When I moved to the Atlanta suburbs in 2019, I couldn't help but notice an overwhelming sea of white houses. Block after block, development after development—pristine white exteriors dominated the landscape. I wasn't alone in this observation. That same year, color expert Maria Killam wrote in her blog, "Drive around any lovely neighborhood or new build site, and you'll probably notice a lot of white and cream houses popping up. This trend is definitely taking over neighbourhoods all across North America."
This phenomenon was recently explored in more depth by journalist Dan Kois in his Slate article, "How White Houses Took Over America." As architectural critic Kate Wagner explained in the piece, these homes are "designed from the inside out, in order to achieve specific social functions." With their entertainment suites, great rooms, and restaurant-sized kitchens, they "interiorize amenities that you would once have had in social settings." But perhaps most tellingly, Wagner noted, "We now see houses primarily as vehicles for investment. The best way to do that is if everything looks the same."