A quick survey on home sizes
 

This is sort of travel related. A friend is thinking of building a new home in the southwest US. He's talking about a 2,000 sf 2 bedroom/2.5 bath. It would be on a very large piece of property.

Here in the east with McMansions going up everywhere, this sounds like a relatively small home to me (from a resale standpoint, esp. to build new). So, what would you consider a good sized home for your retirement, assuming no major budget constraints?

Small enough to clean, large enough to find my own personal space from husband (and him from me)

It's true that houses in family-oriented areas are getting bigger and bigger (I think it's so funny when people try to recreate Tara on an 80 X 100 plot).

But in areas with a significant number of retired folks the same is not necessarily true. In those areas houses that are too big can be hard to resell.

Expensive to heat, cool, lots of work to clean (and in the southwest, dust)and maintain, and who, other than a family of 10, needs 5,000 sq ft?
I think people are also realizing that megarestaurant-sized kitchens aren't needed these days.

We have recently downsized to a very nice condo in a great area. I love the soaring ceilings and many windows that take you right outside. My insight, since we've been here a year and have the same sq ft as your friend will have, is that my kitchen is not large enough. I do not have enough cupboard space, and the cupboard space that I have is not deep enough. You know, for those large stir frys, electric skillets, etc., Just an observation that I would change if building.

>But in areas with a significant number of retired folks the same is not necessarily true. In those areas houses that are too big can be hard to resell.<

Nope. I live in a southeastern Virginia community that is chock a block full of upscale DC/NY/NJ/PA retirees (with a seemingly endless stream on the way) and you'd be hard pressed to find one of them in a home under 3500 sq ft. And the housing market (new and resale) is booming.

We have a 2800 sq ft, 4 bedroom (+ den), 3 bathroom home with 4 people and 2 dogs in it. It is way bigger than I would want for retirement. Too much cleaning, yardwork, and maintenance if you want to travel and do other fun stuff. But I'd prefer to buy something in a fun urban area for retirement as I am just fed up with driving everywhere.

My one-story is 2300 sf. Neighbors on either side of me are building, one a 2-story 3900 SF for a family of 4, the other a one-story and it looks to be about 2600. Our lots are 85x135.

Do they want to build the house that best suits them, or what will be best for resale? We recently finished building a house and we decided to just do what we wanted to do and not worry about resale. Who can predict what will be hot on the market when we sell years down the road, anyway?

Plus, I don't think there's one standard "good size" for a retirement house, as so much depends on your lifestyle. Will the kids and grandkids be coming to stay with you often? Will you want the freedom to travel? Housework is a biggie, too. And, I can say from experience, building a house can become a monster, and you will probably end up spending more money than you ever imagined. From that perspective, starting small is good.

Much depends on where the lot is situated. Here in San Antonio some older homes tend to be smaller - it is not uncommon to see a 3/2 with 1200 sf! We are in an "older" neighborhood where the typically single story homes from the late 50's and 60's range from as small as 1200 to well over 2000 sf. It's a popular area for renovation (best school district) and lots of folks are adding on to bump up the living area (we did, and are at about 2500 sf heated and cooled with a lot of open space in living areas, plus garage and covered terrace) but they tend to be younger families, not retireees. Zoning is minimum 8,000-10,000 sf lots with single family residential structures only, set that way to keep out the developers. In the burbs the McMansions are cloning themselves, but developers pack them in tightly to maximize profitability. I personally don't want to look out my bathrom window into the neighbor's kitchen. In addition, the infrastructure such as access to highways is usually overtaxed by such burgeoning development.
In terms of retirement planning, in addition to the sf it is important to think about accommodating age related physical changes as they present themselves - wider doorways and walkways, electrical outlets at counter level, height of counters, accessible/adaptable bathrooms, and low maintenance construction materials and landscaping.
As for resale, with the growing size of the senior population, I would expect only increasing demand for a well designed 2/2.5 that is easy to live in and requires little maintenance.

In 1998, we built what will (we hope) be the home we live in for the rest of our lives (we are now in our late 50's).

