McMansions, Like Everything Else, Are Shrinking

Confirming what industry professionals have long suspected, builders and buyers alike are foregoing super-sized “McMansions” for smaller, more economical homes, the Wall Street Journal reports. The average home started in 2008’s third quarter was 2,438 square feet, down from 2,629 in the second quarter. The median home size also declined, to 2,090 square feet in the third quarter, from 2,291 in the second.

A Better Homes and Gardens survey found 32% of people expect their next home to be smaller than their current space, and a trade group found 88% of builders are planning to build a larger share of smaller homes. Many are giving up oversized homes boasting unused space for smaller, more affordable abodes in which they use the floor plan more economically. (More housing market stories.)