The median size of a single-family home dropped 2 percent to 2,422 square feet in 2016, the first decrease in seven years, and the third time it’s fallen in the last 20 years.
Urban Land reports that builders are turning their focus toward cheaper homes that are affordable for more people. More than 850,000 new-owner households were formed during the first quarter of this year, doubling up the number of new-renter households. The share of homes between 1,400 and 1,799 square feet had the strongest growth last year.
Aaron Terrazas, a senior economist at real estate website Zillow, said that homebuilders appear to be shrinking homes in locations that are more affordable, like Texas and Oklahoma, and holding square footage steady in coastal markets like California and Washington state.