Two-Story Foyer Trend Stabilize in 2024

In 2024, nearly a quarter of new homes were built with a two-story foyer, virtually unchanged from 2023, according to data obtained from the Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction (SOC) and tabulated by NAHB. The market share of two-story foyers has been generally trending downward over the past eight years, with most new single-family homes being built without a two-story foyer nationally and regionally.  

According to the Census, a two-story foyer is defined as the entranceway inside the front door of a house and has a ceiling that is at the level of the second-floor ceiling. In the United States, the share of new homes with two-story foyers slightly fell from 24.9% to 24.6% in 2024, the lowest level since NAHB began tracking this data in 2017. This feature is often considered energy-inefficient and is seen as undesirable by both builders and buyers. The declining trend is in line with NAHB’s What Home Buyer’s Really Want, in which recent and prospective buyers rated their preference for 18 specialty rooms. The study found that two-story entry foyers was one of the least desired specialty rooms, with 32% buyers likely to reject a potential home with this feature, and only 13% seeing it as an essential/must-have feature.

Though the national decline continued, regional patterns were mixed compared to the broader declines seen in 2023. Three of the nine divisions saw a decline in 2024, including the West North Central, West South Central, and Pacific. The West North Central division reversed the notable increase seen in 2023, decreasing from 26.9% to 21.5%. Meanwhile, shares in both the West South Central and Pacific fell to their lowest levels since NAHB began tracking this data in 2017.

Meanwhile, shares of two-story foyers rose in the other six divisions. New England rebounded from 17.5% to 23.2%, after declining in 2023. The Middle Atlantic continued its upward trend reaching 35.3%, the highest share since 2017. The East South Central and Mountain divisions also posted solid gains, increasing by 3.6 and 3.5 percentage points respectively. The South Atlantic and East North Central divisions saw modest increases, remaining relatively stable in 2024.