According to the latest What Home Buyers Really Want Study*, the vast majority of home buyers are looking for a home with at least one home office (or space dedicated to work/study). More specifically, 66% would prefer to buy a home with exactly one home office, 13% want at least two offices, and 20% want none (Fig. 1).
As homes continue to get smaller, understanding how much square footage buyers want to dedicate to a home office is a must. When asked, 59% of buyers interested in having a home office said it should be medium size (100 to 150 square feet). Much smaller shares of 22% and 19%, respectively, want the home office to be large (more than 150 square feet) or small (under 100 square feet).
More granular findings show that younger buyers as well as wealthier buyers are particularly in favor of home offices. Among Gen Z buyers, for example, 90% want at least one home office, compared to 75% of Boomers. Likewise, 92% of buyers in the $150,000+ income bracket would like at least one office, compared to 65% among those earning under $50,000.
*What Home Buyers Really Want, 2024 Edition sheds light on the housing preferences of the typical home buyer and is based on a national survey of more than 3,000 recent and prospective home buyers. Because of the inherent diversity in buyer backgrounds, the study provides granular specificity based on demographic factors such as generation, geographic location, race/ethnicity, income, and price point.
