Designed for the Ages-A Home for Everyone, Always

• Written on May 31, 2018 By Stanley Martin Homes

Making space when grandma and grandpa move in is not always comfortable, predictable or even feasible-especially with the twenty-something kids still living at home. But it's the reality today for an increasing number of American households.

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Two Factors. One Home.
Over the past decade, two primary factors have transformed family home dynamics: 1) millennials, those born in the early 1980s through the early 2000s, are waiting longer to leave the nest and 2) there has been an increase in grandchildren and grandparents living under the same roof (i.e., a multigenerational home).

Today, more than 22 percent of young adults ages 24-36 still live at home, which is an 11 percent increase in the past 11 years.(1)

Multigenerational living, an even bigger trend, represents a way of life for 20 percent of the U.S. population (2). Today's home dynamic is similar to 1950, when 21 percent of Americans lived in multigenerational households, compared to 12 percent in 1980. With one in five Americans reaching age 65 or older by 2030 (3), multigenerational homes are predicted to steadily increase.

Living Together-Today and Tomorrow.
Fortunately, some homebuilders are designing with more flexibility and comfort for life's ebb and flow. Stanley Martin Homes, one of the largest new-construction homebuilders in the mid-Atlantic, is now building two homes under one roof for the way homeowners live today and will for years to come.

"Our multigenerational home model allows a balance of support, independence and flexibility as homeowners' lifestyles evolve," says Michael Barrett, Stanley Martin Homes' regional president for the Washington, D.C. metro. "Not exclusive for multigenerational households, the design is ideal to comfortably accommodate live-in caretakers for young children or aging-in-place homeowners."

Features of the Stanley Martin multigenerational design, The Russell, now being offered exclusively in Northern Virginia and the D.C. metro, features a main-level apartment attached to the main home through a hallway door, and includes a separate entry door, one-car garage, full bathroom, living area, laundry room and kitchenette.

"Having a complete apartment space, private from the main home, this model gives homeowners the ability to generate rental income until they have need for the extra living quarters," Barrett adds.

References
1. Zillow (2018)
2. Pew Research Center (2018)
3. AARP Foundation (2018)

• in Northern Virginia