When housing experts gaze into a crystal ball, the home of the future takes shape in their imaginations.
They envision changes that range from the sensible to the surprising.
Trends for the ’90s were revealed during a seminar on the “Home of the Future” presented at the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) convention in Las Vegas in February. Since then, other builders have looked ahead and given their views.
Here are predictions for houses to be built during the remainder of the 20th Century:
– Size. Homes will be larger. “The shift to two-story homes will continue,” said Gopal Ahluwalia, research director for the NAHB.
“While the average home had 1,400 square feet in 1970, the total is now close to 2,100 square feet and it will grow to 2,300 square feet by the end of the decade,” he said.
– Homesites. To offer greater affordability, builders say they will have to increase the density of developments.
“Building more units per acre will act to offset higher land costs and higher lumber costs,” said James Hughes, partner in Wheaton-based Wiseman-Hughes Inc. He believes that lots of 7,500 to 8,000 square feet will become standard, compared with the present average of about 10,000.
Hughes noted, though, that not all municipalities now allow the zoning needed to build on smaller lots.
David Hill, president of Kimball Hill Inc., a Rolling Meadows-based builder, said, “In the years to come, the huge, overwhelming trend in all parts of the U.S. will be the use of smaller lots relative to the size of the house.”
– Exteriors. Design changes won’t be radical. “From the outside, the homes of the ’90s will look like the homes of the ’80s, or the ’70s, or, in some cases, the 1890s,” said Kristelle Petersen, a real estate marketing specialist and president of Dallas-based Petersen Communications.
“In the future, we will go back to the past. Traditional styles will continue to dominate, including more front porches,” she added.
One Chicago architect agrees: “People imagine that homes of the future will be wildly modernistic, but actually they will look like homes of the past,” said Howard Decker of Decker Legge Kemp Architects.
– Interiors. The old-time look will end at the front door, however. Inside, the changes will be dramatic. Open floor plans already are popular and will be even more so in the future. Interior walls are tumbling down.
“Great rooms (a large, open space that is a combination family room, living room, dining room and kitchen) will be in 7 out of 10 homes by the end of the ’90s,” Ahluwalia said.
“Interior spaces are being redefined by the lifestyles of the Baby Boomers,” said Richard Brown, president of Libertyville-based Cambridge Homes.
“Builders shouldn’t just shop the subdivisions of their competitors,” Petersen advised. “Rather, they should visit homes and see what space is used and what space is wasted. There will be a redefinition of space in the ’90s.”
– Automation. “Home automation will increase, something like the Smart House,” said Ahluwalia.
The Smart House is a system that offers homeowners the potential to control and program all electrical, gas and electronic appliances. Centralized home automation also results in savings in energy costs.
“Home automation is coming,” said Petersen. “Approximately 70 percent of buyers in all categories-first-time, move-up and empty-nesters-will pay extra for intelligent features that enhance safety and security, manage energy, and provide entertainment and communications.”
“Technology will make life a lot easier,” predicted Barry Berkus, president of Berkus Group Architects in Santa Barbara, Calif. He suggested that homes someday may be built to rotate so the side with the most windows follows the sun. “Hydrogen may be converted to energy in fuel cells for use in the home,” he said.
One builder-Randall Lewis of Lewis Homes in Upland, Calif.-concluded: “The home of the future is here today; the technology is available.”
– Buyers. “Eighty percent of new homes (in the ’90s) will be purchased by those in the 35-to-54 age group,” Ahluwalia said.
“Buyers will become more aggressive,” Petersen predicted. “They want defect-free homes. Builders will have to learn to deal with buyers who have black belts in home shopping.”
And Sandy Goodkin, president of Sanford R. Goodkin Associates in San Diego, added: “Asians, Hispanics and blacks will be the fastest-growing home market.” As yet, though, builders haven’t concentrated on building for those markets, according to Goodkin.
– Value. Everyone agrees that builders went overboard with flashiness in the ’80s. Today’s buyers still want luxury amenities, but they want good value, too.
“The ’80s were about bells and whistles, but the ’90s are about value,” said Berkus.
