Reply to Why do people in the DC area hate newer and larger homes?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I don't like McMansions -- cookie cutter homes made with the cheapest possible parts. They're just not "charming." That doesn't mean I am a part of the "movement"..it's just my preference. I like smaller homes where I can actually see my family on a regular basis instead of them being on the other side of 6000 sq ft (example). Also, I don't want to heat/cool a big house. Again, just a preference.[/quote]

Hahaha...this is funny.  My first house was one of about 8 models in my 1960's neighborhood.  When I sold the house, literally two of the listed comps were the exact same model of home with different design choices (and my house was different because the one car garage had been converted to another bedroom and a family room addition had been added onto the back making mine have more square footage than those comps).  As for cheapest possible parts, when we built our current McMansion, I hired a general contractor recommended by my insurance company (who I trusted because he had done a good job on my insurance claim in the old house several years earlier) to come in and do two walk-throughs during construction, one for pre-drywall and one for final walk-through.  He has worked in MD for over 25 years and knows the construction codes very thoroughly. During pre-drywall walk-through he commented how solidly built the construction was, pointed out several places where the builder had exceeded code requirements for the state and/or county where I live and several places where the builder had gone the extra mile to do something better than the minimum required.  We were quite pleased and have been quite pleased for the last 7 years.  This house has given us far fewer issues than several of my friends who have classic pre WWII "charming" homes with charming 80 year old problems and huge $$$ repair/renovation/replacement costs.

And despite our nearly 4000 sf, my family of four spends the majority of our time together.  What we like about the extra space is not individual space, but a purpose for every place and not having to put everything related to one task/job/project/pasttime to work on another.  We don't have an office and guest room doing double duty.  The kids playroom and the family room are separate places.  I don't have to find "creative storage" to hide kids' toys.  I don't have to find ways to use the space 6 feet above my head because I don't have room to store anything else.  And I no longer have to do my laundry in the kitchen.[/quote]

NP here, but I laughed at the idea that a 1960s house is old. Yes, houses then were cookie cutter and many (not all, I know, I know) new homes are cookie cutter seeming too. I don't think when people describe the charm of older houses, they are talking about the 60s. I think they are talking about a bit older than that. The house I grew up in was built in the 1800s and I adored it. Yes it had maintenance issues. Pipes froze. There was no central AC. Floors creaked. We had to find "creative storage." But that is what I grew up with, and it is what I love. I do sometimes feel drawn to new houses, but they tend to be the new ones that are constructed to look deliberately like older colonials or victorians, but with some of the modern perks you describe. Unfortunately, I feel like those are few and far between, not just here, but most places since for the most part I think they are bespoke/custom architected. And while I say this is my ultimate house (on a lot with mature trees, of course) I don't have any interest in overseeing a full house construction from scratch.

So where does that leave me? Probably looking at old houses. Personal preference, but I don't care what you do or where you live. [/quote]

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