What NOT to do on your Multi-Generational Compound

The Top 4 Mistakes People Make When Planning a Multi-Generational Compound

Designing a multi-generational compound sounds idyllic: shared land, shared memories, and a long arc of family life unfolding across a single property.

But the reality is more complicated.

Families change, needs evolve, and what feels perfectly functional today can become a friction point tomorrow.

At HUTS, we work with families who are planning for multiple generations at once, and we’ve seen the same four mistakes appear again and again.

Avoiding them early can save years of stress, unexpected cost, and awkward holiday negotiations.

1. Ignoring Age-in-Place Realities

One of the biggest mistakes is treating older family members as if they will always have the same mobility, independence, and needs they have today. A multi-generational compound should support aging gracefully, not complicate it.

That means prioritizing single-floor living, step-free entries, wider clearances, bathrooms that can be adapted over time, and the possibility of a caretaking suite or small ADU close by. These aren’t design downsides. They’re long-term resilience features that allow family members to stay connected to the land and each other without being forced into disruptive moves later.

2. Skipping Estate & Inheritance Planning

We’ve worked with more than a few clients who inherited a beloved family property and now manage it through a shared spreadsheet that tracks who gets which weekends. The kicker is that, by the third or fourth generation, the “family” is really a cluster of cousins with tenuous relationships and very different expectations. It’s sweet… until it isn’t.

The truth is that multi-generational compounds without clear ownership structures eventually create confusion. Who owns what? Who pays for improvements? What happens when a cousin wants to sell their share? If the goal is to keep the land in the family, the ownership and governance model needs to be designed just as thoughtfully as the buildings. A well-planned estate structure protects the property, preserves relationships, and avoids the administrative chaos that often surprises later generations.

3. Undersizing Systems and Not Planning for Expansion

Most families underestimate how fast a compound grows. Kids become teenagers, teenagers become adults with partners, partners become parents — and suddenly the original layout is bursting at the seams.

If you don’t think about expansion from the start, you risk building infrastructure that cannot support future phases. Septic capacity, well output, electrical service, driveway and parking layouts, and even emergency access should be sized with tomorrow in mind, not just today. It’s always cheaper and easier to build expandable systems upfront than to retrofit later.

4. Not Designing for Privacy (Now and Later)

Today, everyone gets along. Your kids run around together, cousins pile into bunk rooms, and dinner happens around one big table. But that harmony shifts as the family tree expands. Partners enter the picture. Babies arrive. Schedules diverge.

Without intentional spatial separation, the property can go from charmingly communal to uncomfortably crowded. Future-proofing means creating clear zones: quiet versus social, guest versus resident, long-term versus short-term stays. Think of each dwelling or wing as having its own “domain.” Good fences don’t make good families, but thoughtful boundaries absolutely do.

A multi-generational compound is one of the most meaningful long-term projects a family can take on. Avoiding these four pitfalls ensures the land serves everyone — gracefully, equitably, and for decades to come.

If you ever want help thinking through strategy, phasing, or design for a compound of your own, HUTS is always happy to get in the mix.