Across the Country, More People Looking for Larger, More Luxurious Houses

Today’s most in-demand real estate is bigger, more luxurious — and more expensive — than ever before.

According to an August 10 USA Today article, the growing trend among aspiring homeowners can be attributed to people wanting their homes to come with “all the bells and whistles” as well as more bedrooms and bathrooms.

“The home (is) still somewhat of a statement and status about yourself,” Peter Reinhart, director of the Kislak Real Estate Institute at Monmouth University in West Long Branch, told USA Today.

As a result, the average square footage of newly-constructed single-family homes rose an astonishing 57% in 2013 to 2,598 square feet, USA Today reports. The average price tag for a house has gone up, as well — it has increased by 419% since 1978, reaching $324,500 last year.

“The buyers of today are expecting more in both value as well as size, and are demanding more in homes,” says Erik Cocks,Marketing for Arthur Rutenberg Homes. “We’ve seen an increase in both number of bedrooms as well as number of bathrooms. We’re definitely seeing a trend towards larger homes as well as higher quality homes.”

And while more American home buyers may be looking for nicer, larger houses, the actual number of people who live in a home is on the decline — meaning these huge luxury houses are technically too big for the families living in them.

According to USA Today, the average number of people per house has fallen to 2.54, down from 3.01 in 1973. Families are getting smaller as well, falling to 3.12 members on average.