According to a recent article by Zillow, homes in the U.S. are growing in size, while the lots on which they sit are shrinking. Data from the late ‘90s shows that the median size of a single-family home in the U.S. has grown by 24% – going from about 2,100 square feet to 2,600 between 1999 and 2014.
However, the lots these expanded homes are sitting on have shrunk by about 10% in the same period – going from 9,600 square feet to 8,600 in the same time frame.
To put this information in an equation that is relative to a specific home size, in 2000, homes had approximately three square feet of lot space per every one foot of indoor home space, however, in 2014, that number dropped to about two square feet of lot per foot of indoor space.
According to Zillow Chief Economist, Svenja Gudell, this trend meets a compromise between builders and homebuyers – specifically, a compromise between what builders can profitably supply (within a close proximity to job hubs) and what homeowners want – bigger homes (and a willingness to accept a smaller lot space).