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McMansions Are Back And Are Bigger Than Ever
There was a small ray of hope just after the Lehman collapse that one of the most deplorable characteristics of US society - the relentless urge to build massive McMansions (funding questions aside) - was fading. Alas, as the Census Bureau today confirmed, that normalization in the innate desire for bigger, bigger, bigger not only did not go away but is now back with a bang.
According to just released data, both the median and average size of a new single-family home built in 2013 hit new all time highs of 2,384 and 2,598 square feet respectively.
And while it is known that in absolute number terms the total number of new home sales is still a fraction of what it was before the crisis, the one strata of new home sales which appears to not only not have been impacted but is openly flourishing once more, are the same McMansions which cater to the New Normal uberwealthy (which incidentally are the same as the Old Normal uberwealthy, only wealthier) and which for many symbolize America's unbridled greed for mega housing no matter the cost.

Not surprisingly, as size has increased so has price: in 2013 both the average and median price for sold new single-family homes hit record highs of $324,000 and $268,900.
The data broken down by region reveals something unexpected: after nearly two decades of supremacy for the Northeast in having the largest new homes, for the bast couple of years the region where the largest homes are built is the South.
While historically in the past the need for bigger housing could be explained away with the increase in the size of the US household, this is no longer the case, and as we showed last week, household formation in the US has cratered, so the only logical explanation for this latest push to build ever bigger houses is a simple one: size matters.
Furthermore it turns out it is not only size that matters but amenities. As the chart below shows, virtually all newly-built houses have A/C, increasingly more have 4 or more bedrooms, 3 or more car garages, 2 or more stories, patios and porches (at the expense of decks), and other critical luxuries.
In conclusion it is clear that the desire for McMansions has not gone away, at least not among those who can afford them. For everyone else who can't afford a mega home or any home for that matter: good luck renting Blackstone's McApartment.
For those curious for more, here is a snapshot of the typical characteristics of all 2013 new housing courtesy of the Census Bureau:
Of the 569,000 single-family homes completed in 2013:
- 518,000 had air-conditioning.
- 59,000 had two or fewer bedrooms and 251,000 had four bedrooms or more.
- 27,000 had one and one-half bathrooms or less, whereas 188,000 homes had three or more bathrooms.
- 166,000 had a full or partial basement, while 91,000 had a crawl space, and 312,000 had a slab or other type of foundation.
- 305,000 had two or more stories.
- 333,000 had a forced-air furnace and 216,000 had a heat pump as the primary heating system.
- 347,000 had a heating system powered by gas and 214,000 had a heating system powered by electricity.
The average single-family house completed was 2,598 square feet.
Of the 307,000 multifamily units started in 2013, 23,000 were age-restricted.
Of the 195,000 multifamily units completed in 2013:
- 14,000 were age-restricted.
- 129,000 were heated with electricity and 64,000 were heated with gas.
- 91,000 had two or more bathrooms.
- 79,000 had one bedroom and 27,000 had three or more bedrooms.
The average square footage of multifamily units built for rent was 1,082.
Of the 10,000 multifamily buildings completed in 2013:
- 5,000 had one or two floors.
- 6,000 used electricity as the primary heating fuel.
Of the 429,000 single-family homes sold in 2013:
- 120,000 used vinyl siding as the principle type of exterior wall material, while only 12,000 used wood.
- 300,000 had 2-car garages, whereas 98,000 had garages for three cars or more.
- 207,000 had one fireplace and 20,000 had two or more fireplaces.
The average sales price of new single-family homes sold was $324,500, compared with the average price of $292,200 in 2012.
The average price per square foot for new single-family homes sold was $93.70.
The average new single-family home sold was built on a lot of 15,456 square feet.
91,000 contractor-built single-family homes were started in 2013.
The average contract price was $298,000.
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Today JUNE 2, 2014 Ukrainian jet bombed the center of East Ukrainian city Luhansk killing at least 5 civilians
See how American Democracy looks in reality to the people that it is forced upon
VERY GRAPHIC
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0k2OgkFmLM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z57nwcJzd84
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnjKg4m_eNQ
https://pp.vk.me/c540103/c7006/v7006489/1401e/XI5FljoiUeA.jpg
This deserves a news post, please.
