I would like to see a floor plan of a new build that doesn't have a formal living room. Especially outside the beltway.

Anonymous wrote:Am I the only one who thinks the kitchen/living room combination just feels like living in a studio apt?

If your house is small

Am I the only one who thinks the kitchen/living room combination just feels like living in a studio apt?

I think what it shows is that when DC residents claim to prefer choppy old houses with no flow, they are probably lying through their teeth. They prefer the location, and don't have enough money for the interior they'd actually prefer.

Anonymous wrote:So long as it meets their needs do people really care about a custom interior? It's the exteriors that make me sad because they just build these track homes with only a few variations in the exterior.

umm yeh interior and exterior is important

So long as it meets their needs do people really care about a custom interior? It's the exteriors that make me sad because they just build these track homes with only a few variations in the exterior.

I think this is right except that people still want formal dining areas rather than "casual dining area". To me, that is a separate dining room that is formally appointed. Absolutely agree on the family center, and then a bonus would be an additional formal living room in the higher end homes.

Rather than new builds, it's the remodeled older homes where you get this; particularly the traditional exterior.

When we built our new house we skipped the formal living room and made it an office.

We do have a great room, dining room, over-sized kitchen and eat in kitchen area all w/ 10 foot ceilings.

Yep. I think that's exactly what I want in a house. Don't care if there's a formal living room, but I do want a separate dining room and breakfast room. Family room can be 2 stories.

Anonymous wrote:Why did you use the word "dc" in your subject line?

The article talks about new construction in oakton, McLean, Rockville, Reston, Howard county, silver spring, and my perennial favorite, LOUDON effing county.

DC is generally understood to be a metropolitan area. Do you not comprehend that?

Anonymous wrote:Why did you use the word "dc" in your subject line?

The article talks about new construction in oakton, McLean, Rockville, Reston, Howard county, silver spring, and my perennial favorite, LOUDON effing county.

That's dc

I feel cheated. You tricked me into reading that article

Why did you use the word "dc" in your subject line?

The article talks about new construction in oakton, McLean, Rockville, Reston, Howard county, silver spring, and my perennial favorite, LOUDON effing county.

This isn't exactly news. Model homes from the early 2000's incorporated this basic design.

Don't believe the DCUM hype. This is what is "in"

"If you’ve toured a newly built model home recently, you may have noticed a few things missing: a formal living room or the once-popular two-story family room.

Today’s new homes are a bit more practical and reflect the way people live: in their “family center” — an oversized, open great room with a center island kitchen, a casual dining area and a family room."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/realestate/open-floor-plans-are-prevalent-in-new-home-designs/2013/12/05/6ddd3de0-47d8-11e3-bf0c-cebf37c6f484_story.html