Building a new home gives you complete control over the layout, amenities, and design features that make up every square inch of the property. While this is an exciting process, you may feel mildly overwhelmed by all of your options — and it doesn’t help that home building trends change constantly.
So, which trends are still worth following in 2024, and which should we leave in the past? Explore a few “ins and outs” in home building and design, then partner with Schar Construction to build a custom home that perfectly suits your family’s goals.
In: Work-from-Home and Multifunctional Spaces
Many families who build custom homes in 2024 plan to stay there for decades, so incorporating multifunctional spaces just makes sense. And since as many as 22 million adults still work from home full-time, at least one of those spaces should function as a home office.
Consider how you can incorporate rooms into your floor plan that serve several purposes. Perhaps a guest room could double as a home office, or a first-floor sitting room could become a bedroom for aging in place. With these considerations, your custom home build can grow and change alongside your family.
Out: Gas-Powered Appliances
Building a home from scratch allows you to make important decisions regarding its energy supply. Ditching gas-powered appliances, like gas ranges and water heaters, in favor of more sustainable options is an important and sustainable way to stay on trend while setting a precedent for the future.
Perhaps you’d like to outfit your home with solar panels to minimize carbon emissions and reduce your energy bill. Or maybe you’d rather opt for all electric appliances. Since many cities prohibit gas connections in new builds, it’s best not to consider them an option.
In: Discreet Storage
Knowing that your home has a discreet place for everything is a wonderful feeling. It reduces visual clutter and helps you stay organized. In 2024, homeowners are opting for hidden storage options that conceal their belongings and create a tidier appearance.
For example, modern kitchen designs often conceal trash cans within large cabinets or drawers and even customize ovens, dishwashers, and refrigerators to match the cabinetry. The only items that remain out in the open add to the decor.
Out: Open Shelving
Over the past few years, open shelving has had its heyday. Floating wall shelves, built-in bookcases, hexagon shelves, and open kitchen cabinetry became very popular within interior design, but now, homeowners are realizing that this type of shelving creates a cluttered feeling that doesn’t always match the home design.
That’s not to say that open shelving is completely out. However, homeowners are choosing more tasteful shelving options and being purposeful about the items they choose to display.
In: Wellness Amenities
The wellness market across the U.S. is still booming, with as many as 50% of people considering wellness a top priority. That’s why more homeowners are incorporating wellness amenities into their home building plans. These may include:
- Relaxing, spa-like bathrooms
- Saunas
- Meditation nooks
- Whole-home air purifiers
- Biophilic elements (designs that incorporate plant life)
Aside from these functional wellness elements, homeowners want to include wellness-oriented color palettes, like calming blues, purples, and greens, instead of harsher reds and yellows. Many prioritize the feng shui of their home layouts to create a more harmonious and energizing home design.
Out: Fast Furniture
Everyone loves saving money, and fast furniture built using prefabrication has become more popular in recent years. Pieces from IKEA, Wayfair, and similar brands look attractive and serve their purpose, but many homeowners are finding that cheaper isn’t always better.
While high-end furniture requires a larger upfront investment, homeowners are opting for these pieces over fast furniture for their quality, reliability, and craftsmanship. Well-built furniture looks and feels better and lasts much longer than trendy fast furniture.
In: Smart Home Technology Features
Living in the digital age means that tech companies are always improving the smart home integrations that make consumers’ lives easier. You would be remiss not to include at least one smart home feature in your new build, be it:
- Smart thermostats
- App-controlled lightbulbs
- Touchscreen refrigerators
- Fully integrated home security systems
- Voice-controlled smart hubs
- Smart locks
Many smart home technologies connect to an app on your smartphone, allowing you to turn them on and off from anywhere or program them for certain times of day. No more stressing about leaving the oven on while you’re at work or worrying that the kids forgot to turn off their lights before school.
Out: Overdesigning With Technology
Smart home technology offers a world of benefits you can and should take advantage of within your home building process. But it’s also possible to go a little too far with this technology.
Avoid getting caught up in the countless “smart” appliances and technologies. Some of these appliances look fancy, but they don’t solve a problem and cost more money than you need to spend.
Be honest about whether you would actually use the features of a smart device before purchasing it.
In: Sustainable Design
Sustainability is more important than ever in 2024 and will only become more crucial in the years ahead. Prioritizing eco-friendly materials and systems in your home design reduces your environmental impact. It also lowers your energy bills as an added benefit.
Consider incorporating any of these sustainable elements into your new home:
- Window placements that optimize natural light
- Locally sourced materials
- Reliable insulation and air sealing to reduce energy loss
- Recycled and recyclable building materials
- Energy-efficient doors and windows
- LED lighting
- ENERGY STAR-rated appliances
- Plumbing fixtures that conserve water
- Programmable thermostats that optimize HVAC usage
- Rainwater collection systems
Integrating sustainable features into your initial design plans makes living an eco-friendly lifestyle simple. If you decide to sell your custom home down the line, these features will also increase its property value.
Out: Overly Minimal Designs
Designers in 2024 are reducing visual clutter by opting for concealed storage rather than disorganized wall shelves. But that doesn’t mean an entire home design needs to be as minimal as possible.
Over the past few years, the clean, white, simple home design has become immensely popular. But now, modern homeowners realize that a home can look just as tasteful with patterns, colors, and personal touches.
There’s no need for your home to look like a prison cell. Feel free to incorporate fun patterns and textures into the design and explore diverse configurations for your decor. With the help of an experienced home building professional, you can achieve a stunning home design that makes the best use of fun features.
Choose Schar Construction for Your Custom Home Build
Knowing what’s in and out with home building trends can be tricky, but our professional designers at Schar Construction can help keep your design on track. We provide full-scale custom home building services across the greater Eugene, OR, area.
We’ll help you design a beautiful home that suits your family’s lifestyle and grows with you. We can also help you incorporate trends you love while maintaining a timeless design that your family can enjoy for years.
Contact Schar Construction today at 541-255-1624 to request your consultation.