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A Growing Problem in Real Estate: Too Many Too Big Houses

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Re: A Growing Problem in Real Estate: Too Many Too Big Houses

#121

Post by scarface74 »

radar wrote: post #110
SketchySeaBeast wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm right there beside you - I'm coming on two years of home ownership, and I'm not terribly enjoying it. I love the neighbourhood, but I just don't think I'm cut out for home ownership. I've had more problems in 2 years of home ownership than I had in a decade of renting. It's cost a ton more money. Is it an investment? Possibly, but I've sunk a fair bit into it as well. I now wake up on Saturday mornings with a lis…

It's not an investment if you live in the property.

Yes and no.

I don’t consider a home an investment in the traditional sense.

I do consider a paid off house to be worth the amount of money that I would have to save to have a safe rate of return to live somewhere minus maintenance and property taxes.

If a paid off house will save me $12000 a year. The value of that house to me is $12000/.04

Also, a house is a great inflation hedge. Rent goes up with the market. The mortgage stays the same. Property taxes and insurance can go up.

Re: A Growing Problem in Real Estate: Too Many Too Big Houses

#122

Post by koverda »

igetspam wrote: post #87
mhb wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What does a rich older couple do in 7500sq ft/700sq m Tools

I like your style! So much making could be done. I'm in a ~4000sqft home right now and all I really want is a workshop with and office. I'd downsize to almost nothing if I could detach from the house and do stuff and thing.

How do you not have space for a workshop and an office in 4000 sqft?

Re: A Growing Problem in Real Estate: Too Many Too Big Houses

#123

Post by C1sc0cat »

hn_throwaway_99 wrote: post #93

One of the trends that I can only hope continues is getting rid of this idea that home ownership (especially single family home ownership) is the American dream. I live in and own a detached single family home (was a compromise with my spouse) and to be honest, I hate it. I hate having to take care of the yard, to deal with unreliable tradespeople when things break, to deal with the huge expense of minor home repairs…

Your paying for the Super as part of your rent/service charge (and get no choice in who fixes your stuff) but you can you know pay some one to do the plumbing if you own your own home.

Re: A Growing Problem in Real Estate: Too Many Too Big Houses

#124

Post by alistairSH »

fatnoah wrote: post #91
alistairSH wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right there with you. We sold our 1800sqft single-family for a 1500sqft townhome shortly after the kid flew the nest. And we still have two bedrooms that are seldom used (one is a guest room, used 3-4x/year, the other is an office used never, except by the dog).

My wife and I have a 2k square foot, 3 bedroom house, along with a kid (11 years) and a dog. (We recently moved there from the city) We're trying to figure out what we're going to do with all that space when kiddo is gone. Even though that's a way off, the likely plan is to downsize to a 2 bed in the city.

We looked at condos. But the monthly fees in our area were high enough to make the economics unfavorable.

Re: A Growing Problem in Real Estate: Too Many Too Big Houses

#125

Post by snissn »

alistairSH wrote: post #85
alkonaut wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't get why you'd want to build an enormous house for your retirement ? If anything, I long for the day my kids leave and I can move to a "simpler" place where I don't need to worry about, or pay for, maintainnig a detatched house. What does a rich older couple do in 7500sq ft/700sq m? I'd run out of ideas for rooms after about 200 sq m, and then I'm left to clean the remaining 500 sq m. anyway...

Right there with you. We sold our 1800sqft single-family for a 1500sqft townhome shortly after the kid flew the nest. And we still have two bedrooms that are seldom used (one is a guest room, used 3-4x/year, the other is an office used never, except by the dog).

awww.. what kind of job does the dog have?

