Feedback on these two McLean houses

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both are hideous.

I would be so distressed if I had to live in one of these, and really embarrassed for other people to know this is what I chose.

Many families enjoy having a large home on a busy road. It’s part of the appeal.

Can you explain the appeal? Do they get high off of the car exhaust or need that background noise or enjoy watching cars?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not a fan of modern architecture but I liked #1. I think the builder did a really good job of bringing the outdoors in with the windows a la Frank Lloyd Wright. The windows will need covering for privacy Kind of surprised people don't like the pond, as I think that is a major draw. Imagine sitting on the balcony during a late summer afternoon and watching the fish jump and the swallows swooping over the water. Very entertaining, peaceful and rejuvenating. I didn't love the master bedroom with the weird fireplace setup. Shared driveways/private roads are dicey. It works so long as the neighbors are agreeable and cooperative. All it takes is one AH neighbor that wants to fight, and the shared driveway will become a source of strife. Ask me how I know.

I was pleasantly surprised to find this tasteful home in McLean. I don't hang around McLean but the houses I've gone to over there are mostly older traditional colonials.

Comparing this home to **Frank Lloyd Wright** is like calling a cardboard box an artistic masterpiece.

This, there is nothing unique about the place. Also part of the problem is staging furniture not going well with the very modern lines. Whoever staged it sucked. You need completely different type of furniture to make the place shine, this looks like a corporate rental furniture.

Also it’s not private enough, if you see too many other houses from your windows and will even when tree canopy is green, then you aren’t taking advantage of the huge windows, you will end up covering them up for privacy. It’s a good purchase for people with deeper pockets to afford to change the landscaping (plant thicker tree canopy) and a nice modern pool.

Kind of surprised houses in this price rage do not have pools. Maybe it’s for those who decamp to their summer homes for the entire summer.

[Anonymous]

#1 looks like a Marriott conference center

#2 looks like an outpatient hospital

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not a fan of modern architecture but I liked #1. I think the builder did a really good job of bringing the outdoors in with the windows a la Frank Lloyd Wright. The windows will need covering for privacy Kind of surprised people don't like the pond, as I think that is a major draw. Imagine sitting on the balcony during a late summer afternoon and watching the fish jump and the swallows swooping over the water. Very entertaining, peaceful and rejuvenating. I didn't love the master bedroom with the weird fireplace setup. Shared driveways/private roads are dicey. It works so long as the neighbors are agreeable and cooperative. All it takes is one AH neighbor that wants to fight, and the shared driveway will become a source of strife. Ask me how I know.

I was pleasantly surprised to find this tasteful home in McLean. I don't hang around McLean but the houses I've gone to over there are mostly older traditional colonials.

Comparing this home to **Frank Lloyd Wright** is like calling a cardboard box an artistic masterpiece.

This, there is nothing unique about the place. Also part of the problem is staging furniture not going well with the very modern lines. Whoever staged it sucked. You need completely different type of furniture to make the place shine, this looks like a corporate rental furniture.

Also it’s not private enough, if you see too many other houses from your windows and will even when tree canopy is green, then you aren’t taking advantage of the huge windows, you will end up covering them up for privacy. It’s a good purchase for people with deeper pockets to afford to change the landscaping (plant thicker tree canopy) and a nice modern pool.

Kind of surprised houses in this price rage do not have pools. Maybe it’s for those who decamp to their summer homes for the entire summer.

No room for a pool. There is a tiny, narrow patio and that’s it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think they both are a pass. What about this one and do a few cosmetic updates:

https://www.redfin.com/VA/Mc-Lean/1064-Silent-Ridge-Ct-22102/home/9843813

This home is priced with a renovation in mind. It’s a fair price imho. The homes in the Reserve that have not been updated are sitting and the owners are trying to reflect that.

This home ($5.8M) is nearby and has the same mid-quality of original building materials as the house on Silent Ridge. It’s possible they will get this price, but I would be shocked if it ultimately goes for anything near this.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/919-Dominion-Reserve-Dr-Mc-Lean-VA-22102/59786267_zpid/?utm_campaign=iosappmessage&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=txtshare

$500K price drop

We considered this home. The price is still high for the quality of the home. The lot is large, but the location next to the guard gate is odd.

The necessary renovation costs for a house this size are substantial. The bathrooms and the kitchen are all original and were pretty middle of the road quality to begin with. We started making a list of everything that needed to be done to make this house into a quality home and it quickly became apparent that it would be wiser to work with a well-known custom builder.

There are neighborhoods in McLean that have quality older homes. The Reserve is not one of them.

There is a home in The Reserve that is going up for auction. 1034 Founders Ridge Ln It’s been sitting for a while and was originally listed at close to $6M

[Anonymous]

I’ve heard #1 has already had water inside or more than 1 occasion.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both are hideous.

I would be so distressed if I had to live in one of these, and really embarrassed for other people to know this is what I chose.

Many families enjoy having a large home on a busy road. It’s part of the appeal.

Can you explain the appeal? Do they get high off of the car exhaust or need that background noise or enjoy watching cars?

NP. The pp makes a good point. I think it’s cultural to own a large home on a busy thoroughfare (fronting a 2-lane roadway variety vs the 495/66 highway). Some the largest and most expensive homes sit right off busy roads like Georgetown Pike, Hunter Mill Rd, etc. I personally don’t prefer it but there is an obvious appeal. There is currently a home on sale for $25m fronting 193. Yes…someone will be happy to live there.

