Explain this to me

[Anonymous]

My neighborhood of mid 1970s homes in Potomac most are 1/2 acre 4,000 sf upstairs with a 2,000 sf basement and a two car garage. Over last two years we had a few buyers who gut them but then do a big expansion. I am talking like a a 2,000 sf expansion. My neighbor told me the new neighbor down block spent 1.9 million to buy home then 1.1 million to renovate and expand. It looks like a Frankenstein house in end. Plus he had to carry two homes for a whole year while being done.

Meanwhile the fancy rich blocks in Potomac such as Iron Gate or Bentcross have all redone 10,000 sf homes on two acres that often sell for around 2.5 million to 3 million. Much better block, bigger house, more land. And still less cost. I have seen it happen now 5-6 time in last year. \

Do people not have common sense? I also can only imagine the permit costs and impact on property taxes. These are not multfamily things.

[Anonymous]

You won't get many responses here. No one really follows what the middle class is doing.

[Anonymous]

Maybe none of those houses were available when this person needed to purchase. Real estate is one way to tie up your money for a purpose and avoid having to manage it through the financial system. Maybe they wanted the freedom to create something from the ground up, not deal with undoing other people's choices. Maybe they don't want to deal with the bigger yard. There is a myriad of valid reasons.

[Anonymous]

They get to design the house new rather than dealing with the obscene grand foyer double grand staircase 2 story monstrosities in 30 yr old homes.

[Anonymous]

Yes, they want to choose their own finishes.
A lot of those huge houses are dated.

[Anonymous]

Those huge houses only work for a specific taste. They are typically more appealing to foreign/arab families. Those neighborhoods are also very isolated. I would not want to raise a family there. People are looking for the best of both worlds: great neighborhood and a big enough house to suit their needs and taste.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You won't get many responses here. No one really follows what the middle class is doing.