It is in Tucson, on 3.3 acres. Single story, 2400 sf living area 3 br / 3 ba (2 master suites)/ computer room / 3 car garage. It is self-designed, with an open floor plan that is great for entertaining. If I could have done things differently, I would have made the bedrooms and closets a bit bigger. But it works well for us. My MIL was with us until she passed away in April, but we regularly have visitors.

It works very well for us, and is not too big to clean.

I don't have a problem with his 2,000 sq feet, but I do with 2 bedrooms, simply from the resale perspective.

We had an eye to retirement with this last move and I sure wanted more than 2 bedrooms, although it's just the two of us now. We need space for an office as well as bedrooms for family visits. We ended up with 3400 sq feet...too big, too time consuming cleaning, but in the range we were looking, this was one of the smaller houses so I was glad to get that! It also has 3.5 baths and I'd be very very happy with 2.5. I'm thinking of devising one of those old sanitation strips that used to go around motel toilet seats so I'll know if a bathroom has been used or if I can skip it in this week's cleaning. Attractive, no? LOL It's a lot of upkeep and the yard, an acre, even more so.

As a "do over", or starting from scratch, I'd have less land, maybe .5 acres, 2.5 baths, 3 BRs, no formal living room but a formal DR (our arrangement in this house), about 2400 sq feet. The space would be primarily in kitchen and great room. I'd have to pare "stuff" down too much if we got much smaller than that, but that should be easy weekly maintenance, yet still be attractive to someone looking to buy down the road. I'd FAR rather have small but top of the line everything, than big but cheap.

My parents have a 2283 sq. ft. two story that they plan on selling next spring and moving into a single story because the stairs are getting to be too much for them. My mom just asked me the other day if 1900 sq. ft. would be too small? Personally, if I was a "retired" person I would not be looking so much at the actual number. If I wanted a nice sized kitchen and family room, then that would be my criteria, and if that came by way of 1463 sq. ft., then sold! Who wants to be getting into their golden years trying to clean a house that is big enough for a family of 5? And its not just the housework, but the cost to cool a large home (especially in the SW) will be expensive, watering that large yard will be expensive, then there is the maintenance of both the yard and the house. As far as resale..the value will maintain itself as long as it is in a good area and if they are getting a large piece of property like mclaurie said then the land will also keep the value increasing. Not everyone wants huge houses, so if and when they decide to sell this house I'm sure they won't have a problem.

I agree with OO. I would rather have really good small than just big.
We just went from 3,000 sf on a large property to something like 1100 sf ..an apt in a bldg in a city.
All an adjustment but one we wanted to try.
We have done very well with resale on 3 bedrooms plus..2 bedrooms are difficult unless they are apts in great buildings in good locations.
I am still daydreaming about a location in England or Italy for our retirement :D

I do think aside from the size of the house and resale value, one should think about the cost of upkeep on property. We got so sick of landscapers and gardeners and lawn people in Florida. So if a large property is attractive to you, think about how it will be maintained. That is where my daydream of the house in the countryside in England comes in- small house, walled garden but in the middle of a forest or wooded acres :)

PS...It should be near an outstanding grocery store. ( ;) Seamus)

OO, :D
Yes.

mclaurie, my parents recently built a retirement home of about 2000 sf. It is only a two bedroom, 2 bath which my mother designed. For them it works out perfectly. However, if they were to put it up for sale the lack of a third bedroom would be a deal-breaker. Potential buyers would be confused that it didn't have three bedrooms.

My home is a three bedroom, ONE bath. Its beautiful but almost nobody would buy a one bath home today.

jorr
Our last house was 4 bedrooms 2 1/2 baths and a couple of houselookers said that they wanted 3 full baths..sigh.
But I do agree with wanting at least 1 1/2 baths.
It takes longer but there is still always someone out there who will buy your house.

We have retired into a 1800sq ft, 3 br, 1 and 1/2 baths. with den, formal living/dining room with eat-in kitchen. It is a dandy size. The way it is designed allows us space to get off by ourselves. It's easy to clean and small enough that we don't feel as if we need to fill it up with "stuff"

There is only one problem as far as resale. The house was built before king size beds became common. while the two larger bedrooms are fine for double beds, the window arrangement, doors etc, don't make putting in a king easy.

I would love to have a walk-in shower with room for a bath chair. I think any retirement home should plan to have one.

