Living in a smaller house

[Broken Arrow]

LOL! Yes, I still got my eyes on that one, Tina. Yeah... nothing that a little drapes, a new coat of paint, and a bulldozer can't fix.

(In case anyone reading this didn't know, that's Tina's actual backyard tool shed! Too funny! )

edit: "Garden location". LOL!

[Bookie]

Originally Posted by Broken Arrow

LOL! Yes, I still got my eyes on that one, Tina. Yeah... nothing that a little drapes, a new coat of paint, and a bulldozer can't fix.

(In case anyone reading this didn't know, that's Tina's actual backyard tool shed! Too funny! )

edit: "Garden location". LOL!

Hey, I thought you had dibs on Ima Saver's garage efficiency?

Fickle youth. Next they start competing for you.

[ren]

I don't know, can Ima Saver beat Tina's offer of only $100 a month? Will BA keep his word and go with the original offer even if she can't?

Find out next time, on As the Saving Advice Forum Turns!

[Broken Arrow]

Originally Posted by Bookie

Hey, I thought you had dibs on Ima Saver's garage efficiency?

I do! See, I'm a high rolling whale now, with all these real estates I'm a'flippin'. The best thing about it all is that it's so easy! Easy! And with your hard earned cash *cough* er hard work and my system, you can't lose! Tune in on the following informercial message and find out how you TOO can get in on the action! (Operators are standing by!)

I don't know, can Ima Saver beat Tina's offer of only $100 a month? Will BA keep his word and go with the original offer even if she can't?

Find out next time, on As the Saving Advice Forum Turns!

LOL! Mentally, I hear an organ chord playing in the back.

[sakigt]

My condo is 945 sqft and perfect for me. Its cheap, easy to maintain, and I dont have to fill it with "stuff"

My boyfriend wants to buy a house with a garage and Im thinking: Why? We can rock my condo for some years, save money, then throw down for a nice home.

Perhaps the reason is he is 25 and out of school and I am 23 about to dive back in.

[Diolla]

My house is 900 sf and it is perfect for me, after my divorce I realized I couldn't afford the upkeep/utilities on the 1600 sf house we owned when we were married so I moved here. Instead of $150- $200 a month just for heating/cooling it is $50 a month. I bought it for $34,000 ($27,000 mortgage) and my payment is $165.00 (P&I only) a month. I got a really good deal on a fixer upper owned by a nice guy. It is the crummiest house in a nice neighborhood. The move has allowed me to make some goals that would not have been possible had I stayed in the larger house and frankly I like the smaller house.

I agree that it is the layout that counts though. My house has nice sized BR closets, storage built into a windowseat, storage under the benches in the eating area, built in closet in the laundry and bathroom and a small (3x6) pantry off the back of the kitchen. Any unused space is a storage space and there are no hallways. The rooms just flow together with the bedrooms off the livingroom and the bathroom and laundry off the kitchen. It is very efficient.

I would not however like a condo, I can't stand sharing walls. BTW-so you will know houses in this neighborhood are usually much bigger 1600-2100sf and sell for $90-$100k so as you can see housing is cheaper here but not as cheap as my house. It was probably built as a 'mother in law' house for the huge house next door. Estimates on the renovations are around $15k and the 'after' appraisal is $83k. We'll see I plan on making it my last house.

[syracusa]

OK...topic I'm unusually passionate about!! House size.
I did not read all the other posts but...let's see:

IMHO (which by the end of this post may not turn out that humble, apologies in advance), Americans on average, live in indecently large houses, usually of mediocre to poor quality/built, whose purpose is still unclear to me - other than maybe the following:

1. To acommodate people's lack of knowledge as to how to make use of space and how to make the house look full and beautifully decorated at the same time.

2. To acommodate the large amount of junk on sale people collect by thinking of shopping as a sport or as a passtime, because well...there's nothing better to do (weak personal relationships, few touristic, cultural attractions, the inexistence of the concept "strolling about town, down a boulevard" as leisure pursuit instead of shopping; or "hanging out" in the local plaza cafe, in the street, European style).

