22 Jul Top Design Trends in Single-Family Living

From home offices to large kitchens and beautiful outdoor spaces, a variety of consumer preferences are now driving home design. What lifestyle and design trends do consumers want in a home?

Smaller homes. In order to contain high energy costs, there is a growing interest in smaller home sizes. A significantly higher number of architects have reported demand for smaller homes. The key is to create scale and function over size, while creating more financially attainable homes.

Indoor/outdoor fusion. The use of large floor-to-ceiling windows and sliding doors brings the outdoors inside. This allows more light and access to private outdoor space, resulting in the interior feeling like it extends beyond the walls.

Customization. Consumers are looking to purchase features that reflect their personal tastes and preferences, from kitchen products and bath fixtures to custom flooring and even the overall layout of the home.

Huge kitchens. The kitchen is a community area, from entertaining for guests to family together time. Consumers want islands and their seating capacity to expand in size, and utility spaces and pantries that store more packaged foods.

Home offices. The typical office location off the home’s entry is no longer considered a practical location. The better choice is to have the home office closer to the main living area of the house—the kitchen hub and family room.

Multi-use homes. Multigenerational living has become part of our culture; families are staying together longer for various reasons. Lower-level living suites with their own entrance and kitchenette are becoming more prevalent.

High-tech. New products create a need for a new lifestyle, which revolves around the use of hand-held electronic devices. Today’s family rooms need to support multiple laptops, notebooks and smartphones. To accommodate electronic needs designers need to have charging stations and more outlets as part of the standard plan.

What do you think? What are today’s consumers looking for in single-family homes? Share by commenting below!