What’s your property love language?
14th March 2024 by Kate Logan
Ever wondered what makes us fall in love with one property but not another?
Most of us will have a list of non-negotiables when searching for our future home, whether it be the number of bedrooms, an open-plan kitchen diner, double garage or a south facing garden. However, more often than not, it’s “the feeling” that makes us fall for a property rather than a tick box exercise.
But what is that feeling? Is it a sixth sense and do we all experience it in the same way? We conducted a short survey (of our inhouse team of expert property writers!) to produce our five ‘property love languages’.
Nostalgic connection: Whether it’s a fleeting sense you’ve been here before, or specific features that evoke a memory of a childhood home or previous property, nostalgia can stir a strong connection to a new home. This can be further enhanced through period features that help the house to feel like it’s been well-loved and lived in, and the impression that it will stand the test of time.
Spatial configuration: Otherwise known as proportionality or balance. We all have a sense of what a well-proportioned home feels like but perhaps it’s only once we’re inside we know whether a property has this. What constitutes a “balanced home” can be different for everyone. It may comprise a large open-plan kitchen diner leading to a garden with a separate ‘snug’ lounge. Or you may have a more traditional view and prefer a classic double-fronted property with two symmetrical reception rooms.
Specification level: Some of us “left brain thinkers” are led less by our emotions and more by our logic and our first five senses. Therefore, the level of finish and physical attention to detail is what will ultimately win us over. If your property love language is specification, you may value mod cons, sleek kitchens and bathrooms, and smart home technology to bring the tingle. In real terms, your busy life may dictate that you need a turnkey property, but a high level of finish can be very emotive for lots of us, helping us to feel instantly relaxed and remove some of the stress of moving.
Visionary potential: We all need to use a little vision in a new property, if only to see in our mind’s eye how we and our families will use the space. However, when it comes to true visionary potential, we’ll admit it – it’s a skill not all of us have. If you can walk into a property and already envisage walls in different places or your own style in place of a 70s floral wallpaper, then chances are we’re talking your language here. If you can find the feeling in a property that is far from the finished article, then you’re a true visionary and we salute you. These types of people may even find success as a property developer.
Positive energy – This is perhaps better understood in other cultures. After all, we’ve all heard of Feng Shui, which literally translates as wind-water, and focuses on flow of energy through places and buildings. Over the years energy flow has become more prevalent in western consciousness. Buildings, like people, can give off an energy that can’t always be explained. You may experience a feeling of warmth or peace when you walk into a room or a tingling up your spine, that starts your neurons firing.
We’d love to know your love language. Can you recognise yourself above? Or perhaps you have a property love language all of your very own!
Photo by Jesse Goll on Unsplash
