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

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Just turned 31 and have two babies. We bought a historic home with a decent commute in the close in burbs. McMansions are gross. Our next house will be another historic home.

That was me ten years ago. Actually were on our second historic home. And now we live in a large newer construction home with our 12 and 9 year old and would never go back. Only the young insist they will never change.

Well, you're wrong actually. Lots of old and older people insist they will never change, have never changed, despite decades of evidence to the contrary, and "newer construction" does not necessarily mean "McMansion." I'm not opposed to buying a new home, but neither am I buying some crapshack built to spec by a builder who knows nothing about design and is proud of it. - the 36 year old Millennial

If you are 36, you aren't a millennial. And it seems like all the people on this thread insisting they will never change are young.

What you're not taking into account is that change has already occurred. You have thousands of urban professionals living in parts of the city that 25 years ago professionals wouldn't have set foot in. A definite change has already happened. Sure, there will be plenty of millennials who end up in the burbs but unlike the 1980s, the burbs aren't the only place for a well off couple to raise kids. [/quote

You need to get over yourself. Young people have been living in urban centers since the days of the original yuppies (young urban professionals) who are actually boomers. Only the only thing that changes is which city neighborhoods are trendy. There is nothing particularly original about millennial a.

Not to the extent they are now. It isn't true that simply the popular neighborhoods have changed. In DC alone I can't think of any parts of town that are now rundown and not popular. Sure, some may be trendier than others but now you have more and more neighborhoods to choose from.

That's because the dc population has grown significantly has grown over the past 15 years, and what was once up and coming is now established. When I moved to dc twenty years ago, dupoint and adams morgan were edgy. It isn't because of the special snowflake millennials.

WTF? When I lived in DC 30 years ago, DuPont wasn't edgy, just gay, and Adams Morgan was only edgy around that stretch of 17th that probably still sucks today unless that extended family with all the issues got evicted.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Just turned 31 and have two babies. We bought a historic home with a decent commute in the close in burbs. McMansions are gross. Our next house will be another historic home.

That was me ten years ago. Actually were on our second historic home. And now we live in a large newer construction home with our 12 and 9 year old and would never go back. Only the young insist they will never change.

Well, you're wrong actually. Lots of old and older people insist they will never change, have never changed, despite decades of evidence to the contrary, and "newer construction" does not necessarily mean "McMansion." I'm not opposed to buying a new home, but neither am I buying some crapshack built to spec by a builder who knows nothing about design and is proud of it. - the 36 year old Millennial

If you are 36, you aren't a millennial. And it seems like all the people on this thread insisting they will never change are young.

What you're not taking into account is that change has already occurred. You have thousands of urban professionals living in parts of the city that 25 years ago professionals wouldn't have set foot in. A definite change has already happened. Sure, there will be plenty of millennials who end up in the burbs but unlike the 1980s, the burbs aren't the only place for a well off couple to raise kids. [/quote

You need to get over yourself. Young people have been living in urban centers since the days of the original yuppies (young urban professionals) who are actually boomers. Only the only thing that changes is which city neighborhoods are trendy. There is nothing particularly original about millennial a.

Not to the extent they are now. It isn't true that simply the popular neighborhoods have changed. In DC alone I can't think of any parts of town that are now rundown and not popular. Sure, some may be trendier than others but now you have more and more neighborhoods to choose from.

That's because the dc population has grown significantly has grown over the past 15 years, and what was once up and coming is now established. When I moved to dc twenty years ago, dupoint and adams morgan were edgy. It isn't because of the special snowflake millennials.

WTF? When I lived in DC 30 years ago, DuPont wasn't edgy, just gay, and Adams Morgan was only edgy around that stretch of 17th that probably still sucks today unless that extended family with all the issues got evicted.

And your point is what exactly?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just turned 31 and have two babies. We bought a historic home with a decent commute in the close in burbs. McMansions are gross. Our next house will be another historic home.

That was me ten years ago. Actually were on our second historic home. And now we live in a large newer construction home with our 12 and 9 year old and would never go back. Only the young insist they will never change.

Well, you're wrong actually. Lots of old and older people insist they will never change, have never changed, despite decades of evidence to the contrary, and "newer construction" does not necessarily mean "McMansion." I'm not opposed to buying a new home, but neither am I buying some crapshack built to spec by a builder who knows nothing about design and is proud of it. - the 36 year old Millennial

If you are 36, you aren't a millennial. And it seems like all the people on this thread insisting they will never change are young.