And if you were to scroll down, you'd find it: Photos From The Ukraine Civil War: Casualties Reported In City Of Lugansk After Fighter Jet Attack
I know. But that one is more fighting footage and not very shocking. The international public needs to be brought to its senses by their shock and awe. Thanks anyway.
Yeah, if only it worked that way.
Infotainment to desensitize the masses.
"Swallowing half an hour before closing time, that second dose of soma had raised a quite impenetrable wall between the actual universe and their minds."
removed
so what is the ukraine situation REALLY over? pipelines to europe for oil and gas?
See Brzezinski's "Grand Chessboard" for details.
THANKS
Not even bothering to see it was posted hours ago is just trifflin'
Fuck... I skipped over the VERY GRAPHIC text.
Do a google image search for 'depleted uranium in Iraq'.
Notice the babies. Rumor is, Bush did that on behalf of the good citizens of America.
Enjoy your freedom.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xJJRnBZxaM
You get down-voted for trying to derail the topic at hand.
Man, that house pictured on the main page brings back some memories.
Gene, you still work for the Bluth's from time to time?
There's money in the banana stand.
Last time I went by the house it had a bunch of sex offenders on the block.
2,500 squares is hardly in the realm of 'mansion', I had that in a 3 bedroom 2 bath.
Just think, if that house was in London, it would be a steal at $10m.
All that liquidity has to go into something. Bigger house means bigger utilities especially in real hot and cold places, and bigger property taxes. Gore had a mansion up in Tennessee and his Green Bill was pretty big if I remember correctly while he was telling all of us to cut back.
By the way that park wedding for his daughter's second marriage was all propaganda. Trust me, there was a lavish wedding somewhere in Italy or the Swiss Alps at an exclusive hotel away from prying eyes.
Yeh, Mr. Global Warming had a 10,000 sf home.
To be fair, most of the square footage was for his ego.
Well, he did invent the internet.
And I have my card board box down by the river
But it is a NEW card board box
Just think of all the money you're saving on insurance, vehicle registration, fuel, and maintenance by not living in a van.
Al's energy use from his Tennessee mansion:
"Armed with Gore's utility bills for the last two years, the Tennessee Center for Policy Research charged Monday that the gas and electric bills for the former vice president's 20-room home and pool house devoured nearly 221,000 kilowatt-hours in 2006, more than 20 times the national average of 10,656 kilowatt-hours"
"$29,268 in gas and electric bills for the Gores in 2006, $31,512 in 2005"
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/GlobalWarming/story?id=2906888&page=1
And one can also conclude by the size of his huge ass, his food bill is also very large.
The sheeple are just dumb.
The ENTIRE POINT of a high-celing stone "McMansion" here in the south is that it stays cool in the summer WITHOUT AC, you open the huge front doors and the huge rear glass doors to let the brezzes through, turn on the AC only on hot nights. This is what I do down here in S FL actually (No, I don't live in a McMansion) I use breezes and natrual cover to keep my place cool and only use AC on hot nights.
Your not supposded to seal the place up like a drum and central AC the whole place to 75 degrees, and, you should not have to if the place was built right! Some people just love giving money to FPL I guess.
I agree, and that 2500 number is the average. THe median is a better measure since one Al Gore sized house throws off the Average. A 2300 sq ft home is quite comfortable, and large by 1960 standards I suppose, back when most tract homes were 1600-1800 sq feet and built in Ranch style. Modern homes added another 600-800 square feet? Thats a SINGLE 8x10 room folks. Or if you insist on using the avergage its a 10x10 room ..Be that a formal living room, a office/study or an extra bedroom, that hardly moves it into "mansion" territory. My first home was 1800 finished sq feet. I finished the basement while I lived there - then it was 2700 sqaure feet. Guess I lived in a mansion and never knew it. How deplorable of me.
