19 pandemic kept us sealed up in our homes. Perhaps that gave us a renewed appreciation for the outdoors.

Sensory gardens and pathways are designed “to engage all five senses,” Zillow says. They feature a variety of elements, including food-bearing plants and trees.

1. Brutalist-inspired features

Change in the share of for-sale listings mentioning this feature: 452% increase

Popular in the mid-20th century, the Brutalism design style features exposed materials, such as:

• Blackened steel casement windows
• Raw concrete floors
• Jagged patinated bronze light fixtures

Zillow says brutalism appeals to both minimalists and creative people.

Trends that are dying out

While some home features are growing in popularity, others are on the way out, including the following concepts.

3. Tuscan kitchen

Change in the share of for-sale listings mentioning this feature: 45% decrease

Those who were cooped up at home during the pandemic felt a hankering to bring a little international flair into their homes, which helped spark interest in the Tuscan kitchen. But this trend appears to be cooling now.

2. The ‘cloffice’

Change in the share of for-sale listings mentioning this feature: 54% decrease

During the pandemic, millions of people suddenly found themselves working at home. Some created a “cloffice,” a makeshift office space in a closet.

But with the pandemic mostly behind us, the heyday of the cloffice may be over.

3. Shou sugi ban

Change in the share of for-sale listings mentioning this feature: 69% decrease

Shou sugi ban is a traditional Japanese method of preserving wood that results in a blackened and weathered finish. The method is becoming less popular as are “shiplap, barn doors and other farmhouse fads,” according to Zillow.