Cutting-edge homes
Solar panels, elevators, a dog shower? Here are some amenities buyers should consider.
Shopping for a new home? It’s not all about square footage, countertops and closet size.
Homes are changing. You have homework to do. Decisions to make. Some will affect your pocketbook for years. Others will improve your quality of life the day you move in.
And one, well, it’ll just make your pooch less smelly.
Here’s a quick tour of cutting-edge amenities now offered at some newhome communities:
Some homes come with a disappearing back wall made of accordion-style bifold doors that fold aside, opening your great room to the backyard.
“It has huge style points,” recent homebuyer Ian Cornell said. “It looks great and when you are relaxing, I anticipate that feeling of open space and connecting to outdoors.” United Homes.
Other builders are adding doggy drawers in the kitchen of new homes: Slide open the bottom cabinet drawer, and it holds your pet’s eating dish and water bowl. Slide it back in and it’s out of sight. No tripping or accidentally kicking the water bowl. down if you wait a few years. cool air conditioning ducts that run through the attic, making it easier for them to do their job of delivering cool air through the house.
New home energy efficiency is a fast-changing realm. For cooks, going no-carbon means stovetop cooking without gas. That’s going to be a tough sell for some traditionalists. Builders hope to make it easier by offering electricitybased induction stovetops as an alternative. can rent the space out to a tenant for extra income.
New homes are techier than ever. Doorbells now double as cameras and loudspeakers. You can see who’s at your front door via a smartphone app while sitting in your office miles away. If it’s someone selling a product, you can pretend you are home, politely saying no thanks. If it’s a delivery service, you can, if you choose, code them into the house, so they don’t have to leave the box on the porch.