The new paradigms of living: what young people really look for in a home
Millennials and Generation Z approach living with radically different paradigms compared to previous generations. They are not only looking for square meters and location, but for flexible spaces, natural materials, and verifiable indoor health conditions. The rigid, compartmentalised home with mono-functional rooms belongs to an outdated model. What is emerging is a demand for “liquid” architecture: movable walls, spaces that change function, certified air quality, and traceable natural materials. New generations want homes that evolve with them, not static containers to endure.
We discussed this with Mario Abis, sociologist and expert in housing transformations.
FROM OWNERSHIP TO MOBILITY: THE HOME IS NO LONGER A FINAL DESTINATION
Previous generations built their identity through residential stability. Young people today seem to have a completely different relationship with domestic space. Is this an adaptation to precarity or a real paradigm shift?
The relationship of young people with housing is radically new. Once, the home was the final stage of a life path linked to work, family, and stability. It was tied to ownership and “putting down roots”.
Today, values have changed: mobility, flexibility, and the ability to move and change. The home is no longer central to life plans but becomes one piece of a fluid existence. It must be light, non-binding, because it is never definitive — like clothing: you wear it until it represents you, then you choose another.
For young people, the home is a space to
interpret and inhabit. If I change city, I change home — or I transform it according to how I feel psychologically and existentially. The home has become a mirror of inner state, not a fixed container to endure.
THE MULTI-FUNCTIONAL HOME: WHEN EVERY SPACE BECOMES EVERYTHING
The pandemic accelerated the trend of the home as office, gym, study space, and social hub. How does domestic space change when it must contain all dimensions of life?
The pandemic made visible a transformation already underway. What was once secondary — a desk corner, a study area — became essential. The living room becomes an office, which becomes a living space, which becomes a dining area. Functions overlap within a space that must contain everything.
The kitchen was the pioneer of this transformation: from a place for cooking to a space of social interaction and shared time. Today, the same process affects the entire home. For young people this means liquid structures: movable panels, open environments with small, flexible objects. A home that does not impose rigid functions but adapts to its inhabitants.
Do new generations’ strong focus on sustainability reflect genuine awareness or a consumption trend?
On this point we must be clear: it is substance, not fashion. Young people — especially between 18 and 23 — are genuinely interested in sustainability. The “trend” dimension belonged more to previous generations.
A central theme is energy: how it is produced, consumed, and its cost. New generations carefully observe the energy performance of a home. Then there is wood, lightness, the relationship with the outdoors, and everything connected to nature. And yes, they are willing to pay more for a sustainable home.
But there is another aspect: this attention to living values extends into public spaces as well. For young people, it is important to “inhabit” sustainably everywhere — in places of study, leisure, sport, and mobility. Everything
becomes habitat — a diffused home that generates more or less well-being depending on how it is designed.
THE ROLE OF CONSTRUCTION INNOVATION
Abis’ analysis outlines a profound shift: new generations are looking for adaptable platforms, not definitive homes. Flexible spaces, natural materials, and verifiable energy performance.
Construction systems like Ekoru — modular timber structures, certified materials, custom production, industrial engineering — align with these paradigms: spatial flexibility, absence of VOCs, and guaranteed air quality. When technology aligns with the values of new generations, the home becomes what young people are looking for: a space that grows together with those who live in it.