Remaking McMansions

It's one segment of a national remodeling market that's on the mend: Homeowner expenditures on upgrades are projected to increase 3.8 percent from 2013 to about $120 billion this year, according to an analysis by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).

"The housing boom in the late '90s was a substantial increase to the total housing stock, so a lot of the remodeling may be to houses that are only 10 or 20 years old," said Stephen Melman, NAHB's director of economic services.

While nationwide the average new single-family home size continues to grow (it hit a high of 2,607 square feet last year after dipping during the recession), some area architects and builders are finding that the taste for large houses has waned.

In Montgomery County, for example, the median size of new homes has declined over the last decade, and more apartments are being built, county planner Brian O'Leary said.

Richard Buchanan of Archer Buchanan Architecture in West Chester said his customers are seeking smaller but still well-made homes, and eschewing some of the grander affectations of the McMansion - like those double-height spaces.

He said customers are often interested in dividing that echo chamber into two separate stories, which are more affordable to heat and offer better sound insulation between bedrooms and living areas.

"We build a floor, and add a bedroom and a bath over the family room, and everything makes sense," he said, "because you've returned to a more traditional pattern of use between private sleeping quarters and more public spaces."

Mark Fox, of Gardner/Fox Associates in Bryn Mawr, said he has also cut a few two-story spaces down to size. While renovations in newer homes are still a small fraction of his business, he said there is demand for certain improvements.

"It's upgrading: The builder put in cheap cabinets and appliances, and we're remodeling those. I haven't had a lot of additions on these homes; they're big enough as it is."

Bathroom remodels were the most-requested renovation, according to the NAHB member survey. Fox said he's also found that many McMansion-dwellers want to update master bathrooms that are fairly new but already dated.

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Remaking McMansions