[jaydubya2]

I’d like to add formal dining rooms. We rarely use ours. The dinette is our main eating area.

[old and tired]

I’d like to add formal dining rooms. We rarely use ours.

Every home I've ever lived in has had a formal dining room, and I've lived in some pretty modest row homes. Over the years, our dining rooms have been spare bedrooms, storage rooms, offices, play rooms, and only very rarely, dining rooms. Somebody must use them though because you never see houses being built without them.

[olivia3boys]

Years ago we turned our “dining room” into a 5th bedroom (we have 4 kids) and have never regreted it (except Christmas Eve).

We also turned our “living room” into a computer room with 3 desks and 3 computers. The future holds every kid doing assignments on computers and we don’t allow them to be in their rooms. So essentially our “living room” serves as a library/study center.

I live in CA (SF Bay Area), the most expensive area in the nation, and we make every sq ft count. We have less than 2000 sq ft and everyone has his/her own room and we are comfortable. Useless rooms are a luxury. I know many Californians who have turned living rooms into game rooms with a pool table (we have no basements in CA).