Results of a 2008 survey by AIA (American Institute of Architects) shows the following home building trends:

Smaller home size
fter increasing nearly 50% over the past 3 decades, by 2007 the trend had reversed. While only 15.5% of residential architects reported more requests for smaller homes in 2005, that number rose to 33.5% by 2008.

Given energy costs and challenging economics, home ‘volume’ (two-storey foyers, higher ceilings, etc) is also decreasing. In 2005, 51% of residential architects reported that home volume was increasing and only 4% that is was decreasing. In 2008, 28% reported home volume increases and 12% reported decreases.

More flexibility
08, 29% of architects reported an increase in requests for partial walls (rather than full height wall) to promote greater flexibility and visibility between rooms.

Renewable materials and energy savings
The green movement is affecting product specifications. In 2008, renewable flooing was up to 61% from 53% in 2007. High-end appliances dropped to 47% from 65% in 2007.

Outdoor living
Slightly under half of residential architects saw this as a atrend in 2005, but by 2008, over 2/3 said outdoor living is increasing in demand. Related to outdoor living is growth in indoor/outdoor space as a way to blur the lines between indoor and outdoor, and growing popularity of outdoor cooking centers, courtyards, fireplace, lighting, gazebos and furniture.

Source: Kitchen & Bath Design News (Aug ‘08)

Can we learn anything from U.S. Census data? Advertising Age (Jul ‘08) thinks so. Here’s some conclusions they came to after digging deep into population statistics. 

Products and marketing messages that speak about safety, ease and mobility, guarantees and experience are going to matter…

* the average age for U.S. head of household is almost 50 years old (49.5).  The first boomers will turn 65 in less than 3 years and in the next 5 years, boomers will add more than 1 million consumers per year to the 65+ segment.

Products targeted to older consumer will do better in the northeast, southeast and midwest…

* the average age of a consumer in the Northeast is 39.7, compared to 35.2 in the southwest and 36.1 in the Pacific.

Market research and target marketing need to rely on diversity of culture, beliefs, family size, likes and dislikes rather than demographics alone…

* 40% of the population growth in the U.S. is coming from immgration rather than childbirth. Check out these staggering numbers on cultural diversity, particularly in kids:

Whites are currently 81% of the 65+ group, but 57% of the under 18 group
Hispanics are currently 7% of the 65+ group, but 21% of the under 18 group
Blacks are currently 9% of the 65+ group, but 15% of the under 18 group
Asians are currently 3% of the 65+ group, and 4% of the under 18 group.

* 2 in 5 consumers under 45 are Hispanic, Black or Asian, versus 1 in 5 for 65-and-older.

* the median age of U.S. Hispanic women is 27.8 versus 42.1 for non-Hispanic white women. That’s a 14.3 year spead!  

Construction is booming in backyards across the country. Shorter, milder winters in many areas combined with higher airline fees, food prices, gas prices and stress add up to more people taking time to enjoy the great outdoors at home.

A survey by the American Institute of Architects in 2006 first revealed the trend from the architects’ perspective. When asked which areas are ‘increasing’ in activity based on homeowner requests, here’s what they said:

1. 64% reported “outdoor living”, up from 47% from just one year earlier.

2. 56% reported “upscale landscaping”, up from 48% one year earlier

3. 43% reported “lot boundaries”, up from 30% one year earlier.

4. 30% reported “lot boundaries”, up from 25% one year earlier.

5. 7% reported ”lot size”, up from 5% one year earlier.

Those aren’t sizable increases, they’re gi-normous, especially over just one year. At the same time, architects also ranked indoor amenities such as more square footage and even finished basements on the decline. (Some would argue that finished basements are still a viable area of consumer interest for new home entertainment areas).

So what are consumers saying? They want to live in a more park-like setting (upscale landscaping), they want to do many more of the same things outside that they do inside (outdoor living space), they want to be comfortable doing them (outdoor amenities), they want security and privacy (lot boundaries), and that the quality and comfort of their outdoor space is much more important than how much of it they have (lot size).

Technology is responding with outdoor TVs, speakers, screens and audio equipment. The Electronic House Expo in California this fall will feature an Outdoor Destination display on the show floor, marking the first time they’ve ever featured an exhibit for the outdoors. Home improvement stores and gardening shops are riding the wave with more landscaping goods. With food prices high and food contamination stories in the news, consumer interest in gardens is also growing.

All this bodes well for more and better outdoor furniture, though many furniture retailers have yet to catch the wave.. even as an online option if they don’t have the selling floor space (see my post July 2nd: outdooor living fueled by internet and catalog). Spending more time doing more things outside means demand for more comfortable and more ‘indoor-inspired’ outdoor furniture will continue to grow, not just the garden variety available at mass merchants and even local supermarkets these days.

According to a survey of nearly 2,000 adults who recently purchased a new mattress…

* 76% said the quality of their sleep had improved
* 57% said they saw an improvement in their overall health
* 41% said they’re a better employee at work as a direct result of sleeping better

(Source: HarrisInteractive poll)

Results of a similar study by Oklahoma State University (published in the March Journal of Applied Ergonomics) showed the same trend. Of According to participants sleeping on a new mattress:

69.6% reported more sleep comfort
64.4% reported improved sleep quality
62.8% reported reduced back pain
62.4% reported less shoulder pain
58.4% reported less back stiffness

NY Times reported today that potentially millions more homeowners could still lose their homes, even as the subprime disaster is turning the corner. This second wave of homeowners at risk goes beyond the sub-prime mortgage group to those in financial stress over rising unemployment and inflation, an inability to pay their loan or refinance, and falling home prices.

Home ownership in the U.S. was down to 68.1% in June 2008 from a record high during the real estate boom of 69.2%… doesn’t sound that significant a drop but it does translate to more than 1 in every 100 having lost their home since the housing market crisis began. 

When it comes to furniture… a largely unbranded consumer purchase… do manufacturer’s name brands or retailer’s store brands have an advantage?  According to a recent survey (May ‘07), here’s what surveyed consumers had to say:

* almost 2/3 (62%) thought they’d purchased name brand furniture at some point, while less than half (43%) thought they’d purchased a store brand, but generally consumers were unsure what brand of furniture they’d purchased

* consumers believe that name brands offered more choice and better quality, while store brands were better priced, more stylish and delivered more quickly

* consumers were most likely to consider a manufacturer’s name brand for bedding (73%) or a recliner (59%)

* consumers were less likely to consider a manufacturer’s name brand for ready-to-assemble products (33%), sofas (21%), bedroom (18%), while the least number are likely to consider a name brand for occasional tables (11%), dining room and dinettes (8%) and youth furniture (8%).

Source: Home Furnishing Business, July 2008