So many houses, so little time.
The annual convention of the National Association of Home Builders opened here Friday, and the town is afloat in house people. The monolithic trade association has invited 65,000 of its very dearest friends to come here to talk about their business concerns and to check out the very latest in such things as power tools, insulation, refrigerators, doorbells, pickup trucks — anything at all that is related to the construction of housing.
House people, as a rule, love to look at all this stuff, which is jammed into every inch of the vast Astrodomain trade show complex. But what house people love even more is to look at houses, and each year an intrepid few purveyors showcase their wares and materials in homes built just for the occasion. The result is a four-day open house at a bunch of far-flung residences outfitted with every ounce of glitz that designers can summon. They’re called “show houses” for a good reason.
But perhaps they should be called “barometer houses,” because they also are indicators of where the housing marketplace is going — or at least where builders and designers and manufacturers wish it would.
Some generalizations about that direction:
– The family room is not endangered, but it appears to be evolving. Of the eight homes reviewed here, just four had spaces specifically designated as “family rooms”; others had, instead, a “leisure room” or “gathering room,” to indicate that their purpose is broader than just watching TV. In some of the houses, the living room has disappeared, banished to bide its time with such has-beens as parlors and widow’s walks. Some of the houses have moved so-called casual spaces upstairs, to create media rooms or play rooms.
– If you’ve only looked at houses in the Chicago area, you might be forgiven for thinking that the traditional method of “stick-built” wooden framing is the only way to build. But manufacturers of such materials as concrete and prefabricated, insulated panels are not giving up their quest for a bigger share of the market: These demonstration houses are chock-full of them.
– Simply stated, there is a major emphasis on low-maintenance materials, Apparently people aren’t fond of painting their houses.
Highlights from the grand tour:
The New American Home
This is the official showcase house of the NAHB, and this year it is designed to appeal to that increasingly visible segment of the home-buying market, empty nesters. These particular empty nesters haven’t reached retirement yet and are financially well off. They like to entertain. These buyers want to simplify their lifestyles — no maintenance, please — and they don’t want to climb stairs.
Perhaps most tellingly, the 3,587-square-foot home has been subtly equipped with some so-called “universal design” features (such as an unobtrusive wheelchair accessible ramp in the yard, wider halls and doors, and lever-style handles) that make the house work equally well for able-bodied and disabled residents.
Other highlights:
– A fourth bedroom that also goes by the name of “study/den flex space”; it would adapt easily to a home office, with computer and desk area that can be closed off by handsome pocket doors. Or, equipped, as it is with full bath, it could be a comfortable living space for a relative or help.
– A home workshop, with lots of space and storage for crafts or hobbies.
– The separate family room and living room have gone away here, in favor of a (note the size) 500-square-foot “leisure room.”
– The ground-floor master suite has not gone away, but has dug in its heels, with an enormous solarium/bath/walk-in closet that expands the suite to about 700 square feet.
Alternative materials
Several showcase homes use the aforementioned “alternative materials,” but this one — called Engineering the American Dream — sponsored by the Engineered Wood Association and the Structural Insulated Panel Association, drives home its “ease of installation” message dramatically: The 2,800-square-foot home is being built in a parking lot outside the Astrodome during the run of the show, which concludes Monday.
Such projects have been undertaken at previous NAHB shows; this one emphasizes “engineered lumber,” which is hard to explain in a mere phrase. Essentially, these are “building systems,” such as structural insulated panels, glued laminated timber, trusses, plywood and oriented strand board — as opposed to relying principally on “dimensional lumber” or traditional stick framing.
To drive the “ease” aspect home, after the show, the house will be dissassembled and moved to a real home site, where it will be finished, decorated, open for tours and then sold to benefit charity. Home magazine will feature it in November.
Today’s Family Showhome
If this house reflects any across-the-board reality, “today’s family” lives very comfortably indeed. A cooperative effort of Masco Corp., Better Homes and Gardens Special Interest Publications and builder MHI/Coventry Homes, the house lives up to its “show” mission; it’su probably the most dramatic design in the herd.
The 4,781-square-foot, two-story brick home is designed on a “hub and spoke” concept, with the kitchen at its very core. The kitchen has direct access to dining room, living room, foyer, study and two-story “gathering room.” Having four doorways may be a great idea, but it also reduces the amount of counterspace. Another great idea: There are two dishwashers.
The first-floor master suite is segregated from these “public rooms,” for privacy.
Upstairs, the hub-and-spoke concept continues, this time radiating outward from the “media loft” which is surrounded by three bedrooms.
`Design Trends’ Show Village
This “village” consists of but two houses, although their designs incorporate enough trends to outfit a small town. Professional Builder, a trade publication, determined the houses’ features from its national survey of home-buyer preferences, plus its annual “Best in American Living Awards,” given to real projects around the country.
Both houses, dubbed the Traditional Home and the French Chateau, are two-story designs. Each has about 5,000 square feet, targeted to affluent, move-up families. Both also use “alternative” materials: The Traditional Home is crafted with structural insulated panels, sometimes called “sandwich panels” or foam-core panels,” plus structural insulated exterior wall panels.
The French Chateau uses precast, aerated concrete blocks that are lightweight and quick to install.
Highlights from the Traditional Home: There’s an emphasis on nostalgia, with much classical styling and a sheltered front porch. Inside there are mahogany paneling and cherry floors.
The home’s wiring — and in turn its delicate and expensive home computers, entertainment systems and other electronics — has built-in surge protection, a feature that is usually a consumer add-on.
Its kitchen is designed for use by more than one cook, with several “work triangles” built in. In addition, there is every conceivable form of specialized storage.
Two of the three bedrooms upstairs function as “suites.” The second-floor media room not only has the obligatory home theater, but also a kitchenette.
Highlights from the French Chateau:
A “motor court” design allows parking for four cars, though visually it would appear to garage but two.
The magazine said buyers are starting to lose interest in dust-catching ledges and plant shelves. So this house uses shelves, niches, cutouts and arches to showcase art, frame views or define spaces.
The upstairs is separated into two private “wings” by a dramatic overhead “bridge” walkway.
Concrete Concepts
If it can be made from concrete, it’s here in these three show homes, built on a one-block stretch. The many branches of this industry, under the umbrella sponsorship of the Portland Cement Association, are touting their material’s potential to increase energy efficency, fire safety, comfort and easy maintenance, but primarily cost effectiveness
The first house, a French Country design, uses autoclaved, aerated concrete, which is made by combining sand, cement, lime and an expanding agent to form blocks and panels. The lightweight units are stacked and bonded together with mortar, and can be sawed, drilled or nailed with normal carpentry tools.
The second home is built from concrete block, which long has been used commercially, though here it succeeds in looking like a country-style home rather than a strip mall. The structure is touted for its soundproofing characteristics. Its exterior features a cement-based product that is a limestone lookalike; its roof tiles are made of concrete.
The third house, in the Craftsman style, uses poured-in-place concrete walls. In casting them, workers pump concrete between two panels of polystyrene foam. The polystyrene acts as a form for the concrete during construction and serves as insulation in the finished wall. Once completed, electricians cut channels for cables and wires; plumbers make similar channels for water lines.
This house, too, has cultured stone on the exterior and concrete roof tiles. In addition, the kitchen’s concrete countertop has been stained to match the room; patterned, stamped concrete is in the driveway, porch and back of the house.
———-
Next Saturday in New Homes: A look at the new products and materials that captured interest at the NAHB show, plus the assembled experts’ views on the national economic outlook for home buyers and builders.
