Montecito Homebuyers Demand These 5 Features
When it comes to Montecito real estate, there are many things to consider when it comes to selling your home. One of the most important, however, is whether or not it will actually sell. Buyers have specific expectations, and in the luxury home market, these expectations are more than simply a list of "nice to haves". Does your Montecito home have these 5 features? If not, you may want to consider installing or getting them before you list your home in 2024.
Montecito Realtors agree; sustainability is key
More homebuyers in Montecito are looking for features that enhance sustainable living. Sustainable living can still be luxurious, so we're going to look at the 5 sustainable living home features that Montecito buyers are demanding their next home have before even looking at the home or considering buying it.
Geothermal Heating & Cooling
Rather than relying on natural gas or electricity, geothermal systems utilize the Earth's natural heating and cooling cycles to regulate a home's temperature. While it might seem impossible to cool a home down in some of the warmer months in Montecito, the temperature below the Earth's surface is relatively constant, which enables a geothermal HVAC system to control temperatures in your home.
The major benefit to a geothermal heating and cooling system is the reduction on a home's environmental footprint. Even large homes in Montecito will see their overall environmental impact reduced by installing a geothermal climate control system. Montecito homebuyers are looking for this kind of eco-friendly feature in their homes, and if you don't have it, you might not find a buyer this spring.
Solar Panels
Converting the sun's natural energy to power a home's amenities is one of the more in-demand features Montecito homebuyers are looking for. The newest solar panels have a more subtle appearance, giving homeowners the ability to be ecologically minded without sacrificing aesthetic appeal. In fact, the tiles that comprise the roof can now be miniature solar panels, doing away with the large, clunky panels from just a few years ago.
The theme of sustainability is utilizing technology and nature in harmony to create less of a negative impact on the environment. By harnessing the power of the sun, all of the luxurious features of a Montecito home can now be less guilt-inducing as they won't be contributing to a climate change crisis.
Locally Sourced & Sustainable Materials
In addition to higher tech items like those above, the use of sustainable and locally sourced materials is a major selling point in the current Montecito real estate market. When you're considering selling your home in Montecito, you don't necessarily want to change anything structurally, with any additional features or renovations you make, look into locally sourced materials to get the job done.
Local sourcing helps the local economy flourish but is also beneficial to the ecology. By reducing shipping costs and the overall carbon footprint of modern home construction practices, you are helping homebuyers feel good about the house they are purchasing.
Smart Technology
Smart technology is a must-have for Montecito homebuyers. As many Montecito residents split their time among different residences or take extended trips, it is important that your home is responsive to these changes. Automating the various systems will only serve to reduce your home's carbon footprint, giving peace of mind to your buyer that they can keep their lifestyle as is when they move in.
Smart homes go beyond Amazon's Alexa or Google Home. Fully automated home systems by companies like AMX or Creston control light, heat, power and even irrigation if you have it. You can preset different times to ensure maximum efficiency of your home's systems.
LEED Certification
One of the more common questions that is recently entering the conversation in the Montecito real estate market is whether or not a home is LEED certified. Montecito Realtors report that more and more clients are looking for homes with this particular qualification, offered by the U.S. Green Building Council. So what is LEED Certification?
LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. This is a certification a home can have done to evaluate the totality of a building’s design: its carbon footprint, energy and water use, waste, transport, materials, health, and indoor environmental quality. More than 430,000 homes worldwide are LEED certified. California has the most LEED certified homes in the U.S., which has the most homes with the certification globally.
There are many Montecito Realtors, so you have a choice in the agent that lists your home. Find a strategist and top selling Montecito real estate agent with Maureen McDermut & Associates today.
