SMALLER HOMES TREND FIRST TIME IN 15 YEARS

HERE'S A HANDSOME OPINION from CNN, but it fails to note the equally unique trends in recent generations of young urban professional twentysomethings and older who still live in group homes not much different from their stint at college dorm living, or else they opt to head back home to their parents' large domicile after a few rough years fighting the laws of jungle economics at the same time that larger McMansions in the distant suburbs are being overbuilt, easily financed, tough to upkeep, and now tumbling into the bubble mortgage industry's deeper waters.

In DC however, the urban trend is to build smaller but upscale, post-modern luxury studio spaces, most barely over six hundred square feet, boasting an elegant open architecture where the confluence of the living, dining and kitchen open areas serve as a gallery to the bed drop hidden snugly behind an amazingly frosted glass or some other glamorous material like teak, or mahogany room divider. The last time I looked a few months ago, these hip, beautifully appointed, smart apartments were slow in attracting buyers however, when starting in the $360s.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com)—For the first time in almost 15 years, the size of new homes built in the United States is shrinking. New homes are now 7% smaller—or the size of one average-sized room. To be precise, the median square footage of newly built homes fell to 2,065 square feet in the first three months of this year, compared with the same period last year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

This caps off 2008, when home size fell every quarter, marking first year of declines since 1994. That could indicate that the romance between Americans and morbidly obese McMansions has finally cooled.

"A new ethic is arising right now that will become commonplace—as commonplace as is recycling today, when just a few decades ago it was rarely, if ever, done," said Sarah Susanka, author of the book, "The Not So Big House."

"As more and more people build or remodel homes that satisfy in quality rather than quantity, there will be a huge shift in what we perceive as desirable."

She believes the current shrinking trend mimics one of 100 years ago, when simple bungalows supplanted elaborate Victorian homes as the design choice for many Americans.

But, it could also just be the recession. The recession could have led to a temporary turndown in the number of young families buying homes, for example. But when they return to the market, they may drive up McMansion sale again. Meanwhile, older buyers are dominating sales.

"Home size gains flatten out or decline during recessions, and we're in the midst of the most serious housing recession in decades," said Kermit Baker, the chief economist for the American Institute of Architects.

Read it all.