From barns to laser tag, Zillow AI-powered natural language search revealed 2024’s unique home-search trends, offering a window into what Americans wanted in their next home.
This year, Zillow enhanced its natural language search feature, allowing home shoppers to search for their next home as naturally as they would speak to family or friends. Buyers and renters can use everyday language instead of preset filters to search by commute time, affordability and nearby schools or points of interest. This new feature showed what Americans were prioritizing in their home search this year.
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Most-searched-for home attributes
This year’s top home-search trends highlighted a preference for variety and character in housing. Ranch and ranch-style homes led the way for their charm and single-story convenience, while modern and Mid-Century Modern designs also made an appearance farther down the list.
Scenic escapes, like lakeside retreats and cabins, along with unique options, like “barndominiums” and horse properties, weren’t far behind. There has been growing interest in flexible living spaces, with duplexes and lofts rising in popularity. Typical features like garages and patios continued to be in high demand, showing that homeowners have been blending practicality with personal style. Check out the most-searched home attributes:
- Ranch (ranch style)
- Lake
- Duplex (duplexes)
- Cabin (cabins)
- Farms
- Acreage
- Garage
- Loft
- Luxury
- Furnished
Top search terms by state showed home shoppers everywhere had a lot in common …
The top home-search terms by state indicated how geography, lifestyle and climate shaped what people wanted in their homes, and also how many home shoppers shared priorities. In states like California, Florida and Texas, “pool” topped the list. Meanwhile, practical features like “garage” or “ranch” homes were the most-searched terms in colder or more rural states, like Alaska, North Dakota and Wyoming.
“Pool” was among the three most common searches in 38 states this year, while “garage” made the list in 46 states. Alabama, Connecticut, South Carolina and Tennessee all shared the same top three search terms: “pool,” “garage” and “lake,” in that order. Coastal California and Indiana saw the most shoppers seeking places that “allow small dogs.”
Still, home shoppers in some states had distinct preferences. Maine was the only state where “farms” cracked the top three in search criteria; it was the same with “backyard” for Mississippi shoppers.
… but some were seeking a more fun and customized home to buy
Some searches trekked off the beaten path. One Colorado home shopper looked for a “roller coaster,” while another in Michigan was keen on a home with “laser tag.” If the home shopper who searched all over the country for a “party barn” found what they were looking for, their house could be the place to be in 2025.
And for those embracing the eerie, at least one shopper in each of 22 states was hunting for a “haunted” home, while home shoppers in Illinois, Ohio and Oregon opted for something less intense — a “spooky” house.
Locations for every lifestyle
The desire for theme park rides and ghostly roommates might be rare, but there are lifestyle trends that pull plenty of people together — and to certain areas of the country.
- Outdoor and nature enthusiasts may have found paradise in states such as Michigan, Hawaii, Idaho, North Carolina and Alaska. Home buyers in these states searched for features such as “lake,” “beachfront” and “cabin.”
- Meanwhile, home shoppers in New York, Pennsylvania and Georgia prioritized listings that included “downtown,” “loft” and “high rise,” showing a desire for city living.
- For the pet-obsessed, pet parents were also on the move, with Arizona, Tennessee, Florida and Colorado topping the list in searches for homes that were “pet-friendly” and homes with a “barn,” to accommodate their four-legged family members.
- For some, luxury living was a must. In states like California, New Jersey, Texas and Nevada, home buyers were pursuing properties characterized as “luxury,” or as having “mansion” or “views.”
Top point-of-interest searches
This year, home shoppers gravitated toward scenic retreats and waterfront destinations as their top points of interest.
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Lake Tahoe, Nevada; and Long Island, New York, topped the list, along with lakeside favorites Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota; Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri; and Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia. Other popular spots included Flathead Lake, Montana; Lake Oconee, Georgia; and Amelia Island, Florida.
For home shoppers looking for less barn and more concrete jungle: StreetEasy’s 2024 Year in Review
According to StreetEasy®, Zillow’s New York City brand, New Yorkers were focused on what’s inside their apartment building just as much as what’s outside of it. Renters and buyers shopping for their homes on StreetEasy sought amenities that meant they could do more without leaving home, which is a trend StreetEasy expects to continue next year. In-unit laundry remained a top priority, while pet-friendly spaces and outdoor areas saw demand surging.
