No more McMansions

[Laozi]

I don't care much about a really big house, just something with a nice den, but I need alot of land. In Texas its about acres, and being far away from your neighbors. Something like 50-60 acres would be plenty.

[Cantousent]

Makes it hard to ask for someone to jump start your car, Laozi.

 

Hell, my wife and I live in a 1,300 sqft condominium. A while back, the whole complex had to be sprayed for termites. Apart from the houses, the fences that separated the back yards had to be removed. After the wood fencing was gone but before the vinyl fencing was placed, we had free access to walk across our back yards. One evening, my wife knocked on the back door as she is wont to do. I was getting ready for a shower, but I stepped to the door and let her enter... only it wasn't my wife. Instead, my two 21 year old next door neighbor med students were there to ask me about something. Imagine our collective surprise. I closed the door immediately and donned my clothes. One of the neighbors and I got quite a laugh out of it. Her father actually bought the condo just so she could go to school. The other girl, however, still turns red when she says hello. I mean, we're friendly and even chat every once in a while, but she was certainly freaked.

 

Anyhow, I like my condo and I wouldn't change it for the world. Just for perspective, however, the same size condominium in my complex recently sold for $400k. Somewhere along the line, housing prices are going to have to fall. It's a madhouse right now. To think that I could sell my 1,300 sqft condo and be able to buy a 2,600 sqft house for less in the Summerlin area of Las Vegas.

[6 Foot Invisible Rabbit]

All I need is a small kitchen, a living room, a bathroom with a shower in it, and a single bedroom.

 

Everything else is just gravy.

[Stewdawg24]

I recently re-located to Baltimore from Albany NY and I'm consistently amazed at the property values in this area. My sister just bought a beautiful 3,800 sq ft home on an acre of land in Albany for $349,000. Down here you wouldn't think of submitting an offer for under $750,000. Needless to say my wife and i care concerned about when, if ever, we're going to be able to afford to buy a home.

 

And about the size of homes....I guess if you have the scratch to put up a 55,000 sq ft home than more power to you. However, even if I had that kind of money I could find much better things to do than build a home that I'll probably visit two weeks a year.

Edited February 22, 2006 by Stewdawg24

[Ophannin]

Geez. The prices that you guys are saying are amazingly cheap seem... Insanely expensive to me.

 

I live in a county where it's required that you own at least 5 acres if you want to put a house on it. 2000 sq ft home with 5 acres is about... 150-200k.

[Jorian Drake]

I want something big, like a castle. You Euros have plenty of those.

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Castles are horribly drafty.

 

I used to want to live in a castle, but I changed my mind after spending the week up in Scotland.

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they can be modernised...anyone remembers Disney's Gargoyles? :D

 

[Hurlshort]

Geez. The prices that you guys are saying are amazingly cheap seem... Insanely expensive to me.

 

I live in a county where it's required that you own at least 5 acres if you want to put a house on it. 2000 sq ft home with 5 acres is about... 150-200k. 

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It's all about how much money the average job pays as well. In the Bay Area, the average income is over $100,000. That seems high, but the real estate market requires that much to get a house. As teachers, my wife and I get $90,000 a year combined, and we are low on the salary ladder. Most teachers make way less than that in other parts of the country, but they don't have the same cost of living.

 

It's also pretty difficult to have a single income in the Bay Area. My wife doesn't plan on quitting her job when she gets pregnant, but that would probably be possible in another part of the country.

[Kor Qel Droma]

Every day I regret not buying a house instead of a condo. In the sticks where I live I could probably get an extra 20 grand on top of what I paid for my condo today. But the downside is its near impossible to find a house under 200 grand anymore. Some of the crappier houses that I looked at seven or eight years ago that were selling for about 110-115 are now in excess of the 200. It's pretty tough unless you make oodles of cash being a rig pig.

[ShadowPaladin V1.0]

they can be modernised...anyone remembers Disney's Gargoyles?  :D

 

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Most are protected buildings. You are very limited to just what you can do, especially with regards to the exterior.

[CoM_Solaufein]

I'll be happy with a cabin up in the mountains with it's own source of power in case of an emergency and DSL and/or Satellite internet connections. And satellite tv, can't miss the football games.