Future of Single Family Houses is not what most people might expect. It’s about the things that really matter to people who want their own home.
It’s not about “style” or “futuristic” imagery. Like “The Jetsons”. No. That’s not what people are telling this Architect that they want (HOME ARCHITECTS ®). What is it that they do want? Let’s make a list:
1. NEEDS & WANTS: a house that has been designed around their needs and wants (which requires Programming to discover these spaces and features).
2. TIMELESS APPEARANCE: a house that looks like it could have been built 100 years ago, or 100 years from now. This means: no features that are part of any stylistic fad (remember “avocado green” and “harvest gold”, or the tiny exterior blue tiles used on the exterior of 1950s commercial architecture? So, for those who imagine The Jetsons as the future of what most people want for their future house, that’s really not what the future homeowners have in mind. And the homeowners are the ones who pay for their house, so they will dictate the characteristics of it, not some futuristic artist producing imagery for magazines and websites about the future.
Don’t misunderstand: we all enjoy seeing these science fiction images. But the reality of single family houses does not align with those.
3. PRIVACY: as the world’s population increases, people want to be able to retreat to their houses as a place of peaceful sanctuary. However, this does not mean that if the house is built in a normal neighborhood, that it should not allow for social contact, if desired by the house’s owners.
4. VIEWS: many of this architect’s Clients purchase land that has scenic views. They want the Architect to capitalize on the view(s). This usually goes hand in hand with Privacy. Taking advantage of views usually means having the skills to know how to design and place large areas of glass without losing the feeling and warmth of “house.”
5. LAND: many of the Clients of the above architect have acres of land. As in: 20, 30, 50, 100, 200, 500 or over 700 acres. And some only 2 or 3 acres. But most have in common the fulfilled desire for land, which of course, automatically includes items 3. & 4. above. In the present economy (2016), land is cheap. Those who can afford it are buying their future “retirement” sanctuary, while the “getting’s good.”
6. RETIREMENT SANCTUARY: many Clients of the above Architect are captains of industry. However, some of them are retired school teachers and military personnel. There is a cross section of economic capabilities. However, there is a shared goal of establishing their retirement sacred place: where they intend to spend the remainder of their lives, in comfort and with the features indicated in this article. Very few are in middle of their lives. The majority are planning on retiring within the next 2 to 5 years and want to start planning now for the special place about which they have been dreaming for the last decade or so. This desire appears to have no economic boundaries. People from all professions and economic capabilities share this apparently hard-wired “need.” Click here for a related article: Extended Family Village.
7. FAMILY ESTATE: many of this Architect’s Clients are requesting that their sanctuary house be a Family Estate: the place where their sons & daughters and grandchildren gather to celebrate the good things in life and heal other situations. No where else in the family does such a place exist. Here are several examples: Family Estates .
CONCLUSION: future of single family houses:
People want a house that accommodates their needs, wants and desires. They don’t want to have to change themselves to fit into their future house.
That’s the big difference: getting a future house that meets your needs. Architects accomplish this by Programming your needs, as the first step in designing your house. See Programming for more information on this subject.
If you recognize this need in yourself and your family, you may wish to consider contacting an Architect that is highly skilled in planning, designing and managing this sort of special project for you.
tags: future of single family houses, Cashiers, Sevierville, Atlanta, Aspen, Telluride, Asheville, Hendersonville, post and beam, residential design