In order to help offset rising homeowner utility costs and lengthening commuting times, homeowners are looking for neighborhoods and communities designed to include greater access to public transportation, recreation, commercial and entertainment options. Mixed-use developments are projects where residential units are blended with retail, dining and other commercial activities in the same facility. Infill housing, where smaller land parcels closer to urban centers are targeted for development, is also increasing as metropolitan areas are becoming more built-out according to the American Institute of Architects (AIA) Home Design Trends Survey from the third quarter of 2007.

“As a way to foster more community interaction, there has been a rise in demand for traditional neighborhood design that includes front and side porches, along with smaller lots where homes are facing the street,” said AIA Chief Economist, Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA. “Homeowners have also shown a clear preference for durable, low-maintenance exterior materials including fiber-cement, stone, tile, natural earth plasters, as well as sustainable roofing materials.”

Link to full report: http://www.aia.org/aiarchitect/thisweek07/1130/1130b_econ3q.cfm

Households are also looking for neighborhoods that are more pedestrian friendly and generally more vibrant by offering clustered retail development with a multitude of services around public transportation and dense residential units. That design strategy along with greater devotion to open space, bikeways, walking paths and the availability of athletic fields and courts all can have a dramatic impact on the overall health of a community.

Richard Jackson, MD, MPH, School of Public Health, UC Berkley noted, “The health challenges of the 21st century relate to an aging population and to lack of physical fitness with more chronic diseases, especially obesity, diabetes and depression. Well designed communities support vigorous living in walkable communities and active socializing in healthy ‘places of the heart’. Architects, builders, planners and developers must be included among today’s important health leaders.”

AIA Home Design Trends Survey highlights

(% respond. report. popularity of room “increasing” minus % report. “decreasing”; Q3)

Housing market business conditions

Residential architects have felt the effect of the housing downturn by reporting weakening business conditions with actual billings, inquiries for new projects and work backlogs all down compared to last quarter and the same period in 2006. On an up note, additions and major structural renovations, and kitchen and bath remodeling projects continue to be a source of revenue for residential architecture firms, and the custom / luxury home market has stabilized in recent months.

Specific construction segments (index score computes as % of respondents reporting improving minus those reporting weakening conditions)

• Additions / alterations: 35%
• Kitchen and bath remodeling: 34%
• Custom / luxury home market: -3%
• Townhouse / condo market: -18%
• Second / vacation home market: -23%
• Move-up home market: -26%
• First-time buyer / affordable home market: -54%

About the AIA Home Design Trends Survey
The AIA Home Design Trend Survey is conducted quarterly with a panel of 500 architecture firms that concentrate their practice in the residential sector. Residential architects are design leaders in shaping how homes function, look, and integrate into communities and this survey helps to identify emerging trends in the housing marketplace. Business conditions are also monitored on a quarterly basis. Future surveys will focus on community design trends kitchen and bath trends (February 2008), overall home layout and use (May 2008), and specialty rooms and systems (September 2008).

About The American Institute of Architects
For 150 years, members of The American Institute of Architects have worked with each other and their communities to create more valuable, healthy, secure, and sustainable buildings and cityscapes. AIA members have access to the right people, knowledge, and tools to create better design, and through such resources and access, they help clients and communities make their visions real. www.aia.org