Seriously what makes the phenomenon awful is the attached 3 Car garage, the boring cookie cutter nature of the homes, the 4000 Sq foot lot they squeeze it on, and the ridiculous asking price that has most spending 40% of thier income on a mortgage - usually justified so they can be near a "good" govt school indoctrination center. But we all know why the prices are going up, and its not because the homes are getting much bigger, and its not because they are getting much better ( A/C, insulation etc) - but because the value of the dollar itself is falling, and a house is the first thing they want you to buy with the freshly printed money they gave to the banks
Ummm....10X10 is only 100 square feet.
Forget the Ferengi at the door. That's one butt-ugly house.
It's the damn average.
Depends where you live - in NYC a mansion is defined as anything that sells for more than $1 million. A 700 sq Manhattan studio apartment qualifies as a mansion.
+1
Here in the ATL burbs in-fill development with $600-800K homes is back like herpes. We're talking 5000-6000 sq ft homes smashed into the smallest possible lots. Totally normal for two half-acre mid-century ranches to be knocked down and and 4 or even 5 McMansions sprout in their place.
Need somewhere for the "Housewives" to live.
Doing the same thing where I am (central Florida). $500k+ right down the road from me. Big houses crammed in like sardines. Started to really get going again late last year.
Place is starting to look and feel like Palm Beach to Miami... one big, endless sprawl of housing and retail with paralyzing traffic. Zombie central when the S hits the F.
LOL Nothing says "Look at what a success I am!" like a 5000 sq ft house on 1/8 of an acre where if you flop your dick out the bathroom window you cold cock your neighbor and she gets a black eye.
It AMAZES me the amount people will pay for status whoring in a Chinese drywall disposable albatross house in a HOA that would make Kim Jong uncomfortable.
Winning! You simple ****s.
+infinity for the asswipes who live such lives. Fuck em. Fuck em all.
But the 2014 peso is worth 1/10th the 1978 peso. After adjusting for inflation, housing is really not all that different.
Housing bubble 2.0.
but this is soviet proporganda ,and if it isn't its ameircan. everything is proporganda . there is no truth.
And the majority of them will be on quarter acre lots. Try not to feel like you are in a bee colony.
It's okay. Most people have a hive mentality anyhow!
So if I decide to waiver my chance to be one of the hive
Will I choose water over wine and hold my own and drive, oh oh
It's driven me before, it seems to be the way
That everyone else get around
Lately, I'm beginning to find that when I drive myself, my light is found
Drive, Incubus
nice. You know what I listened to the other day? An old one. 12 minute long song. Dire Straights - Telegraph Road. Give it a whirl. Let me know what you think.
I'll dial it up - thanks!
The live version on "Money for Nothin'" is awesome.
Back in the late 80's I did landscaping work on McMansions in a suburb of MD.
These were $500,000 brick colonials near a golf course (built on an old dairy farm) and the houses were maybe 12 feet apart, directly parallel, windows facing windows.
They were so close the plants on the sides of the houses never got any direct sunlight.
In the city, the technical term for that space is an "alley."
I have no idea why anyone would want to pay out the ass to get out of the city only to live 12 feet from the asshole next door whose dog always shits in your yard.
...and they are still made out of sticks (step up from adobe) like they never heard about the three pigs.
The new architecture will carve out social centers amid dense urban housing and agriculture. We will not have a hydrogen economy at the end of the oil age. We will need to scale back our ambitions and be more efficient in all aspects of our lives.
If you want to be a good neighbor in the post industial society, develop a useful skill like gardening or knitting.
We are gonna need a lot of knitters down here in San Diego.
blacksmith or maybe gunsmith...
yes, in my County (Frederick Co. Md) the taxes are based on living space. There are thousands of these Agenda 21 properties that are 4000 sq ft. plus built on less than 0.25 acre lot in an HOA "Community". Most of the single family homes are going for $550k-$650k. These fukking dumbass buyers are paying hundreds of thousands of dollars more than the construction costs of the properties. Most of these people are pompous consumers who drive Mercedes & BMW's and are probably up to their eyeballs in debt.
