Buyers today want a home that matches their lifestyle

When purchasing a new home, people today have diverse ideas of where and how they want to live, and it may not be the home and neighborhood of their grandparents.

For example, a buyer's top priority may be finding a low-maintenance townhouse or condominium in a downtown setting, or an active-adult community for seniors.

Homebuyers are not all families comprised of two parents with two children. There are childless couples, those with one child, single professionals and single parents.

With this in mind, area builders are prepared to meet the needs of all types of buyers. There's even a sustainable living community being built in the suburbs. Today, builders offer "lifestyle options."

"Most of our products are geared to different lifestyles rather than the traditional four bedroom and den," said Bill Whelan, vice president of marketing for Airhart Construction.

Ranch floor plans

When William Ryan Homes designed a new ranch plan, it had a run on ranches.

"We've sold more ranches since November than we have in the last five years," said Debbie Beaver, vice president of operations for the Chicago division of the builder. "This year we've already sold 15 ranches where typically we sell three ranches a year.

"I'm not so sure it's not a baby boomer lifestyle thing where people in their 40s and 50s decide they want a ranch home."

Ranches are more economical, and the current economy may be a factor. So is an emphasis on aging-in-place and stair-free living.

"All of a sudden, we're selling ranches to people accustomed to living in large homes with all the amenities," Beaver said. "They want style and design, and they want to keep furniture that is important to them."

On the other hand, Airhart Construction is selling a lot of ranches - and not just for baby boomers, Whelan said.

Young people are buying ranches because they get all the rooms they want in a smaller home. "With a two-story home, often people get more (bed) rooms than they want - while in a ranch, there are fewer rooms that aren't being used," Whelan said.

Families are not as big as they used to be. Some buyers with one child want a master and bedroom for their child. Those with no children want a master and den and maybe a guest room, Whelan said.

"Another popular plan is our ranch with a third bedroom and loft upstairs. In a ranch with the master and second bedroom on the main level, there's some extra space upstairs where we feature a third bedroom and loft."

At KLM Builders, it's ranches for young and old. The builder offers about 20 different ranch plans that account for 80 percent of houses it sells.

"The ranch we design today has taller ceilings and an open floor plan that people love. It's so different from ranches of yesteryear that featured lower ceilings and small boxy rooms that were compartmentalized," said Kim Meier, owner of the company.

Empty nesters sometimes prefer single-level living because of health issues, or they can't do the stairs, while young people like the design. Also, with people having fewer children, they like the bedrooms on one level, Meier said.

"Many of our lots have some slope to them, where we're able to have windows above ground in the basement. The basement adds to the square footage where the owner can grow into the lower level and make it a living space."

Also, at D.R. Horton Homes, ranch designs are important to many buyers, not just boomers and active adults. "Recently, we're hearing first-time buyers use the term "forever" home," said Chris Naatz, vice president of sales and marketing.

"They want a ranch for their 'forever' home because it allows them to age in place, and the home can easily adapt to their lifestyle."

Again, basements add to the appeal of smaller, ranch houses.

"Many ranch buyers factor in a full basement as future square footage that has the potential to double their home size should they decide to finish the space later," Naatz said.

Low maintenance

For D.R. Horton, low-maintenance living is important to many of its new-home buyers - active adult and otherwise, Naatz said. "People often choose to forego cutting the grass, shoveling snow and maintaining the exterior structure in favor of having more time to do the things they enjoy every day."

At College Station by Airhart Construction, small yards equal low maintenance for homebuyers. Fourteen distinctive one- and two-story cottage homes offer townhouse-style living, but with no attached walls and the extra windows found in a single-family home. Houses feature a rear drive and beautiful front porches in a walk-to-train location in Wheaton. These homes are ideal for professionals who commute to the city.

Another low-maintenance community is Airhart's new Dana Park Estates in Oak Brook with five, half-acre homesites on a secluded private road. Rather than having a huge yard to tend, residents can sit out on their patios and take in the beauty of the natural surroundings and nature preserve.

Serosun Farms - a sustainable community

Amid suburban sprawl, Serosun Farms in Hampshire offers a sustainable community like no other that blends peaceful pastoral living with today's conveniences.

Centered around a 16-acre working farm, Serosun Farms is a progressive rural oasis where residents will enjoy hundreds of acres of open space with restored prairie and woodlands.

"This is an unusual opportunity for families to live, and for children to grow up, on a farm," said John DeWald, president of John DeWald & Associates, developer of the community. "Most professional people don't have the time or money to run a farm; here we do it for you."

Residences from smaller cottages to country estates sit in clusters on 114, one-acre lots. Community amenities include an equestrian center, community center with swimming pool and fitness center; jogging, hiking and biking trails; tennis and basketball courts, a stocked fishing pond, a bar and grill, and meeting event facilities.

Teardowns

Airhart Construction sees a demand for teardowns where people want to live in a mature neighborhood close to the train station and downtown. They want to build their dream home in their dream location.

A teardown involves building new on an older lot, where the older house no longer exists or is being torn down.

"In some cases, the land is more valuable than the house," Whelan said. "Even when people don't have a lot, we're finding a lot for them, mostly in Wheaton and Winfield."

Handicapped accessible

Airhart also has built two handicapped accessible homes, one that features an accessible first-floor master suite with bath and shower, with a second bedroom and bath that also are accessible.