What do women want?

Joel Koyama, Star Tribune

Abundant storage. The rear foyer has cubbies for coats and shoes and drop zones for mail, laptops and cell phones to keep clutter out of the kitchen. The washer and dryer are out of sight.

Some Twin Cities home builders are showcasing their efforts to answer that question with seven houses in the Parade of Homes Spring Preview, which begins Saturday.

By LYNN UNDERWOOD, Star Tribune

Last update: February 7, 2008 - 5:45 PM

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In 2003, Linda Reimer read a Forbes magazine article about Lowe's Home Improvement Center's success in targeting women as customers. It sparked for her the realization that home builders need to cater more to female buyers.

"We held female focus groups and they tore our home plans apart," said Reimer, president of Design Basics, an Omaha-based home plan design company.

"We were designing from a man's point of view, focusing on square footage and style of home rather than how you live in it."

In 2006, Reimer started the Woman-Centric Matters certification training program for small, established local custom home-building companies.

Five Minnesota companies have since enrolled in that program and built seven "woman-centric" model homes -- ranging from a $229,999 townhouse in Rogers to an $857,000, four-bedroom, two-story house in Lakeville, which will be introduced during the Spring Parade of Homes that starts today.

While these houses don't look radically different from traditional suburban homes, the concept focuses on creating four "lifestyle zones" aimed at meeting women's needs.

"Women want drop zones, a place to de-stress, flexible rooms and open spaces for entertaining," Reimer said.

And although she expected it, she has not heard complaints of sexism. "It's not about feminism; it's about capitalism," she said. "It's to help builders sell homes."

In addition to the Twin Cities builders enrolled in the program, 70 builders nationwide are licensed to market and construct Woman-Centric homes.

With new home permits down 33 percent last year, builders hope that identifying their homes as woman-focused will help them stand out in a sluggish market.

Helene Severson of Lakeville-based Severson Homes built a two-story house in Lakeville using a floor plan approved by the Woman-Centric program. She's participating in large part to help set her company apart from the competition.

"I think it will give us an edge and increase our sales," she said. "It's a new way of giving home buyers what they want."

N.I.H. Homes in Elk River has sold two Woman-Centric homes. "The design contributed to the sale," said Jeremy Skogquist, vice president. "It makes the home more livable."

Jeremiah Rygh, a sales specialist for Custom One Homes in Cottage Grove, said that part of the reason for the concept's success is that it puts more focus on the home-buying experience.

Custom One's models, for example, have a coffee bar, cookies and lotion samples. The company will eventually host get-to-know-the-neighbors parties.

With all the focus on members of the female persuasion, do men feel neglected in the home-buying process?

"We still show them the great storage in the garage," said Rygh.

Lynn Underwood • 612-673-7619