What you're not taking into account is that change has already occurred. You have thousands of urban professionals living in parts of the city that 25 years ago professionals wouldn't have set foot in. A definite change has already happened. Sure, there will be plenty of millennials who end up in the burbs but unlike the 1980s, the burbs aren't the only place for a well off couple to raise kids. [/quote

You need to get over yourself. Young people have been living in urban centers since the days of the original yuppies (young urban professionals) who are actually boomers. Only the only thing that changes is which city neighborhoods are trendy. There is nothing particularly original about millennial a.

Not to the extent they are now. It isn't true that simply the popular neighborhoods have changed. In DC alone I can't think of any parts of town that are now rundown and not popular. Sure, some may be trendier than others but now you have more and more neighborhoods to choose from.

That's because the dc population has grown significantly has grown over the past 15 years, and what was once up and coming is now established. When I moved to dc twenty years ago, dupoint and adams morgan were edgy. It isn't because of the special snowflake millennials.

Which is the entire point. The *dc* population has grown. More people live and work in DC. Many people and families are choosing DC instead of a huge house in the burbs. Dc is more desirable to many people

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Oh they will, just not yet. Still too young.

This - obviously - once they stop taking pictures of their food, have a kid and find it harder to go to Iceland for the weekend, they will want what everyone wants. Space and easy access (by car) to the things they need. Walking to meet friends for sushi will be replace by putting the sleeping baby in the car seat and finding a drive through Starbucks.

Matter of time. I am perfectly happy in my house for the next 20 years - I can wait.

36 year old Millennial here. I don't want your McMansion. Not eve a little. I don't want poor design, crap materials, a probable long commute, suburbs with amenities only accessible by driving, or the more conservative politics. I'd like more space for my three (already existing) kids, but I'm not buying a trailer on steroids to satisfy that desire, especially when I'm 56.

Also, I cook 90% of our meals at home. I've taken zero pictures of them.

36 is Gen X, babe.

This was discussed in another thread about a week or so ago. The start date for Millennials vs Gen X is given by various sources as anywhere from 1977-1982 (I always thought it was 82 but, given the links & whatnot others posted stating it is 77, 80, etc, can see why some think otherwise). So basically, those born between roughly 1977 & 1981 are either both Gen Xers & Millennials or neither Gen Xers or Millennials.

The whole defining a generation as starting & ending on specific birth dates as always seemed a bit odd to me anyway both because it is so arbitrary & because puts people born months apart in different generations & people born more than a decade apart in the same one.

Sociologist here- also the dates aren't solidified until later, when we can look back and see changes. Millennials are definitely much closer to 82 and I would argue later. It is when we saw a change in parenting, the total hands on, "play dates", trophies for all that really categorizes millennials.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just turned 31 and have two babies. We bought a historic home with a decent commute in the close in burbs. McMansions are gross. Our next house will be another historic home.

That was me ten years ago. Actually were on our second historic home. And now we live in a large newer construction home with our 12 and 9 year old and would never go back. Only the young insist they will never change.

Well, you're wrong actually. Lots of old and older people insist they will never change, have never changed, despite decades of evidence to the contrary, and "newer construction" does not necessarily mean "McMansion." I'm not opposed to buying a new home, but neither am I buying some crapshack built to spec by a builder who knows nothing about design and is proud of it. - the 36 year old Millennial

If you are 36, you aren't a millennial. And it seems like all the people on this thread insisting they will never change are young.

What you're not taking into account is that change has already occurred. You have thousands of urban professionals living in parts of the city that 25 years ago professionals wouldn't have set foot in. A definite change has already happened. Sure, there will be plenty of millennials who end up in the burbs but unlike the 1980s, the burbs aren't the only place for a well off couple to raise kids. [/quote

You need to get over yourself. Young people have been living in urban centers since the days of the original yuppies (young urban professionals) who are actually boomers. Only the only thing that changes is which city neighborhoods are trendy. There is nothing particularly original about millennial a.

Not to the extent they are now. It isn't true that simply the popular neighborhoods have changed. In DC alone I can't think of any parts of town that are now rundown and not popular. Sure, some may be trendier than others but now you have more and more neighborhoods to choose from.

That's because the dc population has grown significantly has grown over the past 15 years, and what was once up and coming is now established. When I moved to dc twenty years ago, dupoint and adams morgan were edgy. It isn't because of the special snowflake millennials.

Which is the entire point. The *dc* population has grown. More people live and work in DC. Many people and families are choosing DC instead of a huge house in the burbs. Dc is more desirable to many people

So we needed this entire 12-page thread just to point out again that some people want to live in DC again after its many decades of decline? Whatever - the percentage of people in this region who actually live in DC is quite low compared to the number of people in other metropolitan areas who live in the city.

