Call it cocooning, flexible work options or a desire to reconnect, families are spending more time at home. Responding to this trend, home builders are redesigning floor plans with family friendly features that range from bonus rooms, master retreats and home offices to expanded storage, larger garages and convertible lofts.

In San Diego, the main hurdle in catering to the family market is space — the No. 1 requested feature. “I’ve never heard a family say they don’t need more space,” says Scott Sandstrom, division president of the Trimark Pacific Homes San Diego Division. The Construction Industry Research Board reports home size in the mid-’80s averaged 1,500 square feet nationally, while today the average is 2,000 square feet.

Yet San Diego land is priced at a premium. While land set aside for open space grows, average lot sizes shrink. As a result, local developers are creating innovative floor plans that give buyers what they want while trying to keep prices manageable. “This whole issue is changing the design standards,” points out Andrew Murphy, president of the San Diego Division of Fieldstone Communities. “We’re having to put larger homes on smaller lots and that’s driving the need for different floor plan styles.”

Even though the housing market in San Diego County is tight, catering to a buyer’s requirements is still critical. “As an industry, we need to keep in constant awareness of what our buyers want,” notes Michael Harris, director of marketing for KB Home. “We want them to not only buy their first home with us, but their second as well. We’re creating customer loyalty.”

To keep pace with the growing needs of families, developers continue to make changes.

The Great Room Returns

In the 1980s and 1990s, living rooms and dining rooms were the largest in the house. Over the last few years, these rooms have shrunk while the kitchen and family room — places families congregate — have expanded. It’s a return to the great room trend of the 1970s. In a world of multi-tasking, families can be together as they watch TV, cook dinner, do homework or eat a meal.

But more formal rooms aren’t disappearing. “People still want a token living room and formal dining room,” says Murphy. “They want to have a place for the holidays, but the family room and kitchen are being exaggerated as a reflection of the family’s needs.”

Utilizing Flexible Space

Today’s family is constantly in flux. The baby who needs a playroom today will all too soon be a teenager who wants a pool table. As baby boomers age, they not only think about college funds, but about aging parents as well as their own retirement plans. It’s difficult for one house to accommodate these changing requirements.

Once upon a time, home buyers would purchase a home for each stage in their lives. But with interest rates so low and home prices skyrocketing, many shoppers want a home for the long run. “People are looking ahead and establishing their roots,” says Sandy Perlatti, senior vice president of marketing for Corky McMillin Cos. in San Diego. “Our research shows that where people once stayed in a home three to five years, now they’re planning on being there 10 to 15 years. They want a floor plan that grows with them.”

Developers match those needs by creating rooms with multiple uses. For instance, a downstairs bedroom can be a home office, a nanny suite or a bedroom for an elderly relative or a grown child. A loft can serve as a playroom, a study area, a computer center, a game room or an extra family room for the teens.

The goal is to be able to use the room in a variety of methods without expensive remodeling. “Remodeling is a big industry right now,” says Harris. “But buyers can minimize that by buying a flexible house to begin with.”

Finding New Space

Developers are taking the idea of flexible space one step further by finding new spaces in the home. For instance, Fieldstone Communities’ full-size attic in its Chula Vista BridgePark project provides 500 square feet of extra living space. “A third story doesn’t add to the land, concrete or PR costs,” explains Murphy, who estimates the cost per square foot at $70 to $80 rather than $150. “It just adds a little height to the structure with a steeper pitched roof that doesn’t seem out of place in a neighborhood of one or two-story houses.”

Other options in new homes include master retreats, which can serve as a nursery, home office, exercise room or an extra sitting room. Lofts and bonus rooms can be used in a variety of ways, including as a bedroom (with some remodeling). A large garage can accommodate a hobby or game area. Larger bedrooms can become dorm rooms for multiple children, leaving another room available as a playroom.

Carving space out of thin air isn’t impossible when designers get rid of the cathedral ceilings popular in the last two decades. “They’re dramatic and nice, but not very practical,” notes Harris. “That area is great for a loft or bonus room.”

Technology Takes Root

Today’s busy families organize their time with PDAs, cell phones and instant messaging. Why should their home be any less technologically equipped? Parents making more time for their families by telecommuting can’t substitute a computer nook or kitchen table for an office. An energy-efficient home office has become an essential part of any home design.

Security is another area where developers cater to families. Cameras scanning the front and back yards serve to keep an eye out for intruders as well as the kids. “They’re like a baby monitor on steroids,” jokes Sandstrom.

Location Is Central

Neighborhoods are a selling point with families. “Busy families want to be close to things they need,” says Joyce Mason, vice president of Pardee Homes. “They need good schools, parks and shopping. Plus, home isn’t just a retreat, it’s a place to bring people in and see other people in the neighborhood.”

Several developers have created residential environments to attract families. The EastLake Communities, where the slogan is “live, work, shop and play,” has become what the I-15 corridor was during the 1980s and 1990s, wooing families with more affordable prices, excellent schools, convenient shopping and larger floor plans.

Affordability Still Rules

The issue of affordability is still a major one for families. DataQuick Information Services puts the median home price in San Diego County at $390,000. Many developers are aware of the need to control selling prices, despite the steep costs of building in San Diego. For instance, Hallmark Communities does its own lot building, grading and mapping to keep costs down. “But land costs are driving the costs of housing,” says Tom Archbold, vice president of sales and marketing. “Price all boils down to what you pay for the land, so we weed out land that’s not affordable. We’re running out of land and we’ve got to go where the deals are.”

That explains the surge of building in the South County and North County in the last five years. The Real Estate Institute at the University of San Diego reports that most housing units in the last decade were added in North County (Carlsbad, Oceanside and San Marcos) and Chula Vista.

However, there is a type of buyer who isn’t as concerned with price. Move-up buyers, who sold their homes at a profit, see the low interest rates as a time of opportunity. Many are buying the larger properties they couldn’t afford before or didn’t know they’d require when they first bought. “We’ve seen a lot of movement from entry level homes to larger houses as people are trading up,” notes Archbold. “We’ve found that people will always improve their living space as much as they can.”

That’s what local builders want to hear. By listening to what customers want, they can provide not only family friendly designs, but homes that appeal to a wide market. “Every family’s need is different,” says Mason. “If a builder can make a home flexible, then it can accommodate everyone.”