TREND WATCH: Bigger Isn't Better

Bastian Homes - Mary Frederick

At long last America is starting to understand that progress isn’t necessarily measured by growth. We can strive for quality over quantity, reducing our carbon footprint, urban sprawl, energy use, pollution and waste.


Perhaps it started with the housing crash–Americans clued in that building McMansions cost more than they can afford to pay and consequently cost a lot to heat and maintain. New home construction trends show shrinking square footage, fewer bathrooms and more single story homes.


The Wall Street Journal reported this summer that the average size of a single-family home is now 2,438 square feet, down from its peak in 2007 of 2,521 square feet. What exactly has gotten smaller? For one thing, our homes are shorter: 47% of single-family homes come in at one story. We’re also living with fewer bedrooms and bathrooms: only 34% of homes have four or more bedrooms, and only 24% have three or more bathrooms. It looks like many of us are discovering that the extra space just isn’t needed, and we’d rather save our money for other things.