Will Living Rooms Disappear?

The National Association of Home Builders recently released a special report that details several home features that will likely become the norm by 2015.

Green features such as low-E windows and engineered wood products are expected to become more prevalent, a less-than-surprising find given the continually increasing awareness of eco-friendly products and energy efficiency.

A Few Surprises
One of the more unexpected summaries in the report? A theory that living rooms will vanish, or be incorporated into other rooms. Of course, applying this report to a home depends heavily on the definition of a living room. We grew up with living rooms as formal spaces that were usually reserved for company--they didn't have televisions, and typically had nicer furnishings and decor.

"An overwhelming majority of respondents do not expect the living room to stay in its current room," according to the NAHB report. "Instead, more than half (52 percent) expect the living room to merge with other spaces in the home, while 30 percent expect it to vanish to save on square footage."

Great Room Grows Bigger
The report predicts that an all-encompassing Great Room will likely replace the living room. Experts predict this will be a more open space that will encompass a kitchen, family and living rooms with few barriers to accessing each area.

Would You Miss Your Living Room?
Are you attached to the concept of a living room and refuse to give it up, even to save on square footage? Or do you feel this trend is part of the natural evolution of home design based on our economy, lifestyles and other defining factors?

We'd love to hear your thoughts!

Photo: Flickr.com/photos/kerryanndame/3442539526/

Katy Ryan | Comments () |

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susanmw

I love my beautiful living room and would not want to give it up. We have a family room with TV and computer, but the living room is where we enjoy sitting to read or have friends over for the evening. On chilly nights, we enjoy the fireplace, too. While more formal than the family room, the living room is designed for comfort. No plastic covers on our couch!

gregmac

Makes sense. Neither me, nor any of my friends my age, have a formal "living room", and this is in several different sized houses ranging from 2-4 bedrooms, anywhere from 1 year to 40 years old*. Everyone has a TV in that space (which typically adjoins to the dining room/area), and most people do refer to it as a "living room".

Some people (like me) have another area that is more of the TV space (I have a basement with a bigger-screen TV, and bigger surround sound system, and is set up more with the TV as the focal point, whereas upstairs there just happens to be a TV in the room).

Part of the difference may be the way media is utilized. When we have company over, we don't usually watch TV, but it is an interface to be able to play music in the room, which is what we often do.

* As I was thinking about who I know who has formal living rooms, among the only ones I can think of are my and my fiance's parents. Both have relatively large houses (4 bedroom) built about 25 years ago. Everyone I know at my age with a big 4 bedroom 2-story house has a relatively new house, <5 years old. 2-3 bedroom houses are typically small enough not to have separate spaces.

I think you hit it on the head with the Great room: the spaced used for the "formal living room" is going towards a bigger Great room, and a room that is now common in many new houses, the Study.

Mike

We recently turned our seldom-used living room into a 2nd family room. Previously, we used the room only 2-3 days per year, now it's in use daily.

Charles & Hudson

You must really love utilizing that space now, plus you still have a common family room.