A great deal of the region's housing is recent. In Eastvale, the 159-acre Eastvale Square project is planned for nearly 2,000 homes; in Corona, the 275-acre Bedford community is planned for more than 1,600, and recent single-family plans in Eastvale have run from about 2,260 to 2,900 square feet, with three to five bedrooms. The square footage is there. Storage designed around the people who live in it usually is not.
The Inland Empire also holds some of Southern California's oldest houses. Redlands counts more than 4,000 structures at least 50 years old, including Queen Anne Victorians such as the Edwards Mansion, built in 1890. Homes of that age were designed when wardrobes and armoires held the clothes, so their closets tend to be small and oddly shaped.
- New builds: walk-ins with drawers, double-hang and shoe shelving, plus pantry and laundry storage for busy households.
- Lofts and bonus rooms: a wall bed with cabinetry lets one room be an office and a guest room.
- Older homes: reach-ins planned to the inch around sloped ceilings and awkward corners.
- Garages: garage cabinets with doors keep dust off tools and sports gear through inland heat waves, when advisories can forecast highs of 100 degrees or more.