One thing that I haven’t seen mentioned here–what about living in a historically designated house, where you have to deal with even more restrictions? Man, I would hate to live in a house that strangers could dictate to me how I could or could not remodel my house. I can see both sides of the issue in this thread. But I sympathise more with people who want to build/remodel a house to their tastes.
When they were doing teardowns in a neighboring city here, they called the rebuilds Bigfoots. We have a couple on our street and it doesn’t bother me, since it brings up the property value. But they do look disproportionate and kind of silly mixed in with the bungalows and small ranches.
OK, in Montreal we have neighbourhoods that are specifically known - famous, even - for the architecture of their houses (the Montreal duplexes, with or without spiral staircases in front depending on the age of the house). Say, Hotel-de-Ville or Laval streets above Prince-Arthur. Beautiful, characterful, funky old houses, no two quite the same, but responsible for a great deal of the neighbourhood’s feel.
I tell you that if they ripped down one of those houses and replaced it with some modern abomination, the value of every one of those houses would decrease. They’re part of what makes the neighbourhood good to live in. Furthermore, when they front a public space (like the Carré St-Louis) they’re part of what makes the public space enjoyable for everyone. Even though I’m not there all that often, I shudder to think of the carré filled with great huge boxes bristling out at all sides.
So yes, the appearance of a house IS important to the value of the neighbourhood. Sometimes more so, sometimes less so. But it is. I understand why someone might resist the appearance of such architecture in their neighbourhood.
Oh, and:
I just saw something like these the other day - they were using them to (finally) change the light bulbs in my impractical, but very beautiful local metro station.
I always wanted, if I ever make it big, a house on the courtyard style. A big house, the shape of a square, with most of the yard in a hollow inside it. Good for, you know. Dogs and kids to play in. Sort of a japanese castle thing
Yep, CONTROL!
Mansions? Houses? Hah!
Here in sunny Fargo N.D., houses are going the way of the Dodo. All developers seem interested in building here anymore are enormous apartment buildings. 100-300 unit deals. Human Hives, as I like to call them. Maximising the profit potential. Why build five houses on a plot of land that, once they are sold, cease being a cash cow, when you can build a 100 unit apartment building that keeps paying you until it is uninhabitable in 50 or so years.
The few houses that are built are all of similar design, and shoddly made.
And our state leaders wonder why young families are leaving this state in droves…
I do residential framing, and have built numerous sizes & styles of new homes. It is possible (not always easy) to build large homes on small lots, and to fit attractively into existing landscapes & neighborhoods. This is a cool thing, and shows that you care at least a little bit about the community you are a part of.
McMansions strike me as antisocial. My term for them is “Ego-Houses” (as in “Big enough to house the owner’s ego”). I think some of them are designed to be bigger & more expensive than their neighbors as a prestige thing, ie: “Hey everybody! I’m so rich, important, and special that I can waste a lot of money and land to build way more square footage & amenities than any of my lesser neighbors could ever use.” The whole point is NOT to blend in, but to attract attention - the louder your neighbors bitch about the monstrosity, the better.
I pity them.
People should be able to build the home they want. But if the style is going to be out of place with it’s surroundings, maybe it would be better to find another location where it fits in.
I probably have no business caring where other people choose to live, but I have a deep-seated and irrational conviction that people shouldn’t be allowed to have that much money and no taste. Harrumph.
There is a development of McMansions across the street from a cemetary, on land which had been used for farming before, five minutes from the chateau, and it strikes me as a peculiar location for such expensive houses.
I know you either have to build on open land or tear an existing structure down. There is a toll road pasing, through withing 500 yards as well.
It weirds me out a bit, to see McMansions across from the cemetary and I’ve no idea why.
Sweetie, poor taste may offend others, but it causes no measurable adverse effects!
If I want a “zero lot line” there’s nothing you can do about it. Hey, don’t get me wrong- I don’t care for them myself, but it’s none of my business!
As long as I am in compliance with all applicable building codes, city and county ordinances and any CC&Rs, it’s totally up to me how the house looks or is situated on the lot.
At least the neighbors are quiet.
Marc
Mc Mansion tracts are the slums of tomorrow.