My wife and I rented a townhome in this community for a year, I was appalled and sickened by how these people lived their lives. We are under contract on a home about 10 miles from our rental. Our new home is on 1.5 acres, has garden beds and a solar heating system intact. It's about 2000 sq ft. and the taxes are half of what these knuckleheads in the HOA community pay. Our mortgage payment will probably be less than those idiots car payments.
I am looking at unrestricted land north of Atlanta in the hills nearing NC state line. 4 to 10 acres anywhere from 10k to 50k depending on river/views... I could care less about the views but a river on the property would be ideal. Will build myself something over the next few years or so. Or if the SHTF at least I have somewhere to get out of the cities.
There is some nice property up north past Canton.
I'd try to buy a place on/near Warwoman Creek, if only for the name.
EPA is laying claim to all the waterways and ponds in the country, and is laying restrictions down on shitloads of properties. Beware - those totalitarian EPA fucks are the ones who taser anyone who disagree with their dictates.
As I've mentioned here before, I've been watching GA-TN-NC property in that area just because it is so hard to hide weak demand and low values -- the market is very shallow. Current owners are nearing panic stage for property they thought would either produce income, or they'd be able to retire into. The latter is off the table as they realize they will likely never retire and hence cannot move away from employment centers like ATL or CLT. In the meantime, props have not been kept up and many are likely worth much less than tax value. And in just the past week I've come across a new phenom -- bank-owned HALF-FINISHED props. How that came to pass I don't know, without a CoOccupancy, who ever OK'd the trust? But we are talking fire-sales.
Land might still be an option, but I'd also consider bringing cash to the table for 2 or 3 beatup, adjacent props and seeing if you can use someone's jam to your advantage. They are on the hook for those tax bills come October. Good luck.
I really have tried to stay away from anything with buildings on it. Just unrestricted land with water on it or maybe a well. I have no problem working with my hands clearing trees or brush and would rather do the labor than spend the money if you know what I mean. I will build my own structure and take as long as I need to do it. I work from home as it is now and am not tied to anywhere as far as emloyment centers go. There are a lot of forclosed property out there with no structures on them.
The 2 or 3 adjacent properties is an interesting thought. I have seen ads for acerage where they say more is available. They are probably splitting up larger tracts.
yea but this is like going to the best restaurant for recognition not Mc Donalds for savings dough
"...the only logical explanation for this latest push to build ever bigger houses is a simple one: size matters."
Not true. The explanation is simply that the flood of CHEAP "MONEY" has to go somewhere...
I hate visiting people in McMansion Land. Huge cathedral ceilings seem garish. Palatial dining rooms used as storage and obviously only used at thanksgiving. A big screen tv in every room including the bathroom ( for god sake why? So we won't miss anything going to the bathroom...huh?) Postage stamp back yards with absolutely no privacy from the neighbors. No places for kids to play. Not they would be allowed to anyway being so busy with organized sports. Garages stuffed to the brim with crap.
I can't wait to go home to my little farm on the dirt road. It's funny when they visit us. What the hell do you do here? Why don't you have a TV? The quiet makes their skin crawl and they are afraid to go out because they may see a snake.
Miffed;-)
A client of mine claimed to have 17 TVs with one in the master bath. He was a nice caring fellow. Odd.
lol. We took our dining room table, turned it sideways and use it as a desk with a computer. Behind it is a piano now that I inherented recently (an old upright, nothing fancy). Office/guest room was converted to a music room (drums/guitars/etc.)... both my kids play in school. Our back yard is turned in a garden - and my garage a workshop for repairing whatever breaks (friends come over frequently for help with cars, welding, repairs of household things, etc.). The Joneses in my neightborhood think we are nuts.
The lot my house is on is many, many times the size of the house itself. I did it that way on purpose. I guess you have to be a "doomer" to understand that...
Having space and the ability to what you want on your property is really nice for sure. I live in a neighborhood that is not an HOA, but there are some rules (deed restrictions). So, I have to keep the front in compliance. The rear faces nobody. I am free to play with that. I dream of more property and no rules though.
