Springs-area families like their homes big, census data reveal

Colorado Springs-area residents like their houses big.

One-third of the occupied houses here have at least four bedrooms, which ranks the Springs as No. 4 in the nation when it comes to cities with the highest percentage of homes with four or more bedrooms.

The top three metro areas? Provo, Ogden and Salt Lake City.

Even renters, who typically live in smaller houses, are more likely to have lots of indoor space in the Colorado Springs area. Among renteroccupied housing units here, 11 percent have at least four bedrooms, about double the national proportion.

The figures come from a new analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2005 American Community Survey, released Tuesday. The survey is based on a small sample of the 111 million occupied housing units nationwide, including stand-alone houses and apartment complexes. The survey estimates 215,414 occupied housing units in El Paso County.

Why do local homeowners here like their bedrooms?

“They have a lot of kids,” said Rhonda McDonald, president of CreekStone Homes in Colorado Springs.

But big homes aren’t just about big families. Many homeowners like to use a bedroom for a study or office.

“There’s a lot of entrepreneurial people,” McDonald said. “A lot of people need that work space, either the husband or the wife work out of the home. Or they work out of the house part time and go to the office.”

Changing demographics and lifestyle choices also are at the heart of the move to more bedrooms, said George Hess, owner of Vantage Homes in Colorado Springs.

The Springs is home to many younger people with growing families, he said.

Also, many of today’s homes are built with a single great room, instead of separate family and living rooms, Hess said. Families then look to use secondary space — such as an extra bedroom — as a family work center, an exercise room or even a hobby room, he said.

Utah, home of the cities ranked No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3 for percentage of big homes, is home to many members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which values big families.

In much of the country, the growth in big houses is fueled by suburban homebuyers seeking luxury, rather than big families needing space, said Gopal Ahluwalia, vice president of economic research at the National Association of Home Builders.

“They are buying for lifestyle,” he said.

Nationally, the average household size has shrunk slightly since 1990, to about 2.6 people. Meanwhile, the average new house grew by nearly 400 square feet, to 2,434 square feet.

Most big homes in the U.S. are going up in the suburbs, contributing to sprawl and congestion, said Vicky Markham, director of the Center for Environment and Population.

Federal officials use the figures to help determine where to distribute more than $200 billion annually to state and local governments.

Utah led the states in 2005 for occupied houses with four bedrooms or more, with 39 percent in that category. Maryland ranked second at 28 percent, and Colorado was third at 26 percent. Also helping Colorado’s ranking were Boulder, Fort Collins and Denver, with each having just over 27 percent of houses with four or more bedrooms.

Among other Census statistics for El Paso County:

- About 10 percent of housing units had one bedroom, and about 66 percent had two or three bedrooms.

- About a third of housing units were built since 1990, and about 15 percent were built since 2000.

- An estimated 5.5 percent of housing units here were built in 1939 or earlier, compared with 14.3 percent nationwide.

- An estimated 21 percent of the households had three or more vehicles available.

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