Issue link: http://digital.nexsitepublishing.com/i/1257023
T he most important aspect of a new home, apart from the structure itself, is the neighborhood around it. It's not just about a short commute. Everything from aesthetics and green space to walkability and amenities affects not just the value of the home, but also quality of life. So what, exactly, makes a great neighborhood great? Countless real estate websites and apps—Realtor.com, Zillow, and Redfin, to name a few—provide data-heavy insights on what consumers are supposed to want. But what are local buyers in the Puget Sound region traditionally looking for in a neighborhood when they begin their search to put down roots in their first—or next—home? Looking past the data, we asked experts in our industry what their buyers have traditionally looked for in a neighborhood, how that's changing, and what in-demand neighborhoods might look like in the future. Slashing Space, Amassing Amenities Brenda Nunes, principal and managing broker for the Nunes Group at Keller Williams, has decades of local, national, and international experience, as well as LEED AP certification. While the Nunes Group focuses on being experts on specific neighborhoods, offering insights clients can use to decide which area is the best fit for themselves, Brenda has also demonstrated a knack for identifying industry- changing trends as they emerge. First, the obvious: Schools, safety, and aesthetics are still important to homebuyers. But what about the less obvious stuff? Nunes points out one significant change in priorities over the last few decades— the age of the supersized home is mostly over. Big is out, amenities are in. Clients, she says, are willing to spend more to live in communities with amenities, and they're willing to sacrifice square footage and large yards to do it. It's become more common to view one's community or neighborhood as a yard or outdoor space. In many established, inner-ring cities, like Bellevue, the closer you are to the urban core and its jobs and amenities, the more expensive the neighborhood—even for smaller spaces. As Nunes puts it, "Unlike their parents, millennials and younger people don't want to spend their weekends maintaining a yard. They're happy with a modest green space that they can come home to after a day of work and just kick back. They want a short commute and things to do more than square footage." Outdoor Spaces Shared amenities are just as important in outlying, newly developed communities, like Black Diamond. Ten Trails, a master planned community developed by Oakpointe Communities, features large, open community spaces for families to enjoy. When developing a new community, Jon Lakefish, Oakpointe's director of marketing, says Oakpointe has focused on creating neighborhoods large enough to support plenty of shared amenities for residents. 46 master BUILDER | SUMMER 2020