The first line in Lennar’s description of its revolutionary NextGen product—designed to allow multiple generations to live comfortably under one roof— is, “Imagine having both privacy and togetherness.” Architect Howard Perlman hatched the idea for the product that is now available in hundreds of the Miami-based big builder’s communities across the country.

“We went down to Phoenix, and Lennar is one of the stops that we made,” Perlman recalls of his meeting with Lennar division president Alan Jones. “When we finished our presentation, Alan said, ‘My motherin- law lives with us, I know exactly what you are talking about.’ He said, ‘We’re going to do this!’”

Bringing the home-within-a-home idea to market was not always easy. “The biggest obstacle was the zoning ordinances. When we talked to a mayor or councilman, they loved the idea but said that the zoning was for single-family and they all had different definitions of that,” Perlman says. “Couldn’t have two entrances, couldn’t be metered separately. We had to deal with each municipality individually. There was no easy way to manage it in one place.”

Despite the roadblocks and the housing market collapse, “Lennar was able to go out and brand it, and they did it right,” says Perlman.

“I remember Alan calling me to say that they sold their first NextGen, and he was so happy and excited about it,” Perlman says. “Then he called a little later and said they sold their 10th. Then a little while later and said they sold their 100th. They were promoting it and they were behind it and this was in the depth of the recession. All of the sales staff selling NextGen was excited despite the recession and what was going on around them with other builders. They were bubbly and happy, and they felt like they had the next best thing.”