January 20, 2005
Bigger Houses Better?
Home building trends have been moving to bigger and bigger houses of late. On the other hand, average lot sizes are getting smaller due to increasing development costs and already-crowded urban areas. People have the idea that small is not desirable, and they want to buy as large of a house as they can afford, but that may lead to small yards with the feeling of less privacy. Fortunately, luxury housing and quality living doesn't need to be about size.
A recent article in the Realty Times, We Don't Need Bigger, We Just Need Better Planning, suggests that design and planning are more important in making the ideal house. Infact, many buyers aren't finding enough room even in large houses that range from 3,000-5,000 square feet. "...one of their major disappointments is that bigger and bigger houses don't have enough of what they really need: storage. They have great rooms, breakfast nooks, media rooms and computer rooms but not enough closet space and no places for shelving or bookcases or toys." The author suggests the solution lies in "building to address the realities of modern living instead of coming up with another room devoted to some passing trend, since most houses outlive trends by many years."