[Anonymous]

What do we think about this one? $4.6 million. Interesting that the builder purchased the lot for $1.45M and priced it at first at $4.3 before raising the price to $4.6 after about two weeks.

So much profit is possible the home building. At least this one lists who the builder is.

https://www.redfin.com/VA/Mc-Lean/7011-Elizabeth-Dr-22101/home/9393189

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not a fan of modern architecture but I liked #1. I think the builder did a really good job of bringing the outdoors in with the windows a la Frank Lloyd Wright. The windows will need covering for privacy Kind of surprised people don't like the pond, as I think that is a major draw. Imagine sitting on the balcony during a late summer afternoon and watching the fish jump and the swallows swooping over the water. Very entertaining, peaceful and rejuvenating. I didn't love the master bedroom with the weird fireplace setup. Shared driveways/private roads are dicey. It works so long as the neighbors are agreeable and cooperative. All it takes is one AH neighbor that wants to fight, and the shared driveway will become a source of strife. Ask me how I know.

I was pleasantly surprised to find this tasteful home in McLean. I don't hang around McLean but the houses I've gone to over there are mostly older traditional colonials.

Comparing this home to **Frank Lloyd Wright** is like calling a cardboard box an artistic masterpiece.

This, there is nothing unique about the place. Also part of the problem is staging furniture not going well with the very modern lines. Whoever staged it sucked. You need completely different type of furniture to make the place shine, this looks like a corporate rental furniture.

Also it’s not private enough, if you see too many other houses from your windows and will even when tree canopy is green, then you aren’t taking advantage of the huge windows, you will end up covering them up for privacy. It’s a good purchase for people with deeper pockets to afford to change the landscaping (plant thicker tree canopy) and a nice modern pool.

Kind of surprised houses in this price rage do not have pools. Maybe it’s for those who decamp to their summer homes for the entire summer.

I've seen numerous 4-6 million plus McLean houses without pools. Probably a majority of them don't surprisingly

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:#1 looks like a Marriott conference center

#2 looks like an outpatient hospital

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What do we think about this one? $4.6 million. Interesting that the builder purchased the lot for $1.45M and priced it at first at $4.3 before raising the price to $4.6 after about two weeks.

So much profit is possible the home building. At least this one lists who the builder is.

https://www.redfin.com/VA/Mc-Lean/7011-Elizabeth-Dr-22101/home/9393189

It's a nice house but certainly not anything close to a 4.6M build. But there's always the potential for them to find a buyer who's willing to overpay.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both are hideous.

I would be so distressed if I had to live in one of these, and really embarrassed for other people to know this is what I chose.

Many families enjoy having a large home on a busy road. It’s part of the appeal.

Can you explain the appeal? Do they get high off of the car exhaust or need that background noise or enjoy watching cars?

NP. The pp makes a good point. I think it’s cultural to own a large home on a busy thoroughfare (fronting a 2-lane roadway variety vs the 495/66 highway). Some the largest and most expensive homes sit right off busy roads like Georgetown Pike, Hunter Mill Rd, etc. I personally don’t prefer it but there is an obvious appeal. There is currently a home on sale for $25m fronting 193. Yes…someone will be happy to live there.

"cultural"? For who? What is the appeal, feng shui or something? Personally, I avoid major roads because of pollution, noise and difficulty pulling in and out of your driveway into a very busy high speed road. I don't mind it if it's an apartment on a high floor with a sweeping view, but for a house facing a highway is a negative for me, in a winter you will see it and have car lights flash too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Both are hideous.

I would be so distressed if I had to live in one of these, and really embarrassed for other people to know this is what I chose.

Many families enjoy having a large home on a busy road. It’s part of the appeal.

Can you explain the appeal? Do they get high off of the car exhaust or need that background noise or enjoy watching cars?

NP. The pp makes a good point. I think it’s cultural to own a large home on a busy thoroughfare (fronting a 2-lane roadway variety vs the 495/66 highway). Some the largest and most expensive homes sit right off busy roads like Georgetown Pike, Hunter Mill Rd, etc. I personally don’t prefer it but there is an obvious appeal. There is currently a home on sale for $25m fronting 193. Yes…someone will be happy to live there.

"cultural"? For who? What is the appeal, feng shui or something? Personally, I avoid major roads because of pollution, noise and difficulty pulling in and out of your driveway into a very busy high speed road. I don't mind it if it's an apartment on a high floor with a sweeping view, but for a house facing a highway is a negative for me, in a winter you will see it and have car lights flash too.

I don't get it either but there's a clear desire for people to build 5-10 million plus houses off Georgetown Pike.

[Anonymous]

Some people might go for a big, fancy house on a busy road because it’s a way to show off a bit. It puts them in the spotlight, making them look successful or important. For some, it’s all about being seen and making a statement—whether it’s for personal pride or to build their public image. Being on a busy road just means more people notice their home and what it represents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Some people might go for a big, fancy house on a busy road because it’s a way to show off a bit. It puts them in the spotlight, making them look successful or important. For some, it’s all about being seen and making a statement—whether it’s for personal pride or to build their public image. Being on a busy road just means more people notice their home and what it represents.

This. It's why you're seeing several Mcmansions currently under construction off the Pike