Is the living room as we knew it, from post-World War II, close to obsolete?

The living room has been an endangered species in American homes since it was revived in tract housing after World War II.

Living rooms and parlors were rooms of formality whose purpose was to entertain and impress visitors. The finest in furniture, rugs, art, and linens were displayed in, sometimes, stiff arrangements that reflected the times. The old saying of "look, don't touch" comes to mind.

Throughout the decades in the 1900's the living room didn't seem to change much, except perhaps in the latest "contemporary" furnishings. Their commonality was the isolated location within the home, with four walls, right off the main entrance.

Home builders since the 1990's, however, have seen the slow demise of the importance of the living room in new construction homes. New home buyers shrunk living room dimensions, even in large, upscale homes. Around 2000 new construction buyers finally said enough; why pay $300 a square foot for a room they'll never use? And, so the living room funeral march started, with not much grieving from resale buyers of these living room-less homes.

Now, the great room has replaced the living room.

Informal living styles, with eating, cooking and living spaces combined so that family members and visiting friends could congregate together through various activities are popular. Open floor plans and voluminous space were desired more by baby boomer buyers.

As one mid-twenties buyer said to me with her arms folded in front of herself while viewing a traditional living room: "It's weird, Mark, what's it for?" Having grown up in a combination kitchen, breakfast room open to a family room, this new-age buyer had never experienced the leftover formality from another time.

The living room might be dying, but there are many memorials to them around the country. They are used as work-out spaces, home offices, and craft or hobby rooms. And sometimes they stand as the home to a solitary pool table. In modern remodels -- formal living rooms have seen their walls come down, literally, to open up floor plans.

What about my own living room? It's used once a year for our holiday bash. What a waste! But then maybe the apple doesn't fall far from the tree; I can remember my mother in the 1960's, wandering into her museum (i.e. living room) once a month to sit down and bask in the room.

Real estate trend spotter, author (1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home), columnist (RealtyTimes.com) and broker (Coldwell Banker) revealed recently in an interview with The Atlanta Journal- Constitution one of his trends for 2008 that will be released in his annual, "What's In, What's Out with Home Buyers in 2008" in December. "The living room as we know it from post-World War II is pretty close to dead" Nash advised reporter Alma Hill.

Published: June 26, 2007

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Mark Nash is a Chicago-based residential real estate author, broker and columnist. Mark's analysis, tips and trends are featured in national magazines, newspapers, on network and cable television. His annual year-end forecast; "What's In, What's Out with Homebuyers" is utilized by more than 500 news organizations in North America. Mark's books include: 1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home, Real Estate A-Z for Buying & Selling a Home, Fundamentals of Marketing for Real Estate Professionals, Starting & Succeeding in Real Estate and Reaching Out: The Financial Power of Niche Marketing. He is broker associate with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage and his real estate analysis has been featured on: Bloomberg Television, CBS News, CNN, Fox News, HGTV.com, The New York Times, The Today Show, and The Washington Post. The Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. featured Nash in March 2007. You can contact Mark at .