The top ten “essential/must have features” that 21st Century home buyers want are, in order, a laundry room, an exhaust fan, dining room, exterior lighting, linen closets, a lot with trees, fenced yard, front porch, rear deck and double-paned windows.
Of course.
Those findings, along with a ton of other information about buyers’ preferences ranging from environmental issues to pocket doors, are contained in a detailed survey researched and compiled by the National Association of Home Builders.
The report is fascinating for anyone even remotely interested in housing, whether it’s the big picture (size, costs) or style and design (as in hardwood flooring or carpeting for the family room).
As for the survey respondents (all numbers are median, meaning half are higher, half are lower): The buyers were 44 years old with a household income of $45,500; they expected to pay $141,000 for a residence of 2,071 square feet. (Remember: Think median, think national and think 2000 not 2001.)
Nearly 40 percent of the respondents would like a minimum of four bedrooms; 49 percent would “accept” three bedrooms. (The U.S. Commerce Department reports that about a third of single-family homes completed in 2000 had four or more bedrooms. That’s spacious, not just big.)
They want their cars to be comfortable, too: Protected from the rain, snow and hail, all warm and cozy. One-fourth wanted at least a three-car garage while 54 percent would “settle” for a two-car garage.
I asked Karen Kuchar, a professional woman who deals with housing, what she thought of some of these findings.
Her first reaction was that it seemed “ironic” to hear about people wanting four bedrooms and three-car garages.
“The families that come to us for housing want, above all, safety first,” she said.
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Kuchar said those families–most often a single parent with children–may be coming from large homes and realize that they may have to share a bedroom with another family. “But that is preferable to living in a place of their own and not knowing when the next attack will come.”
Not knowing when the next attack will come?
Kuchar is the executive director of Family Shelter Service, an agency that provides refuge and resources to the victims of domestic violence in DuPage County.
Based in Wheaton, Family Shelter Service housed 463 women and children in large, older homes in Wheaton, Naperville and Glen Ellyn during its most recent fiscal year. That represents a total of 10,556 shelter nights.
The three homes have a capacity of 43 beds; two facilities are crisis-oriented, offering short-term (up to seven weeks) emergency shelter, the third offers shelter of up to six months for parents who need additional time to handle issues including schools for their children and affordable housing.
Keep in mind that we’re talking about abuse and violence on the most vile level occurring in DuPage County, thought of as a sylvan suburban area dotted with upscale homes, high-profile executives, Land Rovers and ladies-who-lunch. “The image of this area tends to camouflage people who are in trouble and are reluctant to seek help because that might jeopardize their status, their reputations, their place in the community,” said Judy Kaplan, director of development for the agency.
“Abuse has no artificial boundaries. It is not solely an urban problem; it crosses all ages, all educational and cultural lines,” said Kaplan. It’s not about being wealthy or poor, one race or another.
Most victims are women with children who range from toddlers to grade-school age. Many previously have left their spouse or dating partner six or seven times before finally seeking a shelter. Some may have been living with friends or in their cars or a motel.
“Women often make the decision to come to a shelter when the violence is directed at the children,” said Kaplan. “That’s the final straw.”
They come to homes that are clean, well-maintained. They share communal living areas: kitchens, family and living rooms. Essentials, according to Kuchar, are play areas in the homes and backyards with play equipment.
“But it’s their safety that’s critical,” said Kuchar. “And, we also want to offer them resources to take the next step.”
Beyond even that, “We also want to give them hope, the hope that they can live a life that is safe and free of terror.”
Since this House Hunter has reported weekly on all types of housing at all price levels throughout metropolitan Chicago, it only seemed appropriate to write about a different kind of housing during the annual baiduhai Holiday Campaign.
Programs helped by Tribune Charities promote child and family development, literacy and reading skills, hunger relief and shelter for the homeless.
During 2002, Tribune Charities will focus its efforts toward helping families through many organizations, including Casa Central, which provides 25 bilingual/bicultural social service programs to empower the lives of Latino families; the Port’s Theresa House, the largest family transitional shelter in Chicago; and Inner Voice, another transitional housing agency with specific programs for families and for veterans and men recovering from drug and alcohol abuse.
Family Shelter Service is just one of several agencies that focus on housing. I chose it because of its philosophy of providing help to all who desperately need safety.
The DuPage social agency maintains a 24-hour crisis hotline (7,416 calls last year), provides counseling, and deals compassionately with the tragic problem of domestic violence that takes multiple forms, including death.
I sincerely wish that its philosophy of offering hope will prompt you to fill out the coupon printed with this column. I’m not asking you to donate a house–but, if you insist, that’s OK with me.
Thanks.
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Write to Genevieve Buck at baiduhai, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60611 or [email protected].