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And they keep getting bigger. The size of the average house has more than doubled since the 1950s. In 2019, the average size of a new single-family home was 240 square meters (2,584 square feet), according to the [136]National Association of Homebuilders. Deeply held feelings about one's home may be rooted in America's homesteading, pioneering past. "The appeal of the house for Americans, going back into the 20th century, was that it signified autonomy. You know, every home is a castle," says Louis Hyman, an economic historian and assistant professor at Cornell University. "So, it has these echoes of signifying independence and achievement." Suburban house The average newly built house is now twice as big as the average new home in 1945. The federal government has pushed the idea that a nation of homeowners is ideal. The 1934 establishment of the [137]Federal Housing Administration revolutionized home ownership. By creating the financial mortgaging system that Americans still use today, the FHA made home buying more accessible for millions of people. At the time, most Americans rented. Homeownership stood at 40% in 1934. By 2001, the figure had risen to 68%. In the 1940s, President Franklin D. Roosevelt equated homeownership with citizenship, saying that a "nation of homeowners, of people who own a real share in their own land, is unconquerable." Today, the [138]homeownership rate in the United States stands at around 65%. The ability to invest in their homes has helped mask economic stagnation for many Americans. Although unemployment is near a record low, [139]real wages --the number of goods and services that can be bought with money earned -- haven't budged in decades for U.S. workers. "As Americans find that their wages are stagnating after the 1970s, they're able to make money by investing in houses," Hyman says. "The houses become a way for average Americans to get financial leverage, which can multiply their returns. There's no other way for Americans to get access to financial leverage outside of houses. You can't do it in the stock market if you're just a normal person, and so this is a way to basically speculate in housing." McMansion For many Americans, a large home is not only a status symbol, but also an investment. For some Americans, owning a big home is a status symbol, physical proof that they've succeeded in life. "This kind of classical example of the big suburban home has been a very powerful idea for many, many decades now," says architectural historian William Richards. "People sometimes want specific rooms that have specific functions --a mud room; everybody gets their own bedroom; there's no bunking up; a dedicated laundry room." And spacious houses are more financially attainable than they used to be. "In the design and construction, there are greater efficiencies now for all sorts of reasons so that it's less expensive to build a bigger house now," Richards says. But do bigger houses, sometimes called McMansions, make people happier? Not according to a [140]recent paper that Clément Bellet, now an adjunct professor at INSEAD, a European business school, wrote as a postdoctoral fellow. "Despite a major upscaling of single-family houses since 1980, house satisfaction has remained steady in American suburbs," Bellet writes in the report. People living in larger houses, however, do tend to be more satisfied with their property, according to Bellet, but that satisfaction plunges when even more massive houses are built nearby. Related Stories Graphic: CashNetUSA [141]All About America [142]Mythical (But Possibly Real) Creatures That Roam the USA What legendary beasts and monsters in American folklore reveal abut US culture Default Author Profile By [143]Dora Mekouar Tue, 10/29/2019 - 08:25 A new line of modern homes inspired by the work of architect Frank Lloyd Wright, and featuring the design principles of Wright's Usonian houses. (Courtesy of Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation) [144]All About America [145]What US Home Architecture Tells Us About America Like America itself, US residential styles are a hodgepodge of elements from different countries Default Author Profile By [146]Dora Mekouar Thu, 02/21/2019 - 16:00 Frank Lloyd Wright wrote, "[Taliesin] was set so sun came through the openings into every room sometime during the day. Walls opened everywhere to views as windows swung out above the tree-tops..." (Courtesy Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation/Andrew Pielage) [147]All About America [148]Bold Thinking US Architect Frank Lloyd Wright Receives Honor for the Ages 8 buildings designed by iconic American architect are declared World Heritage sites Default Author Profile By [149]Dora Mekouar Wed, 08/14/2019 - 14:49 Laid off workers in Louisiana line up for job searches after the steel mill where they worked unexpectedly shut down, Oct. 1, 2019. [150]All About America [151]Why Prime-Age US Men Are Working Less Labor force participation rates of males between the ages of 25 to 54 has steadily fallen since the 1960s Default Author Profile By [152]Dora Mekouar Tue, 10/22/2019 - 17:26 Default Author Profile Written By [153]Dora Mekouar (Submit) (Submit) (Submit) (Submit) (Submit) [154]Twitter [155]Instagram [156]Facebook [157]YouTube [158]RSS Search VOA News ____________________ (Submit) Search * [159]United States [160]US Politics + [161]Immigration + [162]All About America + [163]Silicon Valley and Technology * World News [164]Africa + [165]The Americas + [166]East Asia Pacific + [167]Europe + [168]Middle East + [169]South & Central Asia * Sections [170]Arts & Culture + [171]Day in Photos + [172]Economy & Business + [173]Extremism Watch + [174]Press Freedom + [175]Science & Health + [176]VOA StudentU + [177]VOA Connect * Voice of America [178]About VOA + [179]Contact VOA + [180]Terms of Use and Privacy Notice + [181]Get Our 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