By, Adrian Willanger
- New infill neighborhoods are being redesigned to accommodate the needs of buyers’ in this new-economy. The recent economic slowdown has caused many aging-boomers to put off their plans of moving to a sunny climate, instead choosing to work a few extra years, re-tooling the home to accommodate a home office and other comforts that reflect a changing lifestyle. This generation, once referred to as the counter-culture generation, is now enjoying being connected with family, friends, clubs, and social networks. We are starting to see a shift in values, friends, family and social networks are again fashionable. A younger generation, X and Y’s, have figured this out, and these values can be reflected in their home purchasing decisions.
Choosing homes with traditional designs, functional floor plans, made with durable materials, and energy saving features. For the first time since the 1960’s homeowners are choosing to stay in their homes longer than the 5-7 year average that we have seen over the last four decades. They want homes that will still look good after the 30 year mortgage is paid-off. Also, a key factor is the utility cost, looking at the home, once again, as an investment to be enjoyed as opposed to something that will be sold leveraged into another move-up property. They want the security of knowing the house will; provide comfort, shelter, enjoyment, and peace of mind by not having to worry about ongoing maintenance, rising energy cost while providing them with flexible and functional living areas to grow into.
Martha Rose, of Martha Rose Construction, addressed these points last night while speaking to a near compactly lecture hall at Bellevue Community College Tuesday evening. Martha was one of three panelist that spoke about the drivers, opportunities, and potential obstacles that are facing the local building community to designing and building homes that are both good for the environment and affordable.
Martha’s newest collection of four homes, located in Shoreline Washington, Fish Singer Place features new design techniques that tighten the building envelop which enables them to install smaller more efficient heating and cooling systems. These savings are then reinvested in high-performance windows and doors that further reduce energy use and costs.