I have a two bedroom one bath house..separate garage. Lot is 62 x125. House has 800 sq feet. It is easy to take care of by myself. Most houses in the section of our city range this size.most were built in the late 40s early 50s. It amazes me to see how the houses are being gobbled up.. There are "real" rooms..a dining room, a living room and a kitchen that you can't see from the whole house. Love it.

Our place is a little over 1300 sq ft and has 3 br and 1.5 bath. It is a nice size. The houses in our neighborhood sell really fast - multiple offers in a couple days, standard story around here.

Obviously most of the folks replying to this thread live in a much larger house than I do. It's about 1500 square feet, only 1 3/4 baths and three bedrooms. Built in the mid 60's, we bought in the mid 70's. We've added on, remodeled, and renovated. Because we are no where near wealthy and have stayed in our
'starter' home we're able to take a trip once a month all fall, winter, and spring. I don't care to travel in the summer. We could certainly afford a larger more expensive house but it would at the expense of travel.

Hello all, I have been involved in building several houses (thanks to my late DH being a Realtor, sigh). Here is my take on the situation.

It is not so much the sq.footage of the house but the floorplane of the house. I realized that after we purchased our 28foot by 12 foot boat. Every inch of the boat was utilized for storage etc. I went home to our very large house and realized that there were lots of large rooms but not really appropriate storage space.

After our daughters were married and we returned from Italy we decided the interior needed painting. My DH always thought that selling and building another house was easier then having the interior of a house painted, LOL.

Anyway we built a smaller house, a solar house. It was perfect! And we made changes to the original plans and consequently had tons of storage space.

Some time after I lost my DH I did not feel as the house was to big. In fact it was perfect. But we had a big lot and a large swimming pool. Just the cost of the gardner, the swimming pool service, the water bill etc. became a big pain in the neck to put it midly.

I sold the house, moved to Vacaville and leased an apartment for a year. I intended to buy a small 3 bedroom, 2 bath house (knowing that is a house that will sell the quickest) with a small yard. A house along this description is not real easy to find. Especially if you want to be close to businesses and services. I am not really a "suburb" person.

After five years of living in my apartment I have no desire to buy a house to live in. I love living in an apartment. It is so easy to take care of. If there is a maintenance problem I pick up the phone and the maintenance man is usually here within one hour. I can lock the door and take off on a trip without any worry about the pool, garden etc. etc.

I sure understand Scarlett and family being happy with their new apartment in Portland, OR. If I were going to move again I would get an apartment in Portland also (love that city!).

Most houses being built in my area are McMansions on lots that are to small for the size of the house. Oh yes, look out your window and look into your neighbors window. No thank you.

The strange thing is that usually it is couples in their 50's that are buying these houses. Their children are almost out of highschool or not living at home (university or on their own). The cost of property tax, homeowners insurance, electricity (absolutely need to use the a/c here), maintenance etc. is very high.

Almost all these houses are two stories which of course means stairways. I have had several conversation with family members and friends in the past few years as we all wonder what is going to happen ten or so years down the line when these people know longer want to deal with all the upkeep cost, the two levels and stairs etc. Many people feel there is going to be a glut of McMansions on the market. Maybe there will be a new generation of homebuyers wanting these houses but I wonder about that.

Mclaurie, IMO, and having a lot of experience with real estate I would consider a good sized but comfortable to keep up home for retirement would be a single story, not over 2000 sq.ft house with three bedrooms and two baths and perhaps a powder room. Most people here in CA seem to want three car garages now but that is because we do not have basements so a large garage allows the husband to have some space for a workbench etc.

I think as far as a house that quality versus quanity (meaning size wise) is what appeals to me.

There is a great series of books on this topic called THE NOT SO BIG HOUSE. It is all about how design should trump size (really a quality vs. quantity issue). Cost per square foot can really go up though.

I hate the McMansions. We almost had to move to Detroit awhile ago, and when I saw the houses there (either 1950's sad little bungalow or a huge nasty looking McMansion) it wasn't hard to pass on the job.

Paradoxically, it seems around here anyway, that the bigger the house, the less any real people are ever home. Lots of housekeepers, gardeners, the chem lawn guy, and an occasional nanny, but that's about it.