Hell, every time a politician comes on TV they see a snake, should be used to that.
Everyone likes nice things. I mean why not, unless of course you have to pay for them and then things might look a little different. Working in and around construction most of my life I see two pretty distinct homeowners. Those that spend for the things they like and those who spend for what they think everyone else likes. The first group tends to invest in high quality architecture and furnishings while the second group buys what they think everyone else likes and to be sure, puts it on display where everyone can see it. Houses oversized on their lots so they look even bigger and landscaping removed or contrasted to show off more of the house. People less shallow put their houses where they can't be seen as readily. I live within 15 miles of a metropolitan center on 50 acres and no one can see my home unless they are invited or fly over it. I don't give a shit if anyone knows what I have or where I live and hope few do. My home is for me.
Personally I'm glad large homes are selling again. While I love where I live it is expensive and I won't be able to work much longer and still afford the property taxes. I was afraid I might have to die there, which wouldn't be all that bad (but I'm afraid my life insurance may be looking a bit smart to my wife soon) if I can leave on my own terms.
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Prov%203:13-Prov%203:20&vers...
My 'formal dining room' has been converted into a grow space where I started tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, etc. Later on I'll be rooting cuttings for ornamentals... hopefully there will be a market for them since many of the McMansions around here have no landscaping or dead landscaping. Apparently the owners can't be bothered to water the plants.
Making me laugh sooo hard! It's just like that all around where I grew up in CT, including my sister's house when she was married. Too funny!
There's state park called Cherry Springs 3 hours away from me.
It's a dark sky site and the star field is spectacular; image search it on google.
I'd rather have 15 acres of desert under a primordial starry sky than a 500K McMansion on 1/8 an acre.
Bring a tent, canteen and a sense of wonder. All others - stay home.
MM, Always enjoy your posts, the humor, insight and tough-ass sensitivity.
For many years, I lived at the Top-of-The-Food-Chain Homeless in Greater LA. Four types of homeless. (1) Shopping Carters (2) Forest Dwellers: living in the cloverleafs and shrubs around the WLA VA. (3) Squatters in shelters (4) Rolling Homeless. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, living quietly in their vans and campers on the quieter city streets. I lived feet from my work, in my VW van, in Santa Monica. SM is very tolerant of the homeless; people say too much so.
Now living with family or friends as full time couch surfer and colorful oddball. Be as helpful as possible BUT Always move before you wear out your welcome, is my mantra and code.
Oh yes, the Southwest desert is still pretty wild and free. You just drive off the road in your ancient (mine) SUV, but be careful of turtles. Heard that Bundy Ranch is always looking for ranch hands.
AC
Tx alex. I think colorful oddball is a fine profession. I am a bit of one myself but I must admit I envy your freedom. Between 8 and 11 I lived on Zuma Beach in Malibu. One of the happiest carefree times of my life. But in the 70s Malibu was a lazy unpretentious town. Though I miss the beach, I couldn't put up with the ostentatious phoniness so prevalent in Cali coastal towns now even if I had the money.
Miffed;-)
Its the phones in the crappers ,and bathrooms that get me .
Maybe they don't do that anymore with everyone having cells.
Last place I would take mine.
The author has a real bug up his ass about McMansions. It's not my choice in neighborhoods, but other people can do what they want.
Oh yeah, and if the average price was 324,500 and the average square footage is 2598, how do you get an average price per foot of $93.70? Quick math off the top of my head is about $124/foot.
No one has said anything about restricting a fool and his money from being parted; you like your 500K hive cell, have at it.
Those of us who rejected our programming will make mock of you, though.
value of land is different for each property.
that's a major factor affecting "per sq.ft" pricing models.
Yea, but, It kinda does hurt me though. It hurts me directly.
I live very frugually, but, the slightest home improvement project give me sticker shock at the cost of materials for the simplest upgrades. My electricty is going up 5% this year due to demand on the grid for people that AC their fucking McMansions all day long so it's nice and cool when they get home, blah blah blah.
