Designing the Mansion Junior instead of the McMansion by Miami Residential Architect

When I was a child unlike most Cubans, my family lived in the north – Missouri, New Hampshire, Alabama, and Georgia. We would come to Miami all the time on vacation, sometimes twice a year. I used to visit all my Cuban exile relatives. Everybody lived in a modest house – 2 to 3 bedrooms, 1 to 2 bathrooms. Many had window air-conditioners in the bedrooms. The rest of the house did not have any air-conditioning at all.

As a Miami residential architect, let me tell you what these houses had in common. They were “affordable”! Nobody called them affordable, but they were built to be affordable, and in large part, the vast majority of the middle class could afford them.

In Key Biscayne the original Mackle houses from the 1950’s had 1200 square feet with 3 bedrooms and one bathroom. They were simple boxes built for the masses. In the 1960’s the Mackle houses were often expanded with an additional bedroom, bathroom, or carport. See for more on Key Biscayne history at https://keybiscayne.fl.gov/uniquely_kb/about/history_of_island_of_key_biscayne.php

As a Miami residential architect, I question what is affordable

Now we build “affordable” houses which are hardly affordable to anyone. The estimated median household income in Miami-Dade County is $71,753 [Quote] “Median households income (in 2024 dollars), 2020-2024” by U.S. Census Bureau. The standard for affordability in buying a house is 2.5 times annual income. So for Miami-Dade County the average house should cost $179,383. Does anyone build houses for this amount anymore?

The Miami-Dade County Housing Data Clearinghouse 2005 4th Quarter Bulletin stated:

In 1970, the median value of a home in Miami-Dade County was about double the median yearly household income, which at the time was $7,151. In just 30 years, by 2000, a home was valued at $124,000, nearly 3.5 times the median yearly household income. And just four years later, in 2004, a home’s value, $193,906 was more than 5 times the household yearly income of $37,025.

Miami-Dade County Today

Miami-Dade County faces a staggering affordability gap, characterized by a shortage of over 90,000 affordable rental units for households earning below 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI). With Miami now ranking as the nation's most expensive major metro area, residents face a punishing rental market where the average two-bedroom apartment requires an income of roughly $97,000 to comfortably afford. 

The median home price in Miami-Dade County is approximately $560,000 to $595,000, depending on whether you are looking at actual sales or listing prices.  According to recent data, countywide metrics reflect the following:

• Median Sold Price: $560,000

• Median Listing Price: $595,000 
  

Prices also vary significantly by location within the county:

• Miami: $625,000

• Coral Gables: $1,900,000

• Homestead: $455,000

• Miami Beach: $675,000 
  

“The median listing price stands at $595K, establishing a high-value benchmark for buyers and sellers in the county.”, as noted by Realtor.com.

The overall $560,000 to $595,000 median price represents the combined average of all home types, including single-family independent houses, townhouses, and condos. [1]

However, looking at the entire market blended together can be misleading because single-family homes and condominiums are priced very differently in South Florida. Local real estate authorities, such as the Miami Association of Realtors, typically track these segments independently: 

• Single-Family Independent Houses: The median sale price sits much higher at $695,000.

• Condos, Townhouses, and Co-ops: The median sale price is significantly lower at $431,000. 

  
  

“The median sales price for single-family homes ticked 3.7% higher to $695,000, and the median condo price slid 3.1% to $431,000.”, as noted by Miami Realtors.

What are some solutions to the residential housing crisis?

If we can’t do anything immediately to raise salaries, then let’s lower fixed costs. We need to build “green” houses which have cross-ventilation and fans. If we are going to air-condition the house, then it needs to be really efficient. 97% of heat gain is through the roof and not the walls, so for cost efficiency the majority of the insulation needs to be placed in the attic. There are many other green ideas, but to me the most important are the ones which save energy costs for the future resident. Let’s plant a few trees and maybe design a pergola for living outdoors. For new homes, the county, in its landscape code, requires a minimum of 3 trees within 20' of the house. In addition, it requires street trees. These trees will cool the house and reduce electrical bills. Let's also plant drought-resistant shrubbery that does not consume a lot of water. Winters in Miami can be very dry and to irrigate all that grass and plants can cost money.

I think it’s time to live smart. As the population ages, we don’t need so much space. People are having fewer children, so we don't really need such large houses anymore. In addition, children grow up and leave home. What are we going to do with all that square footage? Let’s think things through. Do we really have to have the McMansion or can we live with a MansionJunior? Let’s re-focus our energies and build what we can afford and what we need. We can still have the American dream, we just need to have a clear picture of what we want to afford. Happiness comes from wanting what we can have.

We can advocate for smaller lots, or different zoning, particularly in areas that have really large lots. Could we build an entire new house on the back of an existing lot? This might required buildings sewer lines throughout the county, but in the long run, this will be a cheaper solution than continuously having to replace septic tanks on an individual basis.

If you want to build a smaller, more affordable house, call me Maria Luisa Castellanos, R.A, at 305-439-7898 or email me at MLC@UnitedArchs.com. Look at our residential work here.