and Speaking of Green . . . How Much House do You Really Need

I grew up in a 1400 square foot house with a my older sister and parents. My husband and I bought our first house in 1998 and it was a whopping 1980 square feet. Today, we live in a home about 2100 square feet, with our two young girls (small by NorthWest standards). In both homes, however, we estimated that we regularly only use 1300-1400 square feet.

 

The average size of a North American suburban home in:

1950 was 800 square feet
1970 it was 1500 square
2000 it was 2266 square feet

This data is from a movie called Radiant City. And, more currently, according to the US Census Bureau, the average size of a US home as of 2006 was 2,469 square feet. You get the picture. I am interested to see what the next batch of data finds.

With the price of oil, I think folks are thinking twice about those 4000 square foot homes. Here in the North West, with more rain, folks tend to want bigger, knowing they will spend much of the winter indoors. I get that. I still wonder how much space a family or a couple really needs, or for that matter uses. I’ve seen and heard the idea of 600 square feet per person, perhaps. With the rising utility cost and so much worth/value based on square footage, I know I am rethinking my “need” for a 2600 square foot home.

How big is your home? How much space do you really use?