People being wasteful and extravagent drives up the prices for everyone, we all suffer.
we may be seeing the peak here, as there are now McNugget homes you can buy, like 800 sq ft that are self-contained. Seen them on the news. Sell for around $30K and some are easily moved to a new location. If you don't mind tight quarters, this could be for you.
But it means people (some) are looking to downsize quite literally.
That trend is early - but might very well be the future. Makes alot of sense.
The sheeple NEED big houses because junior and juniorette are still living at home. Why form new households when there's still plenty of space for the kids :)
"the most deplorable characteristics of US society - the relentless urge to build massive McMansions "
Look, you Brits (I'm assuming this is from UK?) can poke fun at the ZIRP circus, the joke that is global DM capital markets today, the decline of Middle Class, and on, and on... blah blah. If you're insulting the American desire to have "bigger" living space, you can piss off. I'm actually kind of proud Americans still fight the Euro push to get Americans into "flats" and cram us like sardines into some PE Fund-owned residential condo. You can insult "bigger is better" all day long, but in the end, you never see those moving up the Forbes list of billionaires settling for LESS sq feet or smaller cars or smaller anything... EVER. Who the hell doesn't want a pool, 2 car garage and some room to stretch out and relax.
Your only story here is insulting those who cannot pay for what they buy. (and to that point I firmly agree) Insulting upward living standards is just retarded. And don't play the Eco card because it's pure BS.
Yeah! What he said!
SOLD! Closing on a 750K house Friday because reasons.
Color me shocked that there were 50,000 homes built without A/C.
Alaska and Maine are booming?
Every home in America is a McMansion, and now eligible for a McMansion reverse mortgage, why pay off fraud when you can leverage and inflate it to another generation?
"Wow what a great way to cover up mass fraud and bad debt than to take out an even larger loan against it"
The Chinese are going to want something nice to live in when they come repossess.
Latinos are already openly hunting Asians in LA & orange county CA, they aint repossessing nothin, gonna be a lot of dead asians in So Cal soon, they are a competing tribe, not a co-looting tribe.
Mexicans and Chinese got nothng in common except occupation.
For sport?
Not sure about that, but one coastal Socal city has a mix of Cambodian, Latino and black gangs. Certain hoods are nasty.
Biggest myth going. China is no more a threat to "repossess" anything than I am. You're watching the wrong hand.
Simple shit really, Chinese go snap up property in the US. If anything comes along which upsets those property rights, China simply starts seizing all US assets while trashing the USD until the US is left as a rotting swamp, with no investors, as the US at that point has shown that it is unsafe. The US gets back some worthless land, and China gets to claim the heart of the US economy. Gonna suck for all those companies that have staked their viability on China, but them's the breaks.
I like the childless couple in their 50's searching for their "dream" home on HGTV: 5,000 sf, 4 to 5 bedrooms, 3-1/2 to 5 baths. I think they are trying to fill there pathetic empty lives and maybe shooting for an investment return.
2450 sq ft (1000 sq ft that I finished off in the basement) 4 bed/2.5 bath for me, my wife, and two kids. Too much space for me and the family.
Dang, how many cats can live in a 5,000 Sq Ft place?
A couple of dogs as well.
Confusous say: A 5000 sq ft home cannot fill the 100K sq ft hole in your soul.
He who go through airport turn style sideways is going to Bangcock.
The data broken down by region reveals something unexpected: after nearly two decades of supremacy for the Northeast in having the largest new homes, for the bast couple of years the region where the largest homes are built is the South.
This is not unexpected at all -- The entire Northeast is moving South (and bringing their idiotic public policy preferences with them). Yay, socialism!
Local school systems love these. They can tax the owners into bankruptcy. And the taxes only go up to pay for the public pensions.
They hate us for our McNugget-stuccoed McMansions...
Are most of these homes double brick or are they timber frame?
This is not surprising.
Not everyone is going broke in the US or world.
Will just be a smaller population of extremly wealthy vs the rest of the "worse off".
so big houses are evil?
nothing is ever evil and there will never be enough. EVA.
A guy needs a big house for the gun room, shop, indoor garden and a guy needs a second story to get a better angle on intruders. 2500 sq ft is just a starter compound.
