Is the American home SHRINKING? Average new construction has decreased by 10% since 2018 – as homeowners cut back on dining areas and bathtubs

New homes have declined in size by 10 percent over the past five years as homebuilders look for ways to make real estate more affordable for cost-constrained buyers.

According to Livabl by Zonda, an advertising platform for new homes, the average building size has shrunk to 2,420 square meters since 2018.

Housing affordability has hit a record low, with buyers facing the highest mortgage rates in more than two decades.

The average cost of a home in the US is now $348,126 ZillowThe latest data from government-backed lender Freddie Mac shows that a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage now hovers around 7.09 percent.

Increasingly, according to experts, builders are eliminating dining areas and bathtubs and reducing the size of secondary bedrooms or loft spaces in new construction homes, in order to create more affordable homes for families who feel priced out of the housing market.

Homebuyers face the highest mortgage rates since 2002 as experts warn higher lending will bring the real estate market to an abrupt halt

According to Livabl data cited by Zonda The Wall Street JournalHouse size is shrinking the most in some of the warmer real estate markets of previous years.

New-build homes in Seattle, for example, are 18 percent smaller than five years ago, according to the listing platform.

Average property sizes in Charlotte, North Carolina and San Antonio, Texas, meanwhile, have shrunk by 14 percent since 2018.

While new single-family home construction starts slowing in 2022, new home starts with fewer than three bedrooms increased 9.5 percent in the year, according to Zillow.

Builders and architects are also increasingly using shared spaces, such as jack-and-jill bathrooms, where an ensuite bathroom is shared between two connecting bedrooms.

Despite an increase in shrinking homes, the share of new housing projects priced below $400,000 has continued to fall in virtually every major housing region since 2018, said Zonda’s Livabl.

Analysis by John Burns Research and Consulting shows that the cost of owning a home rose 72 percent for first-time buyers between February 2020 and May this year.

And buyers are still paying more per square foot, experts warn. In 2021 and 2022, the research group said, the inflation-adjusted cost per square foot in the US will increase by almost 4 percent.

It comes at a time when skyrocketing mortgage rates are causing Americans to look for increasingly creative ways to get up the real estate ladder.

The so-called “tiny home” movement has exploded in popularity online, with major stores like Home Depot selling a range of homes for buyers to build themselves.

A 30-square-foot “Sea Breeze” home is currently listed on Home Depot’s website for $24,000

The online listing claims the structure is made of “high-quality steel to ensure long-lasting use” and is “termite and shrink resistant.”

On its website, the retailer describes the products — which range in price from $4,000 to $40,000 — as “architecturally designed to provide additional space outside your home for personal use.”

However, social media users have noted that the buildings themselves could suffice as homes.

A 30-square-foot “Sea Breeze” building is currently listed on Home Depot’s website for $24,000.

While pre-assembled steel panels are delivered to the customer, buyers are responsible for installing the plumbing and electrical to make it a fully functional home.