When the next Energy Crisis hits, no single family is going to be able to afford something that takes two furnaces in the winter and two AC units in the summer because it sticks way out into the wind and sun. These obsolete hulks will end up like many Victorians did in the '40s through the '60s–as rooming houses or makeshift 3-to-5-unit apartment houses. Since, unlike the old Victorians, they are devoid of charm nobody will rescue them or their neighborhoods 50-100 years hence.
The smart money is going into earth-sheltered homes that present a low profile to the elements. If I had the price of a Mc Mansion, I’d spend it on an earth-sheltered home instead.
Ironically, '50s ranch houses, which sit low to the ground, have wide roof overhangs to keep out direct sunlight in summer, and are structurally sound, though in need of modern wiring, are being ripped out to make room for wasteful, ugly Mc Mansions.
It would be nice if people actually had a choice in what their homes look like. I know a few who have bought McMansions the last few years, and while they can make some small cosmetic changes, it still has to fit into a basic pattern. If I ever do buy a house, I would prefer the type of house mentioned above. Since I have not been looking I have no idea if one can be built these days in these new subdivisions. Unfortunately, we in the US sufffer from the bigger is always best, whether it is houses, autos or restaurant meals.
I’m not really sure how new this situation is. My parents bought a house made in the 70’s in Texas and there were only 7-10 floor plans used to construct the neighborhood. They did a decent job of making cosmetic changes on the home so they didn’t all look alike.
I can’t say the same thing for some of the new housing developments whether they contain the McMansions or not. In 1999 I moved into a new house my friend built in Little Elm, Texas. I had trouble telling the house apart from the neighbors for the first few months I lived there. I’ve had the same problem in neighborhoods dominated by McMansion homes.
Marc
this is my problem with these types of homes.
Granted, I do not care for the aesthetics of the designs, but c’est la vie.
What does bug me is that most of these homes are built poorly.
I am concerned that they will deteriorate at a faster pace than older homes.
Most seem to be built with cheap materials. Most also have a facade made of expensive materials (such as brick) and the back is in siding. Driving past a communitee of mcmansions built 5 years ago, I see that most home owners have done nothing to take care of the siding (the paint is chipped and it looks weather beaten…This is Texas and the heat is very damaging).
What concerns me is that these mansions are built for the here and now. Most homeowners (from what I have seen) prefer to spend their money on interior replacables (a nicer stove, a nicer carpet) as opposed to nice exterior finishes.
What I have seen happen is that in communitees as such, the owners move on to new mcmansions and the old neighborhood goes down hill.
I call them cathedral garages.
I think it’s sad, but not surprising that people prefer to live in houses that are aesthetic failures. They resemble dentist offices and small businesses. They are impersonal. They seem to be designed to convey intimidation rather than hominess. Ever feel the welcoming aura of a two-story foyer with marble floors? What about the monochromatic interiors? Wouldn’t a print from the hand of Thomas Kincade look right at home on those walls? The soaring ceilings create vast areas of unused cubic footage to create a greater sense of grandeur at the expense of intimacy. I live in Minnesota and I can’t imagine what the heating coasts would be for such an enormous space. They build ‘em by the gross though.
I think it’s all just part of the current trend of “supersizing” America. I’m heartened to see more people who hate these new boxes. I used to feel like a lone voice on this matter. I think the tide is slowly turning.
They have been tearing out the orchards and doing away with the pastures that once surrounded our home and building the “McMansions”. The one saving grace is they are required to have a 2 acre lot of land as the absolute minimum. When this all started we were approached by one of their neighborhood organizations and were given copies of their rules and regulations and strenously informed that they would appreciate it if we adhered to their rules. The first rule was no livestock and any pets must be confined to the interiors of the homes. Good Lord! This is the country! Look around, most of us have horses, there are cattle and sheep as well. I don’t understand why they buy a house in a rural area to “enjoy the country life” and expect it to be a city.
I certainly hope your reply was a hearty “fuck you!” What in the hell where they thinking coming to you and your neighbors and expecting y’all to live by their rules? On another note you say that they’re building on 2 acre lots. Do they really expect people to keep their pets indoors at all times instead of letting them run around on 2 acres of land?
Marc
Our reply was indeed a very hearty “fuck you”! And yes, they do expect the people living there to keep their pets indoors.