2000~3000 sq ft is a lot? wtf is everyone supposed to do ? live in a fucking 400 sq ft cubicle?
Everyone should have 10,000 Sq.ft atleast per family in a "sane" world, where we dont live shoulder to shoulder like sociopaths.
Maybe if people had some distance, privacy and peace and quiet the world would be a less violent place.
Most people lived in 1500 sqft homes or less until the 60s and with bigger families too. The problem isn't with the size of the home but the way we treat each other.
We lived in one of those, built it, 1100 SF. I believe this one of the main reasons my parents hated one another. They could never find a space of their own with two children, without leaving the house.
Crowding, packed density is responsible for more crime, and opportunities for crime than any other factor.
McMansion my arse, My effing basement is 3200 sqft. How do people live in these little cracker boxes?
If you lived up northeast and sold your home, you can easily trade up down south or midwest and may end up with some change in your pocket.
neighobor bought a ranch 3 bedroom at the height of the craze for 495 when homes were appraising for low 300's. I told the wife they must have moved here from DC, California or NYC. They did, moved here from left coast and thought they had a bargain. It now appraises for 220k. Yikes.
Home bubblers need to start building multigenerqational housing. detached rear gararge with a carriage hoime for junior and his GF or bride and 2-story main house with a bedroo, and full bathroom downstairs for gramma and grampa. call it 450 to 500 SF over the garage and 1,250 to 1,450 main house; still under 2,000 SF overall. Not if - when
Indeed, Amil below has confirmed your thoughts.
That's how the Somalis do it.
Cracking The Code: Tiny Houses And Building Codes ebook
http://thetinylife.com/cracking-the-code-tiny-houses-and-building-codes/
I'm in the business and in my experience some of the growth in floor plans is for multi-generational living. For example, our largest floor plans include in-law suites which have become very popular.
Also with higher efficiency homes you can maintain them much more cheaply, and yards not so much as they are only going to get more expensive with time given water restrictions and runoff issues. If we could just get the tax man off our backs!
Good point. I wondered whether that was factored in. If people are willing to care for their parents, why not design it into a new home. Cheaper than so-called assisted living and you can get help from organizations like "visiting angels".
Obviously, if you have something bigger and better than mine, you don't need it or deserve it.
I think that pretty much defines our modern world.
It is troubling that high priced homes are doing so much better that all the rest, and the divide between upper and lower income groups is widening for sure. I just don't want to get into the envy trap because it is not productive for anyone. It only destroys wealth and creates nothing but power for those using these disparities to their own advantage.
I don't think it's about envy, it's about prudence.
I'm getting rid of my McMansion. Too many people built around me. Just bought a 2300SF home on 2 acres on a dirt road. No mortgage, no HOA. Moving in over summer - can't wait. Gonna set up an archery range out back & practice for the Zombie Apocalypse.
I'm getting rid of my McMansion. Too many people built around me. Just bought a 2300SF home on 2 acres on a dirt road. No mortgage, no HOA. Moving in over summer - can't wait. Gonna set up an archery range out back & practice for the Zombie Apocalypse.
http://www.amazon.com/Diamond-Archery-DIA10008-Infinite-Package/dp/B00AN...
I'm 100% convinced we're in some sort of housing bubble again...at least in certain areas...like out here in Scottsdale.
Some of the shit they are throwing together up in, for example, DC Ranch is just amazing to see given the shitstorm that hit this area back in '06/'07.
There is one spot where two-story, 2500-3000 sq ft homes are going up right now. From what I can tell, they have basically no yards at all...and they are close enough that any reasonably athletic person could jump rooftop to rooftop...
I heard last week they were STARTING at like $2.3M.
Yes, that is a darn nice area...but that's just absurd.
You had better hurry up and get a deposit on one of them before the price goes up! Just be sure to tell everyone what a great deal you are getting and how the properties in the area can only go up. You have to reinforce the demand so when you are ready to flip next year there will still be eager buyers lined up and waiting.