3. Finally, to allow builders to make profits. Huge profits I mean.

After all, Americans are about the same size as the other humans on this Planet and they still have two legs and two arms, not more - same kind of creature. So no additional need for space here.
And yet...you hear so many Americans currently living in very spacious houses by world standards... that they need to move to a bigger house because their family has grown (ta-daaaaa!!!: they have one child now!!)

I have been in this country for 8 years and I still cannot get over the enormous amount of wasted space that the average American family fails to make use of in a typical house - and then they complain that there's no more space, hence they need to move into a bigger house. And bigger. And then bigger.

To use HBO Bil Maher's concept: NEW RULES!!!!

1. Stop buying the amount of junk you buy. Buy few and buy high quality - yes, yes, yes - the kind of stuff "rich" people buy.
You CAN afford it if you stop the "junk buying" sport.

2. Use up your space, not just horizontally but also vertically.

Stop placing a small little picture (or two) in the middle of that McMansion's humangous wall and then call that "decorating". It's not decorating - it's just a bad idea that only ups the cheap factor and it's plain bad taste.
Take those kitchy framed pictures off and buy instead some serious, tall furniture that would cover your room wall-to-wall and ground to ceiling. You'll see how much storage space you'll get then and how the appeal of a bigger home might actually go down.

Use armoirs in addition to those-built in closets!
(edited for "sweeter tone" though, honestly, I am still simmering when I see people with completely empty walls complaining about space).

And again, cover your walls with furniture specially made to deposit lots of things in. In the little space left on the wall then place your little framed pictures (the less kitchy, the better). Little pictures belong to little spaces.

Unless you really are rich (ok... newly-rich, because if you were "rich" you would be living in a Mansion, not in a McMansion) and have some huge, glorious framed art to place on walls to the point where the walls will be almost entirelly covered - don't assume that that huge wall is for placing a little mediocre picture on it.

Or even worse, several little pictures.
Or the worst - tons of little pictures with family photos.

Walls look better almost entirely covered - by furniture and art. Period.
(Your kids' scribbles do not qualify as art, sorry).
Otherwise your house looks barren and as if you are in a constant state of "ready to move out". And by the time you sink all your money into that McMansion mortgage that will impress friends with its size, you will surely have no money left over to decorate it adequately with heavy furniture and glorious art - as houses of respectable size require.
I've seen about a million big American houses suffering from this "empty" syndrome on realtor.com. Or the other syndrome: "filled with a million chaotic nicknecks".
Not sure which is worse.

3. Stop assuming that the number of bedrooms you must have should IMPERATIVELY equal the number of kids you have + 2 or + 3 (parents, guest, office).
Instead, start raising siblings that will actually love each other and will be best friends later in life, offering each other hands-on, real support ... why? Because they have built common chidlhood memories, having grown up close, giggling together and sharing kid stuff at night in their bunk-beds by simply being forced to share a room - as opposed to doing their own separate thing in their own separate rooms: perfect strangers in the perfect American home.

Physical closeness can contribute to emotional closeness and sentiments, believe it or not. How can you get to know your sibling really well when you spend most of your childhood either in outside-of-home activities or in separate rooms, sharing little to nothing?

I for one, even if I had 10 to 20 bedrooms in the house (which I would never actually agree to have even with Bill Gates' assets transfered to my account) I would still have my children share the room with a sibling.
Siblings should grow up together, not separately.


Conclusion:
You already ARE living in a big house!

[Diolla]

IMHO (not humble, honest)

Maybe you should read the other posts.

I find generalities irritating and the attitude insulting. I agree with some of your points but your way is not necessarily always the best way.

[syracusa]

Originally Posted by Diolla

IMHO (not humble, honest)

Maybe you should read the other posts.

I find generalities irritating and the attitude insulting. I agree with some of your points but your way is not necessarily always the best way.

It could be. :

I am aware that many people on this forum may live in small places. But what I wrote was not addressed to specific persons on this forum.
It's about a national trend that anyone can notice. Yes, it is a generality - but generalities have their place.
As for "humble", there's nothing humble about people living in very big, unused spaces and then saying that they have no more space and they need more.
It just begs for abrasive, less-than-humble comments.
Maybe the reason why what I described feels "irritating" - is because it is real and unwarranted?