“We’re getting away from glitz. The homes of the future will be more defined by the economical use of floor space,” said Hughes.
Despite the emphasis on value, Ahluwalia expects “more luxury and more amenities.”
Richard Brown of Cambridge Homes agrees: “People don’t want stripped-down homes; they want pizzazz. They’ll settle for a smaller home if it has all the features.”
– Security. “People want a safe neighborhood and security, so they will buy homes in developments with guard houses and controlled access and with cul-de-sacs that are conducive to knowing their neighbors,” Petersen said.
Goodkin added: “A fortress mentality will dictate where we live. Fear is the new byword because of rising crime and insecurity. Our homes will be where we find protection. There will be more enclave subdivisions, and more electronic security.
“Some builders are shying away from installing electronic security because it may suggest that the neighborhood is unsafe. But it will come,” Goodkin said.
– Bathrooms. “Bowling alley baths are out, but people still want all the amenities,” Petersen said.
Ahluwalia agrees: “Baths are too big already, and they will increase minimally in size. It’s hard to explain the love affair with bathrooms. The whirlpool tub, for instance, is an expensive item, yet some people use it only once a year.”
However, Ahluwalia believes there will be increased glamor and special features in baths, including bidets, water-saving toilets, reduced-flow showers, and showers with multiple heads in the master bath.
“There will be more bathrooms in the homes of the future. Two full and two half-baths are increasingly becoming standard,” he said.
Petersen added that “older, move-up buyers don’t want all those mirrors in the bathroom because they don’t want to look at themselves that much.”
– Home offices. Ahluwalia asserted that the need for home offices will grow as more people spend all or part of their work week at home, and other experts agreed.
“While homes of the future may not look different from the outside, they will work differently,” Decker said. “I see a trend increasing enormously by the end of this century for `computer commuting.’ The fax machine, computer and other electronic devices will encourage more work at home.”
Petersen said, “Our culture is in transition; more people are starting home businesses, and zoning laws will reflect the changing working environment.”
“Home offices appeal to buyers in all price ranges,” said Hughes. He added, though, that other specialty rooms, like exercise and media rooms, will be found mostly in the step-up market.
Ahluwalia views exercise rooms and media rooms as coming attractions. “Health-consciousness will result in an increase in exercise rooms in the home,” he said. “The popularity of media rooms will increase as families turn more to entertainment in the home,” Ahluwalia said.
– Light. Homeowners will want to let the sun shine in. Sun rooms, or Florida rooms, will become more prevalent as the desire increases to “bring the outside of the home inside,” according to Ahluwalia. Florida rooms are among the increasing “cozy spaces” that Petersen forecasts.
Larger windows and skylights are other brighteners that will play significant roles in the homes of the future.
“Skylights are a glitz concept, but they also are economical because they open up rooms with more light and thus save on electricity,” Hughes said.
– Storage. “There will be an increased need for more storage space,” said Ahluwalia. “The third (space) in some of the new three-car garage homes will be used for storage.”
Hill commented that a no-basement trend that started on the East Coast will sweep the Chicago area in the next two years. “Building a home on just a crawl space will save $10,000. The storage that is lost in the basement will be provided for elsewhere-in large walk-in closets in the master bedrooms and in huge laundry rooms with storage, for instance.”
– Steel. Industry forecasts say 25 percent of homes may be built with steel framing within the next five years, according to Petersen.
“Steel offers builders a number of benefits: long-term price stability, less maintenance than wood, ease of handling (it’s 40 to 60 percent lighter than wood), and less waste,” she said.
“Steel is an Earth-friendly alternative. A steel home will save 100 trees, and the steel can be made from recycled cars. Consumers are asking builders for steel framing,” Petersen said.
– Manufactured housing. There will be more modular housing because of the shortage of labor, according to Petersen.
“Manufactured housing offers a 19 to 30 percent savings to the buyer. In 1992, 800,000 homes were built in factories. Factory homes are protected from the elements, built faster, more efficiently and at a lower cost and give a guaranteed delivery date to the buyer,” she said.
