Americans want their houses to be affordable, and they want a flexible home they can grow into over the years, according to recent separate surveys by Better Homes and Gardens magazine and the National Association of Home Builders.

The consumer wish lists reflect the complex, pliant needs of today's family.

"Affordability and flexibility top America's wish list when it comes to their homes," said Karol DeWulf Nickell, Editor in Chief of Better Homes and Gardens. "People are hungry for ideas that fit their budget and they want their home to work through all the changes their families go through."

In addition to affordability and flexibility, the three features that round out the top five crucial to today's homeowner are indoor and outdoor livability, innovation, and the kitchen as the hub of the house.

Better Homes and Gardens singled out flexibility as the most "revolutionary forward-looking trend identified." Specifically:

• Some 68 percent of those who took the survey said they want a home that incorporates a "work from home" feature, with many planning on adopting such a lifestyle within the next five years.

• Families are staying in a home three to five years; they're moving up as their family grows. That means the homes aren't accommodating budding families.

• Some 69 percent completed a major remodeling project at some point over the past five years; 42 percent plan to do so in the next five years. Both figures reflect that Americans are constantly changing their homes.

Meanwhile, National Association of Homebuilders research economist Gopal Ahluwalia told builders at the recent International Builders Show that the average size of new homes may be waning from its peak of 2,330 square feet in 2003.

Instead, today's homeowner is willing to give up some extra space for more and higher-quality amenities, Ahluwalia said. In fact, 63 percent of the homeowners opted for the latter.

Basements are popular in the regions where they are built. And in the not-so-lucky non-basement parts of the country, homebuyers are clamoring for three-car garages.

Ahluwalia said that over the next five years he expects to see more demand for low-maintenance, natural materials, synthetic stucco, energy efficiency, and security on the outside of the home. Inside, open space, quality features, technology and special purpose rooms are on the upswing.

Open space in the entry level of the home is "really key" and there should be a free flow of traffic, he said.

Ahluwalia said the top five amenities homebuyers want in their new home are a walk-in pantry, island work area, special use storage, built-in microwave and drinking water filtration.

Other observations include:

• Some 37 percent of the respondents want their kitchens visually open to the family room with a half wall; 34 percent want it completely open.

• In the bathroom, homebuyers want a linen closet, exhaust fan, a separate shower enclosure, water temperature control, and a whirlpool tub.

• Younger buyers want the washer and dryer near the bedroom; older buyers prefer the appliances near the kitchen.

• Home owners participating in focus groups complained that builders aren't putting lights in the bedroom.

• Asked to choose between more space in the master bedroom and less in the master bath or the opposite, 69% chose more bedroom space. "Some of the master baths have been getting bigger than the bedrooms themselves," Ahluwalia said.

• Sixty-three percent said that they would not be willing to buy a home without a living room, but Ahluwalia predicted that living rooms will vanish from the average America house in the next five years or so.

Meanwhile, the Better Homes and Gardens survey says a home's indoor and outdoor livability "will play a more significant role in homes of the future than ever before. Outside areas are becoming extensions of the American home's indoor living spaces, with patios, barbecue centers, decks and other areas essentially serving as 'additional rooms.'"