Archives for 2012

Families are joining forces to cut down costs by living together, and builders are coming up with creative ways to accommodate their needs.

The rise of multi-generational living

Due primarily to the recession, families are joining forces and living together to save money on child care costs and grandparents care for the children, and college students are living at home rather than getting their own apartment, along with a host of other reasons. Many studies have revealed that this is becoming increasingly common, and builders have had the challenge to accommodate this living style by altering floorplans and adjusting their options. Builders and renovators can no longer simply assume two master suites will suffice, rather private entrances and the like need to be part of the package as if adding another house onto the same structure.

Lennar tackles the multi-generational puzzle

So what exactly does this house look like that has multiple generations living under one roof? How does a floor plan lay out when a graduate student is still living at home at age 23 or when your 81 year old mother has come to live with you because she’s alone, and she’s way too vibrant and healthy for a home?

Enter Lennar’s “NEXT GEN” home, the “home within a home,” which the builder calls a great solution for long-term guests, family members or anyone else who can utilize this innovative space. It’s a complete suite with bedroom, eat-in kitchenette and living room. It can be integrated into a home’s living space or kept as a private residence.”

Lennar is currently offering NEXT GEN homes in Arizona, California, Florida, Nevada, and South Carolina. Below is one of the available floorplans with the additional space highlighted in blue, which includes a private entrance, private garage, bedroom, bathroom, walk-in closet, kitchenette, living room, and even a private washer/dryer room. Also below is a sample elevation of the style of home offered:

Lennar claims to be the first, but will not be the last builder to embark upon multi-generational housing, as our nation becomes more practical and sheds some of the excess of decades past.

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