Kitchens are put through the ultimate stress test on Thanksgiving, with every appliance and inch of countertop space pushed to the limit. However, certain kitchen features are not only better equipped to handle the pressures of entertaining a crowd, they could boost a home’s sale price.
“The kitchen has long been the heart of the home and it’s become even more important this past year,” says Amanda Pendleton, Zillow’s home trends expert. “As a result, pandemic-era home buyers appear willing to pay a premium for high-end kitchen amenities. Homeowners who plan to put their home on the market would be wise to flaunt these features if they’ve got them.” Among them:
• Of the more than 220 features or design elements Zillow researched, steam ovens topped the 2021 list of home features that sell. When this trendy appliance is mentioned in listing descriptions, those homes can sell for 4.9 percent more than similar homes without one.
• Butcher block is the only countertop material that can also serve as a cutting surface, which comes in handy when cooking for a crowd. Buyers snap up homes that include butcher block in their listing descriptions nearly four days faster and for 2.7 percent more than expected.
• Tech-connected kitchen appliances allow cooks to control everything from their grocery list to a dish’s cooking time, all from their phone or tablet. “Smart” refrigerators can send homeowners a text message to let them know they’ve run out of milk, while smart ovens can monitor how the turkey is cooking and automatically shift to warming mode when it’s done. When it’s time to move, homes with smart appliances can sell for 3 percent more than expected.
• Homes with durable quartz countertops can sell for 3.2 percent more than expected.
• A dual-fuel range is a stove with a gas cooktop and an electric oven, offering the best of both worlds for home cooks. Electric ovens can offer more consistent results for baking; a gas cooktop heats quickly and offers more precise temperature control for cooking cranberry sauce and gravy. Buyers also eat up this feature, and can spend 2.2 percent more on homes that include mention of a dual-fuel range in their listing description.