Missing Middle Housing

Missing Middle Housing consists of multi-unit housing types such as duplexes, fourplexes, bungalow courts, and mansion apartments that are not bigger than a large house, that are integrated throughout most walkable Pre-1940s neighborhoods, often integrated into blocks with primarily single-family homes, and that provide diverse housing choices and generate enough density to support transit and locally-serving commercial amenities. Although many of these are a common feature in pre-war building stocks, these housing types have become much less common (hence the “missing”). The term was coined by architect and urban planner Daniel Parolek, Principal and Founder of Opticos Design, Inc.

The American Association for Retired Persons recently released a new report, which showed that more and more, Americans want to “age in place,” and need easy access to services and amenities available in walkable, urban, transit-oriented communities.

Millennials have also been shown to drive less, and seek housing choices in walkable neighborhoods close to transit. The numbers of automobile miles traveled increased each year between 1946 and 2004; today Americans drive less than 2004, and no more per person than in 1996. The decline in driving is most striking among young people aged 16 to 34, who drove 23% fewer miles on average in 2009 than their age group did in 2001.

“Millennials prefer amenity rich housing choices. These amenities are within walking distance,” presented Howard Ways of the Redevelopment Authority of Prince George’s County in Washington D.C. “They prefer smaller units with open floor plans and are not interested in yard work at all.”

“There’s a convergence of the demand created by Baby Boomers who are moving back, not just into city centers but into surrounding single-family neighborhoods, and the Millennials who want walkable urban living. The demand is just going to continue to grow," said Dan Parolek in an article on the National Association of Realtors website. “I find in my development work my primary buyers are empty nester Boomers who are selling the big house, the big lot, the kids are grown and gone, and they’re looking for more lifestyle freedom,” said Linda of The Cottage Company in the same article.

"The structure of the traditional North American suburb has failed to live up to the expectations of many who settled in suburban neighbourhoods, and new ways are being sought to re-engineer suburban living and re-build those settlement patterns." — Innovations in Small-scale Living from North America, Small Housing B.C.

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Wikipedia