It never ceases to amaze me how frequently some people in this area need to trash others to make themselves feel just a tad better about their choices and station in life.

[Anonymous]

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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?

I agree with almost everything you said, as a current owner of a 1960 split level in Falls Church. The only thing I would nitpit is about the strength of the exterior of the house. In the derecho, we had 2 large, mature oak trees come down onto our house. In both cases, the trees came through the rook and came to rest on the top of the brick wall. The contractors who worked on our house said many other houses had trees cut right through the house as they fell down, and only the older brick homes stopped the trees. Now, that surely doesn't outweigh all the other cons to our house! (And if the tree had torn right through my house, it would have resulted in me getting a new house courtesy of insurance. Ah the trade offs...)

If you built a new home trees would be properly removed to avoid hitting the house

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The only reason they're not buying those is because they can't afford them.

Not true. We are not buying them because they are wasteful and unnecessary. We are smarter. Sorry.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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?

I agree with almost everything you said, as a current owner of a 1960 split level in Falls Church. The only thing I would nitpit is about the strength of the exterior of the house. In the derecho, we had 2 large, mature oak trees come down onto our house. In both cases, the trees came through the rook and came to rest on the top of the brick wall. The contractors who worked on our house said many other houses had trees cut right through the house as they fell down, and only the older brick homes stopped the trees. Now, that surely doesn't outweigh all the other cons to our house! (And if the tree had torn right through my house, it would have resulted in me getting a new house courtesy of insurance. Ah the trade offs...)

If you built a new home trees would be properly removed to avoid hitting the house

We have large mature trees in the back corner of our lot. If the fell, they would hit the house.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:I think it is Gen X who owns the McMansions, I sure don't own a McMansion.

Agree - definitely in our neighborhood anyway. It seems like the tail end of the Gen Xers and possibly the front end of the Millennials who are snatching up the McMansions - not Boomers.

The Mills are too smart to be duped into buying useless drywall. Their cynicism may save this country.

uh huh

if they could hold down a job for more than two years, that is, in order to earn enough $ for a down payment

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Once millennials get older and make more money they will buy the mcmansion

Only as a starter home because they're saving up for a nicer home. Expect lots of price reductions on your McMansion and to eventually sell at a deep discount

Oh well. We still have a ton of money and plan to enjoy our retirement. Guess that means the Millenial kids and the grandkids will get even smaller inheritances.

Good for you! Most people view their home as an investment and would be sad if their house updates actually decreased the value of their home. Enjoy retirement - I hope the money doesn't run out early and you end up wanting to mooch off your family members.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:The only reason they're not buying those is because they can't afford them.

Not true. We are not buying them because they are wasteful and unnecessary. We are smarter. Sorry.

Yes, those of us who aren't millennias very much understand that some in your cohort very much believe they are special, sorry, smarter.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:The only reason they're not buying those is because they can't afford them.

Not true. We are not buying them because they are wasteful and unnecessary. We are smarter. Sorry.

This.

I have money, and you better believe I'm not going to waste it on your crappy McMansion.
This hasn't happened in DC to the same degree as the rest of the country, but the McMansion suburbs are turning into new ghettos as young professionals prioritize short commutes and city amenities en masse.

[Anonymous]

The MacMansions aren't going to stay up for that long, OP. No need to worry

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Once millennials get older and make more money they will buy the mcmansion

Only as a starter home because they're saving up for a nicer home. Expect lots of price reductions on your McMansion and to eventually sell at a deep discount

Oh well. We still have a ton of money and plan to enjoy our retirement. Guess that means the Millenial kids and the grandkids will get even smaller inheritances.

Good for you! Most people view their home as an investment and would be sad if their house updates actually decreased the value of their home. Enjoy retirement - I hope the money doesn't run out early and you end up wanting to mooch off your family members.

Who said anything about "house updates"? Our home was built with all the amenities we wanted and more.

And, no, our money would not run out, even if the substantial equity we have in our house were to dwindle to nothing due to the imaginary antipathy that everyone is now supposed to harbor towards larger, nicer homes. But I do appreciate your concern (sic).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The only reason they're not buying those is because they can't afford them.

Not true. We are not buying them because they are wasteful and unnecessary. We are smarter. Sorry.

This.

I have money, and you better believe I'm not going to waste it on your crappy McMansion.
This hasn't happened in DC to the same degree as the rest of the country, but the McMansion suburbs are turning into new ghettos as young professionals prioritize short commutes and city amenities en masse.

You are quite delusional. I don't think you've spent too much time in the majority of cities in this country, which unlike DC aren't flush with taxpayer money. Go spend some time in Baltimore if you really need a dose of reality.