Are McMansions going out of style?
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 10. 3.05
We who preach that less is more liked the article in the New York Times that discussed how more people are looking at the quality of what they buy rather than the size. They point out that with fuel prices rising, smaller and more efficient makes sense, and "plywood palazzos" thrown up with cheap materials are losing their appeal. ::New York Times (free subscription may be required) and be sure to watch the slide show.
What's wrong with plywood?
My wife and I are house-hunting. "I don't want a mansion," said my wife, "I'd just have more space to keep clean."
We've found a small-ish, well-constructed townhome that's in a nice neighborhood in a small city in Amish country, in our price range, less than a mile from my job, a farmer's market and less than two blocks from a grocery store, a bakery and a pub.
Yup. We got real lucky.
I certainly hope so. In urban parts of Northern Virginia, it's hard to find a home built after 1990 that's less than 5,000 square feet.
Toll Brothers, one of the largest builders of McMansions reports that their highest volume model is now 4,800 square feet, while WCI, another large builder, says their most voluminous seller is 5,425 square feet (WSJ, April 2005).
Is this really a reasonable volume of space for a single family home?
Yes, and Toll Brothers will charge you for the privilege of getting on the WAITING LIST to write a contract to build one of their homes. We're also seeing in NoVA early 20th century housing torn down to make room for these McMansions. When will it stop?
i stopped reading when the story said "we are limiting ourself to 3500 square feet"
*rolls eyes*
Paging Sarah Sunsanka, come in Sarah Susanka!
Hahahaha! My wife and I have four kids, and just moved this year out of a 950 square foot 3 BR Ranch we owned for 12 years into an 1800 square foot 4 BR 1916 Craftsman boarding house.
We DO live in a McMansion NOW! It's nice that when the kids are in their rooms we don't have to hear every whisper. Of course 1800 SQ/FT isn't much by today's standards, even less with 4 kids. It's HUGE to us.
I really don't think there isn't a problem with these McMansions. I can understand the social and environmental problems associated with these supersized houses. On the other hand as someone who lives in a small house, it can be a nightmare with a growing family.
The moral of the story is, consumers should have the right to decide where they live. If governments tell us how to live, well that sounds like communism to me.