I agree that it's all about the floor plan and not the square footage--space that isn't usable just collects dust. I also second The Not So Big House, and its follow-up, Creating the Not So Big House, both by Susanka. She's an architect who champions usable spaces with quality workmanship and materials over big, bland McMansions.
But here's the thing about the term "McMansion"--does anybody ever think their own home is one??

Wow, under 3500 plus is cramped, IMHO. More like dorm space in college, not a home. The idea is to get more space but then hire people to come in and clean twice a week. It's the only way to live a halfway classy life with some freedom and space. Less than 3 bathrooms, at a minimum, and you have problems. But then it may be that people have what they can afford.

Certainly, we do. And we kid around about it, knowingly. McMansion or McSoccerMobile we're all keenly aware of what's going on.

Hey, so anyway, mclaurie -> your friend's home could be in a neighborhood of similar homes.

A good-sized home for retirement of two people or one?

Do I own a baby grand piano, or do I have five grandkids that would visit for the holidays?

More inputs are needed if you're aiming for a direct comparison w/your friend's home plan.

Hey, I have three of Sarah Susanka's books checked out of the library at this very moment. I <i>traveled</i> to the library to check them out . :-)

We're planning a kitchen remodel, and I love her philosophy/mentality re planning your environment. She definitely thinks &quot;less is more.&quot; Go Sarah!

I am lazy and don't want to clean. The perfect sized house for me is a two bedroom two bath condo at about 1500 square feet. An ocean view of course!

&quot;But here's the thing about the term &quot;McMansion&quot;--does anybody ever think their own home is one??&quot;

We used to live in a McMansion, in San Diego. Although it was close to the freeway, services, and it was for the most part, a close-knit neighborhood, after four years we moved to the country for some more space, and eventually, out of California. We still have a rather large home (but a large lot to go with it), and we love it. We're not retirement age; we have two young kids. I love having the space to stretch out, the kids can run around without feeling closed in, and it's great for entertaining, which we do a lot of. Family and friends can come visit and stay here with us instead of a hotel. Sure it's a pain in the behind to clean, but I love it anyway.

I don't know what we'll do when we retire. On one hand, it would be nice to keep this house so we can continue to host large family gatherings. On the other hand, sometimes I dream of a condo in Coronado or an apartment in the city somewhere...

I live in a large home on 1 and 1/2 acres (5200 sf, 5 bedrooms). I do all the yard work including the gardens and the pool. I also am the person responsible for the cleaning and maintenence of the inside. There are currently 7 people living in my home with one planning to move out within 6 months. At one time we had 8 people living in our home. My youngest child is a junior in high school. We always have had family visiting or parties or something going on so that our house never seemed large. But as I get older, I want these people to move out and so I can get a much smaller house on just a half acre (sure, I'd also love ocean view). I also only want them to visit, not live with me. While raising a large family has been interesting I confess to getting tired of it all and am ready to go smaller and quieter. Not to mention I'd rather be spending my hard earned dollars on travel.

I'd like a three bedroom open floorplan on water in a temperate climate with low taxes, please. No more then 2500 sf and near a town with great food, museums, an airport, and privacy. If you find a place like that let me know. Cause it isn't in New Jersey.

mclaurie,
I have been living in my newly constructed and nearly complete retirement home since &quot;closing&quot; on 2 August.
It is 4500 ft2 (under roof) with 2000 ft2 of decks, gardens. 4 BR, a maid's quarters which might be a 5th BR, 5 1/2BA, 2 outdoor salas, 2 car garage, 7 fireplaces, a cava (wine cellar) and 3 levels of spectacular views of SMdA.
M

lawsy mike! That is so big it would make my head swim!

It's interesting how things vary by regions. Mikemo, your new house would be unheard of here in Naples, Florida. No self-respecting four bedroom house would have anything less than a three car garage, for example. It would be very difficult to resell such a house as yours unless that matter could be taken care of.

Friends of mine have a 14 car garage. Don't ask!

I have to ask; 14 car garage? We just park our cars under our houses:-D

I've built three homes and lived in 3 others as well.

What you LIKE to do is one of the primaries. I love to garden, landscape and do all kinds of things that others think of as chores. I also love to cook. Not shop, but cook. I love to decorate and have done it for love and money.

