I’ve always enjoyed the song “Everything Old is New Again,” written by the great Australian entertainer Peter Allen. I think what I like best about it is the basic message of the song that if you wait long enough, everything comes back in style, and housing is certainly no exception.

According to a recent story in the Wall Street Journal one of the biggest trends for housing in 2014 is the “new old house.” The new old house movement is a sudden desire for homeowners to live in authentic traditional homes, new houses that replicate homes from the 19th and early 20th centuries.

According to the Journal, the new old house is a residence that is historically accurate on the outside, but built for the needs of modern Americans on the inside.

And some of those needs include top of the line kitchens and baths and open floor plans; large entries, closets, and master bedrooms; lots of kitchen counter space and smaller formal dining rooms. Buyers may be looking for the iconic wraparound front porch, but they still want their outside kitchens and hot tubs.

In addition, even though the square feet of homes were scaled back during the recession, the age of big houses has definitely returned. As reported by the Census Bureau, during the third quarter of 2013, the average size of new houses increased to a record 2,642 square feet. That being said, the new wave of home buyers may want space, but they still don’t want the McMansions popular before the financial downturn.

What this new crop of buyers are looking for are homes that are historically accurate on the outside with roof lines, windows and garages that are consistent and authentic to the era of the house. Getting the details right is important to the new old house buyer because it represents the very essence of why they want a vintage house even it it’s only a reproduction of one. These buyers feel that it’s time to get back to basics and recreate the family life that some of them grew up with or have at least heard about, like families gathering on the porch, big family dinners with multiple generations and the cozy comfortable feeling that older homes invoke.

So, if this generation of buyers want the old home feeling, why don’t they just buy one? Well many do and undertake years of renovations trying to get those 7-foot ceilings higher, and still never really get what they want. But one of the main reasons buyers are going for a new old home is location. Older homes tended to be built on main roads, close to town and on small lots, considered an advantage in the 19th century, but very far from what today’s families want.

Manatee County and the cities of Bradenton and Palmetto are offering incentives to potential buyers of historic homes if they will move them to another location in an effort to save the historic value of the homes and the history of the county. It’s a nice idea, but the average buyer will find the problems associated with saving these homes insurmountable. Never-the-less, one of the builders of new old homes said a house should be built to last at least 100 years, and a beautiful house will stay on the landscape and will be loved and taken care of.

I love the trend of new old homes and the lifestyle that I hope it encourages. When I first read about the new old house revival I had a little bit of a laugh, since a friend of mine a few years ago got back together with a college boyfriend who I instantly dubbed “the new old guy.” Who knew I was on to something then?