Wondering about the most important home design trends for 2017? We’ve rounded up a bunch of must-know-about trends to track for 2017 and beyond. This report includes information about interior design trends, home remodeling trends, windows, doors, home exteriors, decks, gardens and outdoor living. Because lifestyle trends influence home and garden trends, we’ll also take a look at some of the key lifestyle trends that are shaping what we’re seeing in the realm of home renovations and home furnishings.
In general, based on architects’ and remodelers’ future bookings, we feel safe in predicting that consumers are going to be doing significant amounts of home remodeling in 2017. The National Association of Home Builders reports that consumers are investing heavily in their homes and committing to larger, long-term home improvement projects. They’re predicting moderate growth in remodeling market activity for 2017.
2017 Home Interior Design Trends
1. Mud Rooms
Residential architects are reporting a noticeable increase in demand for mud rooms and drop zones.
A mud room is a transitional space between the outdoors and the inside of a home. It’s an area for removing and storing outerwear, shoes and boots. Mudrooms are particularly useful home additions in areas where it snows or rains often, as these spaces give occupants a convenient place to remove wet clothing while minimizing the resulting mess.
2. Home Offices
Architects and industry professionals at the upper end of the market are reporting an increase in demand for home office space, particularly home office space either in or adjacent to the kitchen.
3. Wine Cellars and Wine Storage
Wine cellars have become fashionable with the trendsetting crowd, particularly with those who own luxury homes in high-end neighborhoods. If this is a trend that would be of interest to you, we invite you to check out our page about wine cellars and wine storage.
4. Healthier Buildings and the Quest for Daylight: Window and Door Design Trends for 2017
The American Institute of Architects recently reported findings from a September 2016 survey titled “The Drive Toward Healthier Buildings 2016”. This report discussed the most prominent features that architects have been implementing in their building projects in efforts to make them healthier. One of the items of interest at the top of the list was “Better lighting/daylighting exposure.”
The report summary didn’t give details about how, exactly, architects are implementing this, but it wouldn’t take a genius to infer that windows, doors, skylights and a home’s interior lighting plan can all work together to bring daylight indoors.
5. The Marriage of Windows and Doors — We already witnessed a combination picture window / sliding glass door trend in the late 1980s and 1990s, but the concept has evolved further since then. In 2017, you have a range of more sophisticated options for doors that are also windows. One-upping the humble picture window, there are now entire sliding glass walls. We’re also seeing new folding glass door systems made of steel and marvelous new bi-fold glass doors.
6. Serve-Through Windows — Another interesting phenomenon is the serve-through window, an amenity like you find at the pizza places and eateries along various beaches. The host/ess in the kitchen can serve up snacks or meals to everyone in the backyard without making a special trip outside.
Lighting Trends for 2017
7. LED Lighting Continues to Trend Upwards — It’s no surprise that demand remains strong for LED lighting. Thanks in part to its energy efficiency and part to the creative ways it can be used, LEDs are finding their way into a number of spaces in the home: inside kitchen cabinetry, illuminating closets, behind bathroom mirrors and even in bathroom drawers.
Lutron is a brand name worth watching right now. Lutron Lighting systems are becoming ubiquitous in certain US cities like Dallas, TX.
Home lighting is such an extensive topic that it warrants its own trend report. Click here if you want to understand 2017 lighting trends in more detail.
8. Senior-Friendly Home Design Features
Baby boomers are driving a few of the trends we’re seeing in home design, home remodeling and home furnishings for 2017. Some are moving into smaller homes, and they’re in need of new furnishings that coordinate better with their new environments. Some are remodeling their existing homes to make them better suited for their changing circumstances and lifestyles. Some are moving in with their kids or grandkids.
These are carryover trends from 2015-2016 that are still noteworthy for 2017. The National Association of Home Builders reports that the multifamily housing sector has begun to show signs of slowing as we head into 2017, but that demand for multifamily housing remains robust overall. We’re still seeing demand from aging boomers for new home design features that accommodate their all-too-often declining agility and mobility.
9. Accessible Entryways: For some aging homeowners, ramps are replacing stairs in the entryways, and elevators are becoming popular additions. Not everyone wants a ramp, so a popular alternative is on-grade entry — meaning that the occupants don’t have to climb anything or step up to the door of the home; it’s accessible from the ground level.
