Millennials aren't going to buy your ugly mcmansions, silly Boomers!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm 36. Married. One kid. Live on Capitol Hill. Fuck the burbs. The commute. Just everything. No.

And for every you there are many more in your demographic in the burbs. But I'm sure it's cool to think you're special, at least until your spouse or kid comes home with 1/3 of their brain on a sidewalk.

Oh dear, the mask comes off. Its not about different choices for different folks, or the space needs of families with 2 or more kids. Its the city is evil and dangerous, and any one with a choice who lives there is irresponsible.

Wow.

It's a little late to put on the white gloves after jumping on a thread about "ugly McMansions" and following a post that said "Fuck the burbs." Screw the constant break-ins and frustrating charter lotteries.

Well there are lot more houses in the suburbs than McMansions - there are "shitshacks", new luxury townhouses, neourbanist condos, and even "real mansions".

As for the fuck the burbs, the equivalent response to that would be "fuck DC" or something like that. Not something grisly about someone's family member's brain. Call me old fashioned, but that's quite a step beyond reminding people of charter frustrations or stolen packages.

I mean do we want to really want to talk about suicides at suburban high schools, or deaths on suburban roads?

Sounds like PP really got your goat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't see a ton of empirical evidence that well-heeled DC parents are prepared to put in the sweat equity to make their public school options attractive. They go private, move, or hold their noses and do Deal/Wilson if that's an option. But seeing how schools like Hardy and Roosevelt in prime locations remain perpetually under-enrolled and under-performing tells you that many of those parents spend more time trying to convince others that suburban life sucks than they do trying to make urban life attractive.

There are other ways to improve urban life (some much easier) than improving schools. There are a lot of people working to improve the elementary schools. And as said elsewhere, Hardy is definitely changing.

Hardy is like Brazil - it's the middle school of the future and always will be.

I love the joke about Brazil, but despite its problems the last year or two Brazil really has reached the stage people envisioned for it when they called it the country of the future. And Hardy really has reached better numbers on IB, "true IB", etc then it ever has, IIUC. Again, not that that opens up any bargain neighborhoods for families in DC.

[Anonymous]

Why the hate, OP?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a millennial (1988) and I don't want to live in a McMansion. Nationally, people are moving into more walkable, mixed use neighborhoods with different types of commercial space and housing. Look at Rockville, Pentagon City, and Tyson's. They're all trying to make themselves car-free destinations. I'm not sure it'll work (especially in NoVa) but I think it's wrong to assume that we'll all pack up and move to the burbs once we have kids.

Car free will disappear as a preference ten minutes after driverless cars become mainstream


What seems more likely, a bunch of people paying a premium to live next to the tracks for a choo choo train or people living anywhere they want and having their car drive them in private relaxation?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a millennial (1988) and I don't want to live in a McMansion. Nationally, people are moving into more walkable, mixed use neighborhoods with different types of commercial space and housing. Look at Rockville, Pentagon City, and Tyson's. They're all trying to make themselves car-free destinations. I'm not sure it'll work (especially in NoVa) but I think it's wrong to assume that we'll all pack up and move to the burbs once we have kids.

Car free will disappear as a preference ten minutes after driverless cars become mainstream


What seems more likely, a bunch of people paying a premium to live next to the tracks for a choo choo train or people living anywhere they want and having their car drive them in private relaxation?

I don't know if you're the same PP as the one who posted about the drive through Starbucks but I think you are. It's great that you enjoy traveling in a car for everything. But being driven by my driverless car for an hour to work still doesn't beat walking for 10 minutes to my work. Being driven by my driverless car to a drive through Starbucks to buy a bucket of caffeinated milkshake doesn't beat walking to my local artisan coffee shop and buying a cortado. You do you. But why do you think that everyone else should too?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a millennial (1988) and I don't want to live in a McMansion. Nationally, people are moving into more walkable, mixed use neighborhoods with different types of commercial space and housing. Look at Rockville, Pentagon City, and Tyson's. They're all trying to make themselves car-free destinations. I'm not sure it'll work (especially in NoVa) but I think it's wrong to assume that we'll all pack up and move to the burbs once we have kids.

