new homeA new survey from the National Association of Home Builders shed some light on what features are gaining and losing popularity among new homes being built around the country. Those gaining in favor include multiple shower heads in the master bedroom and low-emissivity, or low-e windows; while those falling in popularity include outdoor kitchens and whirlpool bathrooms.

In the survey, builders were asked to rank on a scale from 1 to 5 how likely they were to include certain feature in a typical single-family home.

Here are the results; first, the top 10 features that are LEAST likely to be included in a new home:

  1. Outdoor kitchen
  2. Laminate countertops in kitchen
  3. Outdoor fireplace
  4. Sunroom
  5. Two-story family room
  6. Media Room
  7. Two-story foyer
  8. Walking/jogging trails in community
  9. Whirlpool in master bedroom.
  10. Carpeting as flooring on the main level.

A whirlpool in the master bedroom took the biggest drop of this group, as it fell from a rating of 3.0 last year to 2.7 this year.

Here’s the features most likely to be included in a new home:

  1. Walk-in closet in master bedroom
  2. Laundry room
  3. Low-e windows
  4. Great room
  5. Energy-star-rated appliances.
  6. 9′ ceiling or more on the first floor
  7. Energy-star-rated windows
  8. Programmable thermostat
  9. Two-car garage
  10. Granite countertops

You will note the major theme of these popular features are energy-efficiency. Large foyers and two-story rooms have waned in popularity because they are largely energy inefficient, officials for the building association told Marketwatch. Now you see things like low-e windows, which use a special coating that helps to keep heat inside during the winter and outside during the summer.

Features in new homes are typically slow to change, but given advances in technology and other factors, the survey shows there does appear to be a real shift taking place in what you’re likely to receive when buying a new home.