I think they are very functional...I like the look of them when they are empty and when one is expecting alot of visitos and one know that it will be used...simply put it into another room...say a bedroom or tucked out of the way.  I must say, I do not like them full of jackets and in the open.  I like to see a vintage hat or one umbrella displayed on them when in the open. But it sure beats having 20 coats laying on your bed when you are intertaining!

I think that it depends on the coat rack itself. If it is a simple modern looking coat rack then I think people are more likely to keep it less cluttered. I agree with the earlier post that a coat rack full of jackets in the open is not pretty and it has the potential to look messy. Coat racks can be functional if you make sure it doesn't get cluttered.

Growing up in a household of a large family, a cloak-tree (or coat-tree or..... coat rack as you refer it to)  was a necessity.  Though it was made of solid mahogony and served its purpose; it was definitely an eyesore with its mound of outerwear.   Do I have one, the answer is NO.  If I remember correctly it was not unsual  on occasion it would  go into a 'fallen timber mode' and tip over on you unexpectedly.  Quite a frightening experience if a child.  SMILES!  

They are functional clutter, much like shoe racks.  I personally keep all my coats and shoes in the closet out of sight.  I think in a household with kids, they are a necessity as kids won't bother with the whole exercise of opening the closet to put their shoes and coats away.  I remember when I was a kid we had a big wooden coat rack. And we piled our coats and backpacks and anything else we could hang on it.  It kept my Dad happy because our mess was contained to that singular area.  However, there were many occassions of "fallen timber" (thanks MrsBen), which of course my Dad had to deal with. :)

They is u..g..l..y..and they don't got no alibi...

Stick em in the closet. If you have guests take it out so they can feel free to hang thier coats.

I think they're too much of an eye sore to be left out at all times. No matter how cool they look.

They are clutter inducing! My parents have one in their kitchen, which was supposed to be for company's coats. They now have about 10 of their own coats. Rather then putting them away in a closet, they use to rack.

Our antique coat rack (we do call it a coat tree too)  is right beside the front door, with an emergency umbrella only left on it! I cant stand when my husband actually uses it for his coat or ball cap.I prefer that the coat rack is used just for  hanging holiday decorations from, so as soon as you walk into our home...you know what season it is!

I personally do not use a coat rack at home as it does tend to add clutter and I have a hallway closet. When it's just me, I drape my coat over a chair in the kitchen. When I have guests, all the coats go into the hallway closet. I think coat racks are more functional for businesses like restaurants or offices. You can put your coat there in plain sight and not worry about it at the back of your chair. A coat may sometimes fall off the chair and now with winter, people wear longer coats and then it doesn't have to touch the floor when seated at a restaurant. Also too, you don't have to worry about waiters/waitresses serving food and accidentally spilling something on your coat or people walking by and rubbing up against it or knocking it off your chair.

A coat rack is not my first choice of coat storage, I'll admit, but if you haven't got anywhere else to put coats in your entryway it's a much better solution than having a pile of coats on the floor! We live in an apartment that failed to take Canadian Winters into account- the closet is all the way across the front room! So we've got a very modern, stylish, coat rack by our front door- and since it's normally just me and my fiance we generally only have one or two coats on it at a time. The rule is, if you haven't worn it in two days you have to put it in the closet!