Supersize Me!! We’re All from Texas Now!

“Supersize me” has applications beyond fast food. Recently, I shopped for dining room furniture and found chairs bigger. In the armed “Captains” chair, I felt a bit like Lily Tomlin’s “Edith Ann.” It set me thinking about the trend toward larger in everything from fast food meals to homes.

Here in the Wilmington and Hampstead, NC area, our market is a long way from recovery but new construction is readily available. Our local production builders survived and, today, have their pick of large blocks of developed lots in failed neighborhoods. Builders build what buyer’s want and, today, in Wilmington, that’s BIG homes! Regardless of family size, large homes are in demand.

Buyers are buying as much home as affordable and 3000+ sq ft is becoming the norm. Admittedly, this is not new. In Atlanta, where I worked for a builder, big homes had potential to become even bigger with finished basements. Delivering after closing gifts, I was surprised how often homes were sparely furnished and conversation echoed in big empty rooms.

We too, had a large home in Atlanta - 3400 sq ft plus unfinished basement. Two people rambled around in 5 BR, 4 BA plus LR, DR and FR. Although we furnished every room, some I rarely entered except to dust and I learned baths that aren't used still get dirty. When we moved, I made a hundred trips from the basement with “stuff” I should have already taken to Goodwill. In Wilmington, we downsized to 2700 sq ft and, thankfully, there are no basements but Atlanta taught me the correlation between home size and a homeowner’s commitment of time and elbow grease. Atlanta also taught me “super-sized” homes cost more to update in terms of paint, carpet, fixtures and mechanicals because there is more of everything. Plus, utilities, insurance and taxes also reflect home size.

When our economy crashed, I placed my bets on future buyers moving toward smaller, more economical homes. And, the National Association of Home Builders announced home sizes trended downward last year.

In the greater Wilmington and Hampstead, NC area, today’s trend is still “super-sized” homes. It’s possible this trend of buying BIG is an overreaction. Perhaps, buyers are buying large fearing they’ll never see these prices again. It’s also possible builders didn’t get the memo. I say that in jest but builders will not retool their home portfolios without clear signals of buyer dissatisfaction. They’ll keep building what sells.

“Super-sizing” is our current cultural norm extending beyond fast food to every aspect of our lives. I know Texans boast that everything is bigger there and, today, we’re all from Texas now!