Ours is 5 bedrooms, 3500 sq ft above ground and then a full finished basement. It's awesome but I would never, ever want a bigger home. I wouldn't be able to maintain a bigger one. We have 3 kids, a dedicated playroom, and a master bedroom. My office is in our living room, but I'm a fed so can't telework anymore anyways.

Dh and I lived here before kids and we joke about it now. We had whole sections of our house that we just closed off and didn't use. Everything is getting used now. We'd love another full bathroom upstairs.

We've a large home but hope to downsize and move back to a smaller condo like we had as a couple.

Also some people can be clean and efficient in smaller space but others need space for hoarding and mess.

Anonymous wrote:We moved from a 2600 sq ft house to a 4000 sq ft house (there are 5 of us and a big dog) and it has been amazing. I found this interesting since there have been recent articles out about how smaller homes lead to happier lives. I can see the value of smaller homes in terms of not being house poor and embracing the size house you have. However I think 4000 sq ft is really a perfect size house for a family of 5. I wouldn't want anything bigger. I definitely don't see the value of a 10,000+ sq ft house.

For a single person, 600-1000 sq ft. For a couple 800-1500. For a 2+2 family with a pet, 2000-3000 sq ft. For a family of 6+, 3500 sq ft. Any more is just a want, not a need.

Family of 3, couple + a teen.

I prefer a smaller house, no open floor plan. I like not having extra rooms that we inevitably fill up - been there and didn’t like it.

Current house is 1700 sf plus 1 car garage and perfect. Previous house was 2400 plus 2.5 car garage.

2000-2500 sqft. No more. No less.

Anonymous wrote:We have 5 people in a 2400 sq ft home and it's totally fine. Our house has an incredibly efficient layout and I think that helps a lot. I've toured many 3-4k sq ft homes that felt less livable than our house, as they waste space in huge landings, weirdly shaped bathrooms, office nooks that you'd never use, etc. There are lots of stupid layouts out there.

This. There’s nothing innovative about our layout. It’s a classic 80s colonial. But the layout is so darn logical. All rectangles that fit efficiently into each other. This wall is perfectly sized for a couch. That corner fits a TV. Etc., ETC. I couldn’t believe the stupid McMansion we toured that had kids’ rooms that were 16’ long. It could have housed the Duggars, but the living and dining room were tiny.

Anonymous wrote:2,000 or less with a separate small ADU for home office/studio space.

lol or a duplex with a big yard. It’s less that we need more living space as I’d prefer a private space for work and having a guest room could be nice.

2,000 or less with a separate small ADU for home office/studio space.

Anonymous wrote:For a family size of n, the calculation is 500*n+500. So for 5 people, you would need at at least 3000 sq feet.

This aligns with my intuition. We have four people in 3,000, but it feels a bit too large. Yes, we’ve filled it with stuff, but it’s a lot of upkeep. I’d prefer something a bit smaller.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are 7 in a 3 BR ranch. Looking for a 2600 sq ft house with a better layout.

What don't you like about the ranch style house?

The 3 BRs in our particular layout are clustered at the end of the hallway. So I’m on top of my kids where they’d have more breathing room if we were at opposite ends of a second floor.

My kids are 3, 5, 9, 11 and 13. We are never lonely, that’s for sure. I like older homes, especially 4 squares

Anonymous wrote:Ours is listed at 1,550 sq ft, but I don’t think that includes the lower level. It was a good size for 3 of us, but we could use some things like larger closets, a covered space for two cars, and a larger master bathroom. Now that there are two of us in the house we could easily go smaller, especially with better storage space.

Family of 3 in a 1500 sq ft, 3 bed, 3.5 bath row house. There is definitely no extra space, but we are also not falling over each other.

We have 5 people in a 2400 sq ft home and it's totally fine. Our house has an incredibly efficient layout and I think that helps a lot. I've toured many 3-4k sq ft homes that felt less livable than our house, as they waste space in huge landings, weirdly shaped bathrooms, office nooks that you'd never use, etc. There are lots of stupid layouts out there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People are like gas - we expand to fill the space we’re in.

This. What a weird post.

It’s a good analogy. we are all like gas 😂😂

Anonymous wrote:We moved from a 2600 sq ft house to a 4000 sq ft house (there are 5 of us and a big dog) and it has been amazing. I found this interesting since there have been recent articles out about how smaller homes lead to happier lives. I can see the value of smaller homes in terms of not being house poor and embracing the size house you have. However I think 4000 sq ft is really a perfect size house for a family of 5. I wouldn't want anything bigger. I definitely don't see the value of a 10,000+ sq ft house.

Congratulations! You and your house and life are perfect.