Dahlin Group's John Thatch presents a house design concept that can serve multiple generations as a family moves through life.

In smaller homes, a typical great room can become uncomfortably tight. The One-and-One Great Room by Dale Patton of Danielian Associates not only feels large, it lives large.

Phil Kean's design concept for the New American Home features movable glass panels and a large lanai to maximize outdoor living.

Sarah Susanka's latest Not So Big House project places the kitchen and eating area adjacent to the front porch, making the outdoor space a natural extension of the kitchen’s habitable area.

Jeff Larsen of MVE & Partners presents a rowhouse concept with an interlocking or keyed garage configuration that achieves higher densities than conventional rear-loaded rowhouses.

This plan by Art Danielian of Danielian Associates Architecture + Planning is designed to serve multi-generational living with its detached “casita” unit.

Bassenian Lagoni's Aram Bassenian presents a house plan that solves some of the design tradeoffs typical in great room homes.

Longtime marketer and home-building industry consultant John Martin has seen many housing cycles: good community development and design innovation, he says, have always been the path back. Can design innovation do it again?

A survey of more than 20,000 recent home shoppers offers some surprising insights into the psyche of the modern-day buyer.