[Washington Examiner] The pandemic may have killed open floor plans in homes as buyers opt for walls over easily conversing as one person sits in the living room while the other cooks in the kitchen, according to real estate experts."They want more rooms instead of open space," said Joseph Zoppi, managing partner of Templar Real Estate in Princeton, New Jersey, which restores homes and then sells them.
His firm routinely used to tear down walls, such as the ones separating dining rooms from kitchens, because open floor plans were a big seller. Now, clients want walls.
"Everybody pre-COVID was looking at open spaces in terms of the floor plans. Now, they want privacy," he said.
Michael Rossi, CEO of New York City-based residential brokerage firm Elegran, told the Washington Examiner via email that open-concept floor plans, which have been "heavily favored in the last 10 to 15 years," no longer work for most homebuyers.
"The old adage ’location, location, location,' may change to ’space, space, space,’" he said.
Buyers want that space to accommodate additional rooms, said Michael Nourmand, president of Nourmand & Associates, a real estate brokerage firm located in Beverly Hills, Brentwood, and Hollywood, California.
"This [pandemic] has translated into increased demand for homes with a pool, gym, home office, guest house, game room, and screening room," he said.