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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

#281

Post by simplify »

rifung wrote: post #250
brightball wrote: post #231

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree and disagree. On the one hand, yes, you're right that the repair expenses can be a big deal. If you don't want anything but the basics for the technology in your home, sometimes a home warranty can be a good option too but experiences vary significantly. On the flip side though, after my 15 year mortgage is up I'm not going to pay another dime outside of maintenance on this thing. On a 30 year, you'll still p…

> On the flip side though, after my 15 year mortgage is up I'm not going to pay another dime outside of maintenance on this thing. On a 30 year, you'll still pay a fortune over the life of the loan which makes the renting argument a lot closer. If you can assume historical returns, renting is a financially superior choice. Well, assuming my math was correct. Both are big assumptions admittedly. The reason is that whe…

How do you invest a would-be down payment such that it compounds effectively?

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

#282

Post by madengr »

koverda wrote: post #122
igetspam wrote: post #87

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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?

A house won’t support the weight of a 2 ton milling machine. Need a detached building with concrete pad.

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

#283

Post by anthonypasq »

AnimalMuppet wrote: post #164
maxsilver wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I also hate maintaining a detached single family home with a yard. I also hate being responsible for the fixes. But that situation is still far better than renting. When we rented, we were subjected to eviction at any time, for nearly any reason, for basically no notice (60 days, which in the US is effectively zero notice). Your subjected to every whim the crazy wildly-irrational housing market throws at you (we've h…

> we've had 12% yearly rental increases for a decade straight now That was part of the motivation for buying my first house. The rent was going up $50/month every 6 months, and the mortgage was going to cost only $100/month more than the rent. I figured in a year I'd break even, and in 2 years I'd be ahead.

lol at assuming mortgage is the only expense to owning a house

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

#284

Post by mcguire »

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…

Plus, there are all the benefits of renting an apartment:

* If your neighbor decides to throw a party at 2:00 a.m. on a Wednesday, you're automatically invited!

* Getting to meet all your neighbor's pets on the 4'x6' area of lawn designated for walking them!

* No need to worry about interior decorating; your favorite wall color is always white! (And your favorite exterior color is that weird greenish-beige!)

* No need to worry about that hobby that takes up too much space: you don't even need to consider it!

* If you're really lucky, the excitement of drug busts and gunfire in the parking lot. Your own action-adventure show!

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

#285

Post by andrewla »

pbuzbee wrote: post #97

This article claims that these homes are going because buyer preferences have shifted towards smaller homes in walkable areas. I don't disagree with this, but I'm surprised the article didn't factor in the cost of these homes. These homes are priced in the millions and are generally not in areas known for high salaries. Coming up with that much money is out of reach for most members of younger generations. Some peopl…

Ideally I would say that at a lower price, they would sell just fine, but the reality is that these homes are in a bad position. Appraisals mean that the property taxes will be sizeable in and of themselves -- even if they priced it at $1 there would not be many who could afford it.

That's not even mentioning upkeep and utilities.

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

#286

Post by low_poly_shiba »

dsfyu404ed wrote: post #102
low_poly_shiba wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

hmmm you elsewhere, on a topic about the harrowing conditions of FB moderators, claim that "there's a lot of variance between individuals ... I'm not the kind of person that's particularly bothered by graphic violence. My opinion of humanity is dark enough to accommodate it" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=20223267 maybe what you consider an ideal world or even positive outcomes or even onerous regulations are n…

>maybe what you consider an ideal world or even positive outcomes or even onerous regulations are not what others have in mind, what with your "dark views of humanity" and all? Many people (dare I say the overwhelming majority) on HN agrees that real estate needs a heck of a lot less regulation so supply can do better meeting demand and costs can drop. We may argue about the minutia but pretty much everyone on HN als…

[dead]

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

#287

Post by thorwasdfasdf »

I'm not the least bit surprised that no one is buying it. It sounds like they got hugely ripped off "spent about $3.5 million in 2009 to build their dream home: a roughly 7,500-square-foot, European-style house with a commanding view of the Blue Ridge Mountains" That's ridiculous: almost 500$/sq foot. That's almost bay area east bay pricing!

Why do that when you can go to Houston and get the same thing at 100$/sq foot?

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

#288

Post by ethagknight »

mensetmanusman wrote: post #275
rdiddly wrote: post #268

On one of my harder-hearted days I would've felt schadenfreude (rich assholes waste obscene amounts of money on tacky shit, get burned, film at 11), but today I feel sorry for them. The whole thing is just sad. On the macro level, such a tragic mis-deployment of resources. And on the micro level, misplacing one's priorities on material things and finding out the hard way that it doesn't bring any meaning to your life…

Maybe someone could disrupt the ownership model here and invite a number of families to move in together?

Not so much a disruption, but splitting these huge homes into duplexes is an easy ticket. HOAs and neighborhoods will fight it because "there goes the neighborhood"

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

#289

Post by aqme28 »

mcguire wrote: post #284
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…

Plus, there are all the benefits of renting an apartment: * If your neighbor decides to throw a party at 2:00 a.m. on a Wednesday, you're automatically invited! * Getting to meet all your neighbor's pets on the 4'x6' area of lawn designated for walking them! * No need to worry about interior decorating; your favorite wall color is always white! (And your favorite exterior color is that weird greenish-beige!) * No nee…

An apartment doesn't have to be a terrible apartment.

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

#290

Post by mcguire »

treis wrote: post #279
i_am_proteus wrote: post #221

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Several thousand more per year doesn't sound too far off: if you own, you're responsible for home repairs: roof, HVAC, electrical, plumbing, appliances, siding, painting, etc. I budget $2,000 a year for repairs on a modest-sized home; most years it's under $1,000, but HVAC and roof are infrequent and fairly expensive.

Even if we say that the owner is spending those several thousand dollars on maintenance that just means they're cash flow neutral. They are still making thousands through increased equity and appreciation.

Well, yeah, except 2008 kinda put a dent in that.
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