Car free will disappear as a preference ten minutes after driverless cars become mainstream


What seems more likely, a bunch of people paying a premium to live next to the tracks for a choo choo train or people living anywhere they want and having their car drive them in private relaxation?

In that case the McMansions in McLean and Arlington are way over priced. I mean it is possible people will still enjoy walking (and car free still saves yout the cost and hassle of car ownership) but when why pay for the same auto focused lifestyle you would have in the outer suburbs, except with a shorter drive?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Gen Xer here with two middle school kids in McLean VA. My wife and I knocked down our tiny 1960s split level (worth $~750K) and built a new home (now worth ~$1.6 million). The neighborhood we live in has a mix of tear downs and older homes. It's a large home, but we still have a nice backyard and added many upgrades that weren't cheap although I think the haters would still call it a McMansion. However, I don't understand the desire for the alternative. Here's what I mean:

Our old home had a brick exterior, no house wrap, tiny windows, squeaky floors, no drain tile so the basement leaked, no basement vapor barrier so radon was leaking up, and no character. The original kitchen contained asbestos tiles (which was covered up). The energy efficiency of the house was terrible. Why is what I described better than a new home? Sure, we decided to use HardiPlank vs. brick on the outside but that’s a personal design preference but everything else in the new place is superior to the old one. I hear comments from people that our old home used plywood and solid wood beams but the new home uses Advantech OSB and beams. Well, science tells us that the products are structurally equivalent and OSB is stronger in shear values. The new home has a radon system, better drainage, large windows so we don’t need to use as much electricity, sensors that shut off lights to save energy, and is air tight. The floor doesn’t squeak and is less likely to in the long run, our fire alarm is integrated into home security system which makes it a much safer home (e.g., the air conditioner shuts off if a fire is detected). And yes, we now use our gourmet kitchen to cook most of our meals because it’s just much easier and fun (our old kitchen was tiny and it sucked to cook in)! Why is our ‘McMansion’ worse than our old home?

The fault lies not in the house

[Anonymous]

Not to be too reductive, but it seems likely that millennials will buy these McMansions in the same way that people now buy big old ugly homes - because it's the amount of space they want for a price they can afford.

Those houses probably won't age very well, so I imagine they will sell the same way that older luxury condos do.

Assuming you are buying for the house and the land, not just the land - future buyers will be willing to spend less for them than for either brand new homes, or for older charming homes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a millennial (1988) and I don't want to live in a McMansion. Nationally, people are moving into more walkable, mixed use neighborhoods with different types of commercial space and housing. Look at Rockville, Pentagon City, and Tyson's. They're all trying to make themselves car-free destinations. I'm not sure it'll work (especially in NoVa) but I think it's wrong to assume that we'll all pack up and move to the burbs once we have kids.

Car free will disappear as a preference ten minutes after driverless cars become mainstream


What seems more likely, a bunch of people paying a premium to live next to the tracks for a choo choo train or people living anywhere they want and having their car drive them in private relaxation?

I doubt it. It isn't like a driverless cars drive faster. It still requires the same amount of time. I don't care who is driving - I don't want to sit in a car for two hours every day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm 36. Married. One kid. Live on Capitol Hill. Fuck the burbs. The commute. Just everything. No.

And for every you there are many more in your demographic in the burbs. But I'm sure it's cool to think you're special, at least until your spouse or kid comes home with 1/3 of their brain on a sidewalk.

Oh dear, the mask comes off. Its not about different choices for different folks, or the space needs of families with 2 or more kids. Its the city is evil and dangerous, and any one with a choice who lives there is irresponsible.

Wow.

It's a little late to put on the white gloves after jumping on a thread about "ugly McMansions" and following a post that said "Fuck the burbs." Screw the constant break-ins and frustrating charter lotteries.

Well there are lot more houses in the suburbs than McMansions - there are "shitshacks", new luxury townhouses, neourbanist condos, and even "real mansions".

As for the fuck the burbs, the equivalent response to that would be "fuck DC" or something like that. Not something grisly about someone's family member's brain. Call me old fashioned, but that's quite a step beyond reminding people of charter frustrations or stolen packages.

