I voted everywhere with the caveat that I don't want open shelving in the kitchen.

Honestly, I prefer as little built in shelving as possible (none preferably, but if I had to choose a room, I would pick the bathroom). Built ins always seem to date the home and/or not serve the homeowners needs at some point. And when that happens, they can be hard to modify, change and/or remove. I prefer furniture (bookshelves, cabinets, etc), which can be moved, modified, and/or replaced much more easily.

Built ins can add value to a home, but I question how much value most built ins really add. Unfortunately built ins often can often hurt it -- they simply don't appeal or function in the same way for everyone.

My sister's home had a built in around the fireplace (shelving on both sides and a tv nook). They had a heck of a time selling the house because of it......they received many comments that it was a turn off and eye sore to buyers. It was also an expensive fix for sometime to change it (drywall, flooring, etc). You see many design dilemmas on here about what to do with ugly or dated and/or not functional built ins. My inlaws have built in shelving in their living room -- it is all red brick and wood shelving. It was an upgrade when they built in 1984, and was supposed to add value, but now it looks like a dated eye sore and will hurt them at resale. Who knows what today's built ins will look like in 20-30 years, or if they will even be functional.

Obviously some built ins are better and more timeless than others, and much depends on function. Closet and/or bathroom built in shelving are typically nice to have, function equally well for most people, and don't necessarily date a home. That said, I wouldn't pay more for a house with built in systems in the closets. It would be a bonus, but I could certainly live without the closet built in systems. And I would still prefer furniture or empty space over permanent built in shelving in my main living areas. But each to their own. ;-)

I love built-in shelving as long as they are used to store and display items for that room. When they become a catch all for "stuff" then I would not prefer to have them.

Built in shelving looks much cleaner because it is flush with the wall and a space can look more open when u don't have furniture such as a closet in the way.

Built in shelving under the stairs is a great use of space. We've seen beautiful book shelves and even storage cubbies for the family home done this way. Very smart.

Of course you can also use under stairs space for built in shelves in the form of wine storage.

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