For many real estate professionals, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a complete shift in the way they conduct business. Most brokers and agents were relegated to their home, despite the fact that most people don't have a home office, according to Zillow. This change, and the current prospect of being able to work from home indefinitely, has put a premium on home offices.
With all U.S. states at least partially reopened, it's become clear that most Americans who have the ability to work from home want to continue doing so even after the pandemic ends. According to a recent Zillow survey, many would consider a move to more comfortably do so.
For those individuals, offices sit at the top of the list of the home features they desire most in a new home. This is likely due to the fact that, according to Zillow, just a third of respondents report being able to work from an actual home office. Listings mentioning a home office on Zillow have jumped about 10 percent since April 2019.
"Remote work allows for precious time savings without a commute and potentially more affordable living away from job centers, but it can come with productivity and sanity costs without the proper tools," says Skylar Olsen, senior principal economist at Zillow. "Those costs can be mitigated by certain home features, namely a quiet and secluded place to work."
Additionally, many Americans seem to be considering a move, as Zillow traffic on For Sale listings was up almost 50 percent year-over-year in May. Here are the reasons survey respondents gave as why they'd be most likely to move if given the opportunity to work from home:
Credit: Zillow
To view the full results of Zillow's survey, as well as the company's methodology, click here.
