Lifestyle Builders Blog

Several years ago we saw consumers of all ages beginning to give up the formal living room.  For some, it morphed into a study; others opened it up to the first floor bedroom and used it as a private sitting room for the owner’s suite.  The first time buyer omitted it entirely from the floor plan in favor of saving money and the move up buyer moved the square footage into a fourth or fifth bedroom to serve a growing family.

What about the formal dining room?  Is it going the way of the formal living room?  The answer depends on what buyer demographic you ask.  For example, many of the first time buyers in the Gen Y group have opted for no formal dining space whatsoever.  Instead, they have chosen to have a larger great room with a generous informal dining space occurring at the kitchen.  Baby Boomers, moving down in size, usually keep the formal dining room to accommodate holiday dinners with the extended family.  In smaller condominiums targeted at first time buyers, a breakfast bar in the kitchen may be all the floor plan can accommodate.

Usually the area designated for formal dining is in the front part of the house just off the foyer but not always so.  In Florida, for example, single level plans tend to be more open and informal.  In their case, the single dining area is completely open to the kitchen, great room, and sun room and have few, if any, walls separating the spaces.  Many of the Federal and Colonial house built in the Northeast have both the formal living and dining rooms off the Great Foyer in the front of the home.

Perhaps formal dining rooms have more “staying power” today because they represent more than just a place to eat.  For many of us, there is an emotional component attached because this is the room we use to entertain family and friends.  We make fond memories on Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Birthdays by celebrating them around food served in this room designated for such “special” occasions.  Dining rooms help us commemorate the present and have a way of fondly anchoring us to our past.