It's not enough to say that American homebuilders must build better homes and better neighborhoods these days. And it's not enough to churn out floor plans based on the 'Beaver Cleaver" concept of a working dad, stay-at-home-mom and 2.5 kids. Homebuilders are beginning to take the new versions of the American family and study them as never before, in order to determine appeal to a diverse consumer base. One of the most compelling reasons for this may be what, in essence, the American home is now being used for - one, or even two telecommuting parents, a national wellspring of home-based businesses, home schooling, or the proverbial empty nest.

It's safe to say that the tradition of self-determination in this country has produced a challenge not only to the IRS, but also to homebuilders trying to accommodate the new and many uses of the American home. The home merely as the domain for eating, sleeping, family discourse and holiday celebrations is fast becoming an anomaly. Says Sherry Ahrentzen, in a recent BUILDER magazine article, "Technology allows us to shop at home via mail-order catalogs, cable television, and the Web. We watch movies off our satellite dishes and VCRs. And major industries such as health care and insurance are delivering their services into the home."

There has been an undercurrent of new freedoms that has quietly changed the mosaic of American domestic life. The disabled can now exercise their option to live independently, instead of being relegated to care facilities. Kids and parents can break free of the traditional classroom environment by taking part in a revolution of home schooling options, making the "world" their classroom. And the elderly are, as never before, living and dying in their own homes in greater numbers and with greater dignity, due to the trend towards home health care and a public aversion to institutionalization.

According to 1997 U.S. Department of Labor statistics, 23.3 million persons were engaged in some form of work at home, with 6.5 million of them making their livelihoods there. Women were among the first to exercise this option as women's lib later on found many feeling maternally inadequate while shuffling children into full time day care. Even when earning the bacon at home saw telecommuting females earn as much, if not more than they did in 9-5 office cubicles, it took a while for the label tables to turn from "housewifey" to "employed" and give them the respect that they deserved for their efforts. Now, entire industries that promote and support home-based businesses have emerged. The Internet has made entrepreneurs of a vast number of individuals, tapping into time-strapped consumer needs to let their fingers do the tapping.

Where does all of this leave the American homebuilder, and are they up to the challenge? Shifts have been made in home design to accommodate the changing meanings of home life, just as the automobile industry has seen its role evolve when designing cars for better comfort, more fuel efficiency, or simply to become rolling "living rooms" (now with back seat TV monitors) for soccer-weary parents. American homebuilders are recognizing some basic design requirements in all this, offering more high-tech wiring in new homes (see "The 30-second Commute"), reconfiguring the location and layout of the home office. They have determined that the new home office deserves its own private entry, is best located in the front of the home (especially if clients will be entering the home) overlooking entry ways or courtyards for security reasons, and should be designed as to be off-limits to other family members while business is being conducted.

Other new uses are seeing architects go back to the drawing boards as well. For home schooling families, options such as built-in study areas outside of traditional bedroom spaces are becoming popular, with their own networked computers and open, creative environments. Empty nesters are dispensing with formal living rooms and opting instead, for great rooms and spacious kitchens, even in smaller, scaled-down homes. Easy access fixtures, appliances, and cabinetry are available to the disabled or elderly, and builders have been required for some time to offer design-access options, such as wider doorways and hallways, to accommodate the wheelchair-bound.

It is always amazing to note how, even with the incredible technology we have seen enter our lives, we gravitate towards "home" in all we do. Even with the fabric of domestic life changing in so many ways, we tend to want what is simplest after all. We gravitate towards pedestrian style communities, and wish to de-emphasize views of cars and garages. We want more open spaces for our kids and ourselves to flex minds, bodies, and spirits. We would rather build "around" nature rather than force nature to accommodate to our selfish needs. And we want homebuilders to take the trappings of domestic life and design well-thought-out atmospheres for comfort and growth. Fortunately for us, American homebuilders are up to the task as never before.

Published: March 15, 2000

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A veteran of the real estate and homebuilding industries since 1986, Dena Kouremetis first joined Realty Times as a new homes writer in 1998. Since then, she has authored four books, written consumer columns on new homes issues for websites and newspapers all across the country, contributed to builder trade magazines, appeared as a guest expert on several radio shows and even created a ten-chapter podcast for LendingTree.com’s homebuilder website, iNest.com, now available on iTunes, entitled Uncharted Waters; Navigating the Purchase of a New Production Home. Kouremetis recently joined her local Folsom, CA Coldwell Banker office as a broker associate while continuing to write for the real estate industry. For the past three years, she has been training real estate agents for both the resale and new homes industries, putting her experience, research expertise and gift of expression to work to help others entering the business.