From ranch-style homes to barns to laser tag, Zillow’s 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’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. Interest is growing 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. The most-searched home attributes were:
- Ranch (ranch style)
- Lake
- Duplex (duplexes)
- Cabin (cabins)
- Farms
- Acreage
- Garage
- Loft
- Luxury
- Furnished
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.”
Some searches were a bit less expected. One Colorado home shopper looked for a “roller coaster,” while another in Michigan was keen on a home with “laser tag.” Yet another sought a “party barn”. 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.
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.
