Docks, Quartzite and Golf Simulators: What's Adding the Most to Home Prices in 2026

• March 25th

by UrbanTurf Staff

✉️ Want to forward this article? Click here.

If you've been scrolling listings lately and wondering why that house with the golf simulator or private dock went for way over asking, new research from Zillow offers some answers.

Zillow analyzed more than two million home sales from 2025 to identify which features and listing keywords are associated with the biggest sale price premiums — and the results paint a pretty clear picture of what today's buyers are after: homes that feel like a retreat, not a renovation project.

Topping the list is anything that evokes a cottage, getaway-by-the-water vibe. Homes with a dock sold for 5.4% more than expected, an outdoor kitchen can boost sale prices by 4.4%, and an outdoor shower adds 4.3%. Even simply using the word "cottage" in a listing is associated with a 3.2% premium.

In the kitchen, material choices appear to matter: quartzite countertops are linked to a 5.3% sale premium, outpacing quartz at 3%, soapstone at 2.7%, and marble at 1.9%. 

Personalization, once seen as a liability in resale, is now a genuine selling point. Listings that highlight custom features sell for 3.2% more than expected, and bespoke finishes are linked to a 3% premium. Purpose-built hobby spaces are resonating too — a golf simulator gives a 2.7% boost.

The throughline across all of these findings is that buyers want homes that are already done and done well. Turnkey homes sell for 2.9% more than expected and remodeled homes command 2.2% more — while fixer-uppers sell for 14% less. In a market where affordability is still squeezed, buyers are clearly willing to pay up to avoid writing another big check after closing.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/docks_quartzite_and_golf_simulators_whats_adding_the_most_to_home_prices_in/24449.