Re: A Growing Problem in Real Estate: Too Many Too Big Houses

#126

Post by C1sc0cat »

SketchySeaBeast wrote: post #105
hn_throwaway_99 wrote: post #93

One of the trends that I can only hope continues is getting rid of this idea that home ownership (especially single family home ownership) is the American dream. I live in and own a detached single family home (was a compromise with my spouse) and to be honest, I hate it. I hate having to take care of the yard, to deal with unreliable tradespeople when things break, to deal with the huge expense of minor home repairs…

I'm right there beside you - I'm coming on two years of home ownership, and I'm not terribly enjoying it. I love the neighbourhood, but I just don't think I'm cut out for home ownership. I've had more problems in 2 years of home ownership than I had in a decade of renting. It's cost a ton more money. Is it an investment? Possibly, but I've sunk a fair bit into it as well. I now wake up on Saturday mornings with a lis…

Are these problems that would have shown up on a survey, I assume that like in the UK you did due diligence on the property first.

Re: A Growing Problem in Real Estate: Too Many Too Big Houses

#127

Post by C1sc0cat »

maxsilver wrote: post #78
mruts wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I mean, not really. I knew plenty of people buying new mcmansions on credit when their household income wasn’t above 80k. Many many Americans over leveraged themselves by buying up huge properties with no down payment.

People use two different definitions of "McMansion", to mean wildly different things. To some people, a "McMansion" is any single family house they happen to dislike. Those are the kind of things working-class people buy on credit. (Homes in the 1200sqft to 2400sqft range). These are basically cheap disposable housing, they are popular because all people have to have somewhere to live, and this is usually the cheapes…

And done the right way (self build) that sort of high quality home can be more cost-effective (depends how much you do your self)

Re: A Growing Problem in Real Estate: Too Many Too Big Houses

#128

Post by roasm »

hn_throwaway_99 wrote: post #93

One of the trends that I can only hope continues is getting rid of this idea that home ownership (especially single family home ownership) is the American dream. I live in and own a detached single family home (was a compromise with my spouse) and to be honest, I hate it. I hate having to take care of the yard, to deal with unreliable tradespeople when things break, to deal with the huge expense of minor home repairs…

This seems like a great area for disruption. You can imagine a property manager for a homeowner who you call for anything. They can charge a monthly fee plus a percentage on top of any (vetted) subs they use. A single person can probably juggle dozens to hundreds of homes; then scale that.

It's the services of a rental property manager without the rental part.

With adults these days (me included) being more technically savvy but less... handy, it seems perfect.

Re: A Growing Problem in Real Estate: Too Many Too Big Houses

#129

Post by SketchySeaBeast »

C1sc0cat wrote: post #126
SketchySeaBeast wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm right there beside you - I'm coming on two years of home ownership, and I'm not terribly enjoying it. I love the neighbourhood, but I just don't think I'm cut out for home ownership. I've had more problems in 2 years of home ownership than I had in a decade of renting. It's cost a ton more money. Is it an investment? Possibly, but I've sunk a fair bit into it as well. I now wake up on Saturday mornings with a lis…

Are these problems that would have shown up on a survey, I assume that like in the UK you did due diligence on the property first.

Some were - we knew we needed a new furnace, and needed to get our fascia repainted, but others, like having our waterline freeze, weren't things I don't think the inspector can look for. Ultimately the inspector can only see what they see, and you're taking on responsibility for the rest.

Re: A Growing Problem in Real Estate: Too Many Too Big Houses

#130

Post by dfxm12 »

alkonaut wrote: post #28
pjc50 wrote: post #5

This is not only "first world problems", but 1% first world problems. Well, maybe 5%: given > For their retirement in a suburb of Asheville, N.C., Ben and Valentina Bethell spent about $3.5 million in 2009 to build their dream home: a roughly 7,500-square-foot, European-style house with a commanding view of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Put $3.5m into https://dqydj.com/net-worth-percentile-calculator-united-sta... and yo…

I don't get why you'd want to build an enormous house for your retirement ? If anything, I long for the day my kids leave and I can move to a "simpler" place where I don't need to worry about, or pay for, maintainnig a detatched house. What does a rich older couple do in 7500sq ft/700sq m? I'd run out of ideas for rooms after about 200 sq m, and then I'm left to clean the remaining 500 sq m. anyway...

1. As an investment to pass down

2. As a status symbol

3. If you have kids (and grand kids), you want a place to host them all at the same time (and this location happens to be popular with the kids...)

They eventually came to the realization that they want a smaller place though...

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