Death of the Dining Room Makes Way for Pulte Planning Centers in New Home Designs

BLOOMFIELD HILLS, Mich., Dec. 5, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Say goodbye to the formal dining and living spaces, and hello to planning centers, oversized pantries and impressive mudrooms as standard items in a new home.

In response to the housing and lifestyle needs of today's modern families, Pulte Homes recently debut new Life-Tested® designs across the country.

"Consumer trends are heading toward living designs that are much more open and flowing as opposed to fixed and formal," said Scott Thomas, director of product development for Pulte Homes. "This lends itself to more flexible spaces in a new home instead of seldom used formal areas such as living and dining rooms. 

"Our Life-Tested® designs aim to create a house that's more flexible for families to use - whether it's taking in older parents, converting bedrooms when the children leave home or creating a special place for yoga or meditation or a scrapbooking or gaming room. As the plans become more open they become more accepting of the uses to which the homeowner assigns rather than trying to force their life into a 'pre-determined' space," added Thomas.

The Life-Tested® designs are a direct result of consumer research and feedback from families who really live in their homes.

"The new designs are timely in this housing environment," said Deborah Meyer, senior vice president and chief marketing officer for Pulte Homes. "The Life-Tested® designs can eliminate resale as a competitor because they offer something you can't get in older homes. Additionally, by consolidating space and eliminating items consumers really didn't want, the new design is less costly to build and provides greater value to homebuyers."

The Pulte Planning Center Clears Away the Kitchen Clutter
One of the most popular new spaces in a new Pulte home is the Pulte Planning Center. And its location in the home is what has homeowners really excited.

"As many families experience, the heartbeat of a home is the kitchen. Today's families don't limit the kitchen to just cooking and eating," says Ian Wild, director of research for Pulte Homes. "It's where kids do their homework and mom browses web sites on her iPad. The kitchen is utilized as a dining area, study, and entertainment room all in one."

As part of our consumer research, we realized that families wanted and needed a space where they could do all those things, but be near each other. Homes by Pulte now include the Pulte Planning Center. It is conveniently located just off the kitchen and is a dedicated space to pay bills, do homework, and organize the family's busy schedule.  Many families suggested this as the computer room or charging room for phones, iPods, lap tops and more while others have said this is a good second office.

Formal Spaces Give Way to Drop Zones, New Areas
According to Thomas, while consumers are moving away from formal areas, such as dining and living areas, they do not necessarily want a smaller home. With that in mind, Pulte Homes reallocated the space used for living and dining rooms to create more flex and practical spaces, such as the expanded mudrooms and the Pulte Planning Center.

Focus groups revealed that the garage is becoming the home's main entry and exit for many families. Since laundry rooms are too small and most people use the back entry to their homes, PulteGroup has created the drop zone. These are bigger versions of the popular mudrooms, with drop zones and individual stalls and benches so children can quickly put on and take off coats, hats, and boots, or hang up their backpacks while parents can drop-off their briefcase and purses, and/or place the mail in a basket.

Other byproducts of the reallocated space include:

• Flex space on the main level that can be used as a yoga space, meditation room, scrapbooking room, or gaming room (video and 3D)
• Larger informal kitchen and dining area that can accommodate an 8-10 person table (so homeowners can still host guests, especially during holidays)
• Larger kitchen pantry and other storage areas
• Right-sized dining rooms for those who still request them

Thomas also noted that the company has reallocated space on the second level by creating right-sized master suites. This allows the company to offer floor plans that include:

• Flex space on the second level that can be used for a kid zone/game room or home theater
• Walk-in closets in ancillary bedrooms
• An additional bathroom on the second level (could be a Jack & Jill or private as part of a guest suite)

For more information about Life-Tested® homes, visit www.pulte.com.

About Pulte Homes
Communities built by Pulte Homes are designed to deliver the best quality of life for home owners. By combining innovative Life-Tested® designs, an unwavering commitment to quality and attention to detail, Pulte Homes is the nation's premier home brand for upwardly mobile home buyers. As the most awarded homebuilder in customer satisfaction, Pulte Homes has consistently ranked among top home builders in third-party customer satisfaction studies.  For more information about Pulte Homes, visit www.pulte.com.

SOURCE Pulte Homes