So I have built my homes around the kitchen, and that wouldn't be others cup of tea. At one time within a 4 year period I had three different married kids move back to live with me for varying times as they built or renovated homes. I went from 8 people to myself in one year once. 3 car garage with extra storage above and huge drive as well.

For last 5 years I've been in my self-contracted 2 step ranch of aprox. 3000 square ft not counting a full basement that I leave empty for fun. I have 3 full baths, 3 nice bedrooms- the master is cathedral. My separate dining room and front living room are used constantly, as is my great room that is open with the kitchen and has a two storied fire place. My foyer is bigger than the front room on my first house, as is the front den/computer room next to it that could be a related living bedroom if my Mom gets any sicker. I do not look in anybody's elses windows and have prairie behind me. My taxes are way too high. I have Chicago water which is a big plus. One of the best school districts in the state of IL.

My house in MI is small about 1150 sq feet and PERFECT for a summer house (its modular original with adaptations and is REALLY maintenance free). The deck isn't but the view it has requires it. It's three level and spectacular. I just finished renovating it myself. A realtor told me that I have improved the property by about $60,000 in two years. I'm going to keep it for now, so I don't know when I'll sell. It's a gem on a 600 acre lake in SW MI. Oh, 2 bathrooms and both have tubs- 3 small bedrooms and a great room/kitchen with all glass onto the lake. NO GRASS TO CUT BUT A STRIP BY THE SEA WALL. All stone or pavers or paved access.

I travel a lot and work more than any other woman my age that I know, but I don't consider home cleaning or most things like that work. I was raised with having to operate a store at the same time as living, or/and later also operating a truck tire service. I don't watch TV. I read a book a day, I travel every month. If you have your health, you end up doing what you want to do.

When my parents pass (my GM lived to 99)I will sell both houses and downsize to about 1500 one floor plan and do EVERYTHING the way I want to when I build it. Don't know exactly where yet.

I could live very small again and not suffer. I'm not attached that much to stuff. It's approaching. But I would miss the holidays as everyone comes to me and I am packed.

Swore I would never again have a huge house with peeling paint I couldn't reach. So ended up with 1500 sq. ft. one level brick with paint that requires only a single ladder when it peels.

Three bedrooms work perfectly for an office and extra bedroom for guests, who drop in on a regular basis.

One bathroom works well, but frankly, I am never moving again, so really don't care much what the resale value is. Good size lot would permit adding another bedroom, a third porch or deck, another bathroom, expand the kitchen etc. which may be appealing for heirs at that time.

The small size is virtually maintenance free, cheap to cool and heat, exceedingly low taxes and excellent low-cost municipal services. It's a perfect house with no room for kids to move back home but plenty for everyone to visit and stay for holidays etc.

B/

It's nice to read all these common-sense opinions by people who know (via experience). While I might have, in my extreme youth, thought a macmansion would be great, I have a dream post-teen/college student house in mind, including the perfect layout for me; maybe some day I'll be able to build it! (Guess I'll have to bring the better half on board...)

wow RnRforever, less than 3500 sf is like a college dorm room? That puts us in less than half a college dorm room. It would look a bit small on our 160 acres of lakes shore property! Get my point?

Just to underscore the relationship of this intriguing post to travel - it has given me things to consider as I ponder buying an apartment in Paris.
When I see something listed as a 300sf one bedroom that will sleep up to 6, I can't fathom how that would work. A gander at floor plans reveals design like an airplane - every inch is used for something (is that another travel connection??) and the notion of wide open space for the sake of wide open space just doesn't factor into the equation. Then I recall that I was raised in a 3BR/1 bath house with 9 or 10 people living there. I just learned that it was actually a Sears &quot;kit house&quot; with lots of additional woodwork done by my great grandfather and his brother, who were master woodcarvers from Switzerland.
Yes, ONE BATHROOM - and somehow we all lived through it and maintained a good standard of hygiene. Of course, as the eldest of the brood I was out of there before my younger sibs hit adolescence, but when we gather as a family today – each with larger, multiple bathroom abodes for far smaller tribes - we still wonder how we did it without killing each other or at least engendering enduring psychic trauma. I believe it was Margaret Mead who observed that the beginning of the end of western civilization was the introduction of multiple bathrooms…