Cheaply made? I beg to differ. Kentlands is just a different types of suburban community that is quite popular because everything one typically needs is within walking distance rather than being spread out as it is in the rest of surburbia. Their size is actually closer to the norm of most houses built before 1960 as people have learned the added space is often not necessary. That is not to imply new construction houses like the one you have aren't being built, they are in less urban areas. It is really a matter of a difference in taste.

Exactly the opposite where I live. Every new house built in the last 10 years or so is about 5000sf or more. All the small houses are 50 to 100 years old, back when a family with six kids could live in a 500 sf house and feel privileged to even own a house, even if it didn't have seven bathrooms.

Land is too expensive these days to build houses on large lots. Particularly in towns and cities.

Most people now would rather have a bigger house than a large lot.

older homes are actually made smaller lol. the good thing about smaller places is there is less to heat and cool / providing there's adequate insulation.

So I live here in Montgomery County (one of the richest county's in the country) within Gaithersburg, Maryland. So there's this neighborhood called, Kentlands, that's just a few minutes from where I live. But the houses there look so cheaply made, barely have a front or back yard. And the roads there are only 3 lanes long, instead of four, like older neighborhoods. Also, they're really expensive and the houses are big from inside because the houses lack a front and back yard.

So why is this?