A fully equipped kitchen with the latest appliances and gadgets can be a major advantage when it comes to selling luxury homes, even for wealthy buyers who rarely cook.
Moreover, people who organize various events in these luxury apartments or houses tend to hire professional chefs or catering companies. In most cases, kitchens are equipped with two refrigerators, two dishwashers, or outdoor-vented grills and may also have a butler's pantry or a secondary kitchen.
This may also provide a convenient explanation for the growing popularity of butler's pantries (sometimes called sculleries or secondary kitchens).
In most cases, it is used to host large events as a secondary kitchen and contributes to fulfilling all the culinary extravagances involved in a luxury party.
The American Institute of Architects explains in a study on the most popular kitchens and bathrooms, which offer a real spectacle for viewers, that since the real estate market is still in its recovery phase, clients are mainly interested in bonus features of kitchens, such as large pantries, wine cooling devices, and state-of-the-art appliances.
Luxury brokers claim that the most important features desired by buyers in a kitchen are open space, high-quality appliances, as well as "smart" technology, which has recently appeared on the gadget market and allows owners to control their kitchen appliances through an iPad.
Multiple dishwashers are also becoming increasingly popular among wealthy buyers, as are refrigerator drawers (which look like normal cabinets but pull out to reveal cold vegetables inside), warming drawers for keeping food hot, and various gadgets such as cappuccino makers or wine dispensers that can be built into the kitchen wall.
In terms of design, the all-white fitted and furnished kitchen remains popular among buyers, although designers are trying to change this direction in kitchen design and give it a new look based on darker colors, such as cabinets in shades similar to black ink, charcoal, indigo, or chocolate hues.
Christopher Peacock, a leading producer of luxury cabinetry and a staunch supporter of the all-white kitchen trend, is also the one who is now trying to change white to black in luxury fittings.
Peacock argues that his clients are much more interested in high-quality materials used in the design than in ultra-sophisticated appliances: "As people begin to remodel their kitchens, they learn that sometimes gadgets are just gadgets.
His clients are the ones who choose to furnish their kitchens with exotic stone countertops or special flooring: "Carrara marble is still very beautiful, but people see it everywhere, so they try to find more refined marble for kitchen design, which has a little more color, a little more drama, and is a bit bolder.
Peacock also claims that the open kitchen is on its way out in terms of desired layouts by clients. Newell Turner, editorial director at Hearst Design Group, which includes Elle Décor, House Beautiful and Veranda, also notes: “The wall has been raised again because no one really wants to live in the kitchen all the time.”