Why have a yard? After all, Mr. & Mrs. Fat America and their fat offspring need at least 2 media rooms or they'll kill one another.
The Federal Reserve and Wall Street want the animal spirits. It's the best time for them to unload to the retail investors.
The Chinese are buying up the place:
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/485-Harvard-Dr-Arcadia-CA-91007/208885...
03/29/14 Listed for sale $3,590,000+299% 11/16/12 Sold $900,000+18.7% 09/20/04 Sold $758,000A shame you can't actually Quantify Ugly.
Then you would be able to see the Ugliness of homes has increased at the square of how many square feet has increased. The Bigger they are, the cheaper they are made the Uglier they look.
Maybe it's a sign of the Times, they know how F'ed the Country is and want a house big enough for their Kids Families as well.
This is all financed by cheap rates and likely to end very badly.
I'm not an expert in construction but I'm convinced most houses don't have the quality they once did. I saw the decline in the 90s.
NOTHING has the quality is used to have. Everything made today is crap...pure crap.
Why would anyone who HAS that kind of money buy such crap? Those new houses are horrible, I've been in some of them, the overall impression you get (when you know what to look for) is that a strong wind will take the whole thing away. Yeah, they're BIG, but they are shoddily-built, out of inferior materials...because decent materials are either too expensive, or just not available.
All those little perqs, like the A/C, the pools, etc, are just window-dressing to give the illusion of quality.
Where are you from?? 3,000 SF, more or less hardly qualifies as any kind of mansion, Mc or otherwise.
It's barely enough space to house a family of 4 unless you are a poverty stricken breeder with 5 kids, living in a 1,000 SF hovel.
Just to avoid killing each other, the space for each person's needs, is 700 sf, and that's only 30 X 25, nevermind what is required for common space like bathrooms and kitchens.
Yeah, I just don't know how America or anywhere in the world made it this far without those 3,000 sq homes.....sheesh. Well, someday you may learn the meaning of spoiled.
Bully for the 1%.
In this age I wouldn't consider A/C a luxury item and those homes built without it are likely somewhere on the west coast.
As for the rest, awful. I guess nobody is learning a thing.
And these McMansions are likely still using 1950's plumbing, HVAC infrastructure, windows and insulation... In otherwords, McMansions where the only "technology" employed is to lower the cost of manufacture ie; Oriented Strand Board, Plastic, Stick built and stapled together as cheaply as possible. So the McMansions of the "rich" class are mostly American junk built to depreciate as close to the 23 years allowed by law.
As for the rest of the in debt college grads trying to become part of the elites, well plenty of apartment buildings are being built with the latest trend "Micro Units" under 300 sq ft. Live in your little box sucker.
Since I'm old and relatively poor, I'm considering downsizing and buying a rehabilitated a shipping container.
Oh, I forgot! FEMA is readying one for me.
Cool! Now I can spend my savings and help the economy
The 'american' middle class will always find new ways to increase their consumption.
First thing to notice, the 'american' middle class is so hurt that they get only bigger houses and not bigger than biggest houses, the only size accepted by the 'american' middle class.
That is why 'americans' depict the 'american' middle class as being trashed: they get bigger houses, yes indeed, but not bigger enough. That is the death of the 'american' middle class.
Second thing to point: consumption is not a matter of number of people only as 'americans' would like to. 'American' middle classers will always find new ways to increase their consumption. The overconsumption will keep going even with a reduction of the number of the 'american' middle class.
We're fucking trapped!
diff in UK. probably inverse with everything getting smaller, knob & brain included. there is no bedroom size requirement, in fact the only thing they seem concerned about @ your local building control is have u paid? every1 here will be lucky if they get to live in a mcnugget box, forget mcmansion.
Part of the reason for this is that with high overhead (permits, taxes, land prices), it doesn't cost much more over the already high price to make the house bigger. It's the same reason it doesn't cost much more to supersize a fast food order. These effects would be less if we didn't live in such a high-overhead society due to the burdens of taxes, regulations, and supporting large numbers of government workers and transfer payment recipients.
And people give up this information willingly?