Architects say homes aren't getting any smaller, but they are more open and accessible with a greater use of informal spaces as empty-nest baby boomers and young adults drive the form and function demand for housing.

In its first-ever quarterly "Home Design Trends Survey" the American Institute of Architects gathered a panel of 600 architecture firms specializing in the residential real estate sector and they discovered business isn't so bad.

They credit the strong housing market with boosting the business of 44 percent of the panel members by more than 5 percent during the first quarter of 2005. Only 10 percent reported declines in billings.

Growing demand is strongest for architects in the additions and alterations in single-family homes business, followed by condo and townhome developments and remodeling kitchen and baths in existing homes. Business is slower in move-up homes, custom luxury homes, second/vacation homes and more affordable first-time buyer digs.

It's a good bet where business is lax customers are often financially too tapped to hire an architect, for better or for worse, spending what they have on a general contractor with design skills.

What do consumers want architects to create?

"There has been a significant shift in consumer preference from formal living and dining rooms towards more 'informal spaces' featuring an open space layout of family rooms, dens, and activity rooms," said AIA chief economist Kermit Baker.

That's in line with what new home builders report is at the top of new home buyers' list of options today.

The National Association of Home Builders' latest research said buyers want kitchens fully, partially or visually open to the family room.

"People don't want to be partitioned off into the kitchen," said Melissa Morman, chief operating officer of HomeBuilderSite.com, a consortium of 35 home builders across the nation.

"It's the open concept. It goes back to the whole living experience of wanting to cook and socialize at the same time and to do that with the family and people you entertain," Morman added.

A kitchen with an open floor plan is essential for today's homemaker, singles and couples with or without children.

"The kitchen has become the absolute center of the home. When you entertain you can't get people out of the kitchen. You have to have somewhere nearby to put them and you can't be shut off in an enclosed room," said Dena Menthis, new home expert from Novato, CA and co-author of the "Homebuyer's Kit" (Dearborn Trade, $15.95).

AIA's additional findings about consumers' desires, include:

• Accessibility: 62 percent of firms reported that homes are becoming more accessible with features such as wider hallways, fewer steps, and the growing popularity of single-floor design. That actually goes against the grain of home builders' findings -- dwindling land supplies are forcing them to build up with more two-story homes on smaller lots.

• Informal space: 66 percent of firms reported that 'informal space' is increasing, along with a trend towards an open space layout in the home. It's not surprising that lofts are increasingly popular.

• Home size: 40 percent of firms reported square footage of homes is still increasing, while only 13 percent report declines. There are mixed reports on this issue as high-density housing does much better where land is scarce.

• Home layout: 49 percent of firms reported that finished basements and attics are increasing in popularity, as owners of older homes are looking to increase their living space.

• Outdoors: 48 percent of firms reported upscale landscaping is on the increase, as is the popularity of outdoor living space with features such as decks, porches, and patios and small courtyards instead of large backyards.

Published: July 1, 2005

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Broderick Perkins parlayed a career in old-school journalism into a contemporary digital news service that really hits home. The award-winning consumer journalist, originally from Wilmington, DE, is founder, publisher and executive editor of the bootstrap DeadlineNews Group, a Silicon Valley-based editorial content and consulting service specializing in residential real estate, consumer news and related editorial consulting services. The DeadlineNews Group includes the Web site, DeadlineNews.Com, offering real estate editorial content and consulting services, and its back shop, the Deadline Newsroom, an open house on news that really hits home. Perkins obtained his formal journalism education from University of Delaware and a journalism boot camp, the Institute of Journalism Education at the University of California-Berkeley. He went on to 20 years of service as a daily newspaper journalist at the Wilmington, DE News Journal and San Jose, CA Mercury News. Perkins covered housing on the San Jose Mercury News reporting team which earned a General News Reporting Pulitzer Prize in 1989 for coverage of the Loma Prieta earthquake. He has also produced real estate, consumer and small business content for the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, RealtyTimes.com, Nolo.com, Better Homes and Gardens, the National Association of Realtors, Homestore/Move and Intuit/Quicken among more than three dozen publications. In addition to managing the DeadlineNews Group, Perkins most recently served as chief editorial consultant for "Nolo's Essential Guide To Buying Your First Home" (Nolo $24.99) and writes real estate television scripts for RealtyTimes.com.