Cost Effective Designrss

  • Design Details: Sweat the Small Stuff

    The mood in the home building industry is officially glum. Buyers are playing a waiting game, and inventory isn't moving. Except in the case of that builder around the corner whose homes are being snapped up faster than free NFL tickets on Craig's List. What gives?

     
  • BD070801118L1.jpg (90)

    What (Single) Women Want

    Nancy Gear was 56 when she decided to trade in her house on a half acre outside Redding, Calif., for something smaller and closer to town. “My husband died several years ago, and I found I was spending every weekend doing yard work or housework,” says Gear, a former division director for the county ...

     
  • BD070701134L1.jpg (90)

    Affordable By Design

    Architecture, site planning, and construction pro formas can make or break the bottom line.

     
  • 0308custom01_1.jpg (90)

    Architects' Homes: Do Try This At Home

    Architects’ own houses often hold the keys to cost savings, building efficiencies, and new standards of beauty.

     
  • BD061201120L1.jpg (90)

    Just Right

    House size is a tricky thing. Some folks want a feeling of space that's expressed in volume—soaring foyers, three-car garages, and cavernous master suites come to mind. Others, to quote Goldilocks, want spaces that are “just right,” with rooms that work for their particular lifestyle.

     
  • BD061101144L5.jpg (90)

    Tight Squeeze

    It's a curious thing. At the same time that houses are getting bigger and bigger, lot sizes keep on getting smaller and smaller. Just look at the numbers: According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the average size of new homes increased from 2,095 square feet in 1992 to 2,434 square feet in 2005.