Overrated Home Features - Top 5
Times change - People change! We can all look back on our lives and point to a few things seemed like a good idea at the time, but now seem just plain silly or unattractive. How about parachute pants from the 80's or MC Hammer pants from the early 90's? It is no different when we look at housing.
Yes, there actually was a time when that ugly green stove and that unattractive yellow tile that we still see in homes built in the late 70's and early 80's was a desirable. The trend of popcorn ceilings that we saw with every new home built until the turn of the century is now out of style.
Every buyer is different and each have different taste. Here is a list of what I perceive are the 5 most overrated items that people have paid for in the past but from which buyers today are largely less interested in paying for.
5. Marsh View - although not an item of interest in most of the country because of geography, this has been a big item for those along the southern Atlantic Coast. Now, if you have a tidal creek or body of water associated with the marsh that will allow you access to a lake or "deep water," this can be a huge selling point. But, many people just have the marsh and expect it to add a lot of value to the home. Buyers have gotten wise to the fact that having a marsh view sometimes just means enjoying the sometime rotten smell of bluff mud.
4. Garden Tub - back in the day, a home with a garden tub in the master bath was a luxury that many people (mostly women) had to have. Today, most buyers have come to realize that they never use that wonderful big tub and it just takes up too much space. When building a new home, many buyers have opted for the enlarged shower with several nozzels for water to shoot out from everywhere, which they feel is much more practical. 
3. Pool - This use to be a big item for home owners. Now don't get me wrong there is still a good portion of the population that likes having a pool. But, a growing number of people either do not want to pay more for the home because it has a pool, or they are not interested in the pool at all. Why? Liability! The changes in tort lawsuits over the last 20 years has caused many to believe the liability and insurance costs of owning a pool is simply not worth it.
2. More Square Footage - who wouldn't want a bigger house? It's the American Dream! Over the last 50 years our family sizes in America have decreased but our homes have gradually gotten bigger. But, more and more home buyers are learning the hard truth that bigger is not always better. Home buyers are now taking into account the utility of the home (how it is used), the quality of home build, and how much the home will cost to run on a day to day basis (electricity, water, ..etc). Green initiatives that make a home energy efficient are also becoming a bigger concern with each passing year.
1. Golf Course View - I love golf! I'm not very good but I love to play. Because I'm not very good, every time I play I loose about 5 -10 balls (depends on the course). These MIA (missing in action) golf balls usually hit a house or fly into the yards of the people living right on the golf course. I am not alone in my level of play. Golf courses are filled with people like me! Living on a golf course seems like a cool idea but I know a number of people that live on a course that will never do it again because of bad golfers like me. Unless the home is situated in such as way on the golf course as not to get hit, just being on a golf course is losing its draw.
