In a perfect world, where no one was injured and no one aged, and where transporter beams could move heavy luggage and furniture through the house, there would be no elevators in townhouses.
Unfortunately we live in an imperfect world, and increasingly elevators are becoming a part of high end single-family sales. For townhouse purists, elevators are problematic because they can interfere with the natural flow or room sizes. Elevators are typically placed either adjoining the staircase or opposite the staircase. When placed on the same side as the staircase, the flow is unimpeded but the room size of either the front or rear rooms can be compromised. When placed opposite the stair case, on the lower entertaining floors, an elevator can reduce the flow of open space, limiting the amount of light that enters the home and breaking the floor plate into two separate spaces. On the upper floors, the elevator reduces the amount of space available for closets and bathrooms, especially on the master floor where the size of the bathrooms and closets is particularly important.
In recent years however, the benefits of elevators, from transporting injured or older inhabitants to assisting with the movement of bags and other heavy items has outweighed the negatives. In addition, cost is a significant factor. When gut renovating a home, the incremental cost of adding an elevator is roughly $150,000. When trying to retrofit an already renovated house with an elevator, the cost can approach $1,000,000. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, future value must be a serious consideration. For larger townhouses - 5 stories or more - elevators have been present in the lion's share of eight figure sales. Houses without elevators have simply sold for less money. In the Village, where there is a higher concentration of smaller houses with fewer floors and less square feet and where the buyer typically skews younger, the presence of elevators is not so prominent, but overall for better or worse, there is an unmistakable trend toward renovating homes that include elevators.