I mean do we want to really want to talk about suicides at suburban high schools, or deaths on suburban roads?

Sounds like PP really got your goat.

Fine. Fuck DC. But "just everything" about it includes the spike in criminal activity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a millennial (1988) and I don't want to live in a McMansion. Nationally, people are moving into more walkable, mixed use neighborhoods with different types of commercial space and housing. Look at Rockville, Pentagon City, and Tyson's. They're all trying to make themselves car-free destinations. I'm not sure it'll work (especially in NoVa) but I think it's wrong to assume that we'll all pack up and move to the burbs once we have kids.

Car free will disappear as a preference ten minutes after driverless cars become mainstream


What seems more likely, a bunch of people paying a premium to live next to the tracks for a choo choo train or people living anywhere they want and having their car drive them in private relaxation?

You really think driving around in this city with a driverless car will be "private relaxation?" I don't think it matters who is driving. The car will still be starting and stopping. There will be fumes. You have to sit there for a decent amount of time. It's far from relaxing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't see a ton of empirical evidence that well-heeled DC parents are prepared to put in the sweat equity to make their public school options attractive. They go private, move, or hold their noses and do Deal/Wilson if that's an option. But seeing how schools like Hardy and Roosevelt in prime locations remain perpetually under-enrolled and under-performing tells you that many of those parents spend more time trying to convince others that suburban life sucks than they do trying to make urban life attractive.

There are other ways to improve urban life (some much easier) than improving schools. There are a lot of people working to improve the elementary schools. And as said elsewhere, Hardy is definitely changing.

Hardy is like Brazil - it's the middle school of the future and always will be.

I love the joke about Brazil, but despite its problems the last year or two Brazil really has reached the stage people envisioned for it when they called it the country of the future. And Hardy really has reached better numbers on IB, "true IB", etc then it ever has, IIUC. Again, not that that opens up any bargain neighborhoods for families in DC.

You sound like a real glass-half-full kind of gal, whether it comes to Brazil or Hardy. Keep that hope alive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a millennial (1988) and I don't want to live in a McMansion. Nationally, people are moving into more walkable, mixed use neighborhoods with different types of commercial space and housing. Look at Rockville, Pentagon City, and Tyson's. They're all trying to make themselves car-free destinations. I'm not sure it'll work (especially in NoVa) but I think it's wrong to assume that we'll all pack up and move to the burbs once we have kids.

Car free will disappear as a preference ten minutes after driverless cars become mainstream


What seems more likely, a bunch of people paying a premium to live next to the tracks for a choo choo train or people living anywhere they want and having their car drive them in private relaxation?

You really think driving around in this city with a driverless car will be "private relaxation?" I don't think it matters who is driving. The car will still be starting and stopping. There will be fumes. You have to sit there for a decent amount of time. It's far from relaxing.

I find the 40-45 minutes I spend in a car listening to the radio, music, or assorted podcasts infinitely stress-inducing than worrying about whether random noises in the night in the city meant we were being burglarized yet again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm a millennial (1988) and I don't want to live in a McMansion. Nationally, people are moving into more walkable, mixed use neighborhoods with different types of commercial space and housing. Look at Rockville, Pentagon City, and Tyson's. They're all trying to make themselves car-free destinations. I'm not sure it'll work (especially in NoVa) but I think it's wrong to assume that we'll all pack up and move to the burbs once we have kids.

Car free will disappear as a preference ten minutes after driverless cars become mainstream


What seems more likely, a bunch of people paying a premium to live next to the tracks for a choo choo train or people living anywhere they want and having their car drive them in private relaxation?

You really think driving around in this city with a driverless car will be "private relaxation?" I don't think it matters who is driving. The car will still be starting and stopping. There will be fumes. You have to sit there for a decent amount of time. It's far from relaxing.

I find the 40-45 minutes I spend in a car listening to the radio, music, or assorted podcasts infinitely less stress-inducing than worrying about whether random noises in the night in the city meant we were being burglarized yet again.

[Anonymous]

"once they stop taking pictures of their food, have a kid and find it harder to go to Iceland for the weekend,"

NP here--haven't read the entire thread but this cracked me up!