For those confined to wheelchairs, expansive doorways are easy to navigate. This is true of either main entries or interior doorways and halls.
10. User-Friendly Bathrooms — For seniors whose mobility is declining, grab bars can be helpful additions to the bathroom, the hallway and other rooms around the house.
For those confined to wheelchairs, wall-mounted sinks give added accessibility in the bathroom.
11. First-Floor Master Bedrooms — Stairs pose risks for aging homeowners. For those who are unable or unwilling to climb stairs, it’s convenient to have the master bedroom located on the first floor of the home.
12. Smaller Units Located in Walkable Communities — The National Association of Home Builders alerted us to a recent trend they’ve observed: Seniors on fixed social security incomes are on the lookout for affordable housing that includes smaller units located in communities featuring nearby amenities and public transportation within walking distance. Our recent experiences corroborate this observation, as we currently have several aging friends who are planning to relocate to walkable communities with medical care facilities and shopping centers that are within close walking distance.
Plumbing Trends for 2017
13. PEX Water Piping — The experts at Home Innovation report that 63% of new homes are now featuring PEX water piping, which is a new high for the category.
Our 2017 kitchen trend report and 2017 bathroom trend report include details about the trendiest kitchen and bath fixtures and finishes right now.
Top Trends in Home Exteriors for 2017:
Exterior Siding Trends for 2017
Annual siding sales in the USA amount to an estimated total of nearly $12 billion US dollars.
14. Flip-Flopping in Demand for Vinyl Siding: Its Dominance in the Marketplace Wavers — In the recent past, vinyl has been the most prevalent siding material used for American home exteriors. While it is still the most popular choice, vinyl’s popularity suffered a dramatic decline in the time period between 2010-2014. Since then, there’s been some flip-flopping in demand for vinyl siding.
It’s hard to say whether sales have been adversely influenced by the backlash against vinyl products that’s coming from the environmentalist community. Those who oppose fracking discourage the use of vinyl siding, since polyvinyl chloride’s manufacturing process requires significant inputs of ethylene, a component of natural gas.
While vinyl is America’s most popular siding material, mentioning that it’s the trendiest type of siding to those in truly trendsetting circles is likely to elicit giggles or eyerolls. Vinyl’s market share is largely concentrated at at the lower end of the market; for example, it’s frequently installed as the siding on manufactured homes and mobile homes.
15. Brick Siding Is Trending Up — It remains to be seen whether brick, the second most popular choice of siding materials, will overtake vinyl siding in popularity in 2017, 2018 or thereafter. Brick is indeed seeing a dramatic upswing in popularity.
16. Stucco Siding Dominates the High-End and Luxury Home Market — While the use of stucco siding is trending down, it’s important to note that stucco is clearly the most prevalent siding material being installed on high-end homes. Stucco siding is particularly popular for use on Southern California homes, Texas homes and Florida homes. For homes valued at over $750,000 US dollars, stucco siding commands a whopping 43% of the market share. Vinyl siding, brick siding and fiber cement siding command 18%, 19% and 20% of the market share, respectively, on homes at this price point.
17. Fiber Cement Siding Is Trending Up. — Fiber cement siding does not currently have a majority market share on homes at any price point, however the use of fiber cement siding is trending upwards.
18. Wood Siding Is Totally Dead in 2017. — The use of wood siding has declined to less than 3% of the US siding market share, and experts have commented that it shows no signs of recovery.
Important takeaways: If you’re choosing new siding for an upscale home, brick or stucco are two of your top choices to consider. If you’re choosing new siding for a home that’s valued lower, you’ll be in good company if you choose vinyl siding; however, brick or stucco could possibly be better choices depending on your tastes, budget, objectives and neighborhood.
Deck and Patio Trends for 2017
In general, decks and patios and other outdoor living spaces remain high on the list of desirable features in 2017 homes. Digging deeper into the details reveals more insights into which types of decks and patios are most desirable currently. The short version of the story: think wood, wood, wood and wood. Did I mention wood?
