What Homeowners Want

Home is where the heart is - and it also ideally is near a bunch of fun stuff, according to a recent survey from Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate.

The survey respondents - 84 percent of the 1,085 respondents currently own a home; 10 percent plan to purchase within three years - said they would place more weight on lifestyle criteria in future home searches, favoring family-friendly neighborhoods and easy accessibility to cultural activities like museums and music venues.

One in five homeowners has either moved or would like to because their neighborhood or community wasn't ideal for their lifestyle, the survey notes.

Following are the top lifestyle priorities of respondents when searching for their next home:

• Ease of commuting by car, cited by 38 percent of respondents

• Access to health and safety services, cited by 34 percent

• Family-friendly neighborhood, cited by 33 percent

• Availability of retail stores, cited by 32 percent of respondents

• Access to cultural activities, cited by 21 percent of respondents

• Public transportation access, cited by 19 percent of respondents

• Nightlife and restaurant access, cited by 18 percent of respondents

Access to golf courses, cited by 6 percent of respondents

The survey also was the basis of a new "Lifestyle Search" tool on bhgrealestate.com, which enable prospective homebuyers to filter community searches by important lifestyle preferences, such as "family and community" and "arts and recreation."