19. Wood Decks Expected to Give the Best ROI in 2017 — If you’re thinking of selling your home in the future, and you’re trying to choose between a wooden deck and a composite deck, you’re likely to be better off by choosing the wood. One of the key trends noted in Remodeling.net’s new 2017 Cost vs Value Report:
“…a wood deck is still a better investment than a composite deck…”
The Cost vs Value Report gives statistics indicating a national average return on investment of 72% for wood decks vs 65% return on investment for composite decks of the same size when re-selling a home.
20. Wood Decks Comprise 60% of the Market Share in New Homes — The experts at Home Innovation report that wood is the decking material dominating a majority market share in new homes, having captured 60% of the market share in the time period spanning the last five years.
21. Redwood Decks Trending Up — In new homes, installation of redwood decks is trending upwards.
22. Tropical Hardwood Decks Trending Down In new homes, installation of decks made from tropical hardwoods and other untreated woods is trending down.
23. Rooftop Decks — D Magazine recently reported on the local popularity of outdoor living in Texas, and rooftop decks were one of the interesting items mentioned in their report.
Garden Trends for 2017
24. Home Sprinkler Systems — The experts at Home Innovation report that CPVC currently commands a majority of the piping market in home sprinkler systems with a whopping 70% of the market share.
Sustainable Design Trends
Sustainable design is such an extensive topic that it warrants its own trend list. We’ve covered it separately.
25. Smart Homes and Home Automation
Home automation isn’t a new thing, but in the past few years it has been sort of a not-so-important non-trend. However, many of the powers that be in global corporations and governments have a vested interest in seeing this trend take root, so it’s likely to gain traction in the years ahead — and 2017 is shaping up to be a possibility for the trend to see increased consumer adoption.
The broader premise: if we connect all our systems together via the Internet — everything from public agencies and healthcare providers to consumers’ home interiors and exteriors — we can make everything more efficient, cut costs and create more sustainable ways of interacting, living and working.
With that in mind, we’re seeing an explosion of new WIFI-enabled smart gadgets as tech companies compete to ride this new wave of innovation. The result: an abundance of new smart gadgets and gizmos that you can connect to your smartphone or tablet (if you have one) to accomplish things like designing your lighting, automating a schedule for your sprinkler system, or remotely adjusting your thermostat. There’s more to it than that, so I invite you to take a look at our article entitled smart home automation ideas to learn more about this trend.
So there you have it; those are our discoveries regarding the top home design trends for 2017. If you are planning to remodel your home, thinking of buying a new home or preparing to build a new home, we encourage you to take this information into consideration — however, we also encourage you to prioritize longevity considerations over current trends. It makes sense to implement home design features that will give you the greatest satisfaction in the long run, even if they are not necessarily trendy for 2017.
References:
We compiled this list of 2017’s hot home design trends using a combination of personal experience plus data made available by various sources including industry organizations, the US Census Bureau, trend forecasters, architects, home builders, interior designers, remodeling companies, and journalists:
- At the National Association of Home Builders Website — Remodeling market optimism remains positive in 4th quarter, posted January 19, 2017
- The 2016 US Stucco Market
- At the Home Innovation Website — What’s Up or Down in New US Homes?
- At the American Institute of Architects Website — Top three special function rooms homeowners prefer
- At the American Institute of Architects Website — Nationwide survey finds healthy buildings becoming a key design priority for both architects and building owners
- At the Builder Online Website — Five housing trends shaping 2017 window design
- At the Deck Magazine Website — Key trends in the 2017 cost vs value report
- At the American Institute of Architects Website: AIA Home Design Trends Survey — Home and Property Design
- At the American Institute of Architects Website: Larger, More Accessible Homes Increase in Demand by Homeowners Preparing to Age-In-Place
- At the American Institute of Architects Website: Outdoor Living Spaces and Smart Home Technology Top Homeowner Preferences
- At the Moen.com Website: Moen Home Care Answers the Demand for Attractive Bath Safety With New Grab Bar Length Options
- At the D Magazine Website — op Dallas Building Trends of 2016
- At the National Home Building Association Website — Multifamily housing sector sees a cooling in the marketplace but remains robust
- At the Kolbe Windows Website — Kolbe’s Folding and Sliding Windows