I don't know. I just wrote what I have observed throughout the years. That's all.

[PRICEPLUS]

syracusa, I live in a Cape Cod house. The ground floor of my house has about as much square footage as the aprtment I grew up in with my eight siblings and parents. It is somewhat true that people get a bigger house and then have to get more "stuff" to fill it! I am looking to de-clutter myself. My basement is a disaster! My wife would have liked a bigger house but that comes with bigger expenses and taxes!

A greatmany folks on this site are not in huge houses nor do they want to be. I orefer the coziness of my home. I don't want to live in a McMansion that is a cookie cutter of all the others going up! I have oak hardwood floors in my house. You don't get that today! I have a one car garage and we live on a 1/3 acre. That is palatial compared to how I grew up!

Don't assume that all AMericans are the same. You need to travel the country a bit to see what it is all about! We are as diverse a group as you'll ever meet!

[syracusa]

Originally Posted by PRICEPLUS

syracusa, I live in a Cape Cod house. The ground floor of my house has about as much square footage as the aprtment I grew up in with my eight siblings and parents. It is somewhat true that people get a bigger house and then have to get more "stuff" to fill it! I am looking to de-clutter myself. My basement is a disaster! My wife would have liked a bigger house but that comes with bigger expenses and taxes!

A greatmany folks on this site are not in huge houses nor do they want to be. I orefer the coziness of my home. I don't want to live in a McMansion that is a cookie cutter of all the others going up! I have oak hardwood floors in my house. You don't get that today! I have a one car garage and we live on a 1/3 acre. That is palatial compared to how I grew up!

Don't assume that all AMericans are the same. You need to travel the country a bit to see what it is all about! We are as diverse a group as you'll ever meet!

No, of course I am not assuming that about ALL.
I have seen small, cosy, high quality and very beautifully decorated American homes - where you can just feel that "homey" spirit.
But I think that the trend towards large, poor quality, impersonal, ego-stroking housing is worrisome as mentality.
I am of course aware that most people on this forum would probably not prefer that kind of lifestyle.
Maybe it is preaching to the choir - that is probably the flaw in my post.
But you never know who reads it.

[PRICEPLUS]

Ego stroking housing is a problem as is the huge trucks people use to run to the grocery store. It sometimes gets crazy with the status symbol syndrome! I think people somehow think that flashy objects means they are superior to others. Pretty sad if you ask me! I have noticed the penchant for larger and more expensive homes. It truly is sad.

I don't think your post is flawed. It is just that most of the folks here are, as you say, not into the wasteful lifestyle anymore!

[Ima saver]

We just built an 1800 square feet, but then decided to finish the basement. It really does not cost that much to finish a basement and then you have doubled the space. So, this house now has 6 bedrooms, 3 1/2 baths and 2 kitchens and is almost 3600 square feet. I would love to move into this house. I could have my office and computer room on the main floor and not upstairs like I do now.

[syracusa]

Originally Posted by PRICEPLUS

Ego stroking housing is a problem as is the huge trucks people use to run to the grocery store. It sometimes gets crazy with the status symbol syndrome! I think people somehow think that flashy objects means they are superior to others. Pretty sad if you ask me! I have noticed the penchant for larger and more expensive homes. It truly is sad.

I don't think your post is flawed. It is just that most of the folks here are, as you say, not into the wasteful lifestyle anymore!

It's true.

[JanH]

The only thing I really had a problem with in syracusa's post was the definition of "art." I for one, don't feel that spending tons of money on some paint on a piece of canvas practical. And some of what I see in museums doesn't qualify as "art" to me. Although, I do like a lot of beautiful paintings. I don't have pictures of the kids on the walls or even in my wallet, but I reserve the right to do so if that is "art" to me. Every person's taste is their own, whether art or decor. They are the ones who live with and enjoy it each day.
Sorry for the "rant," but for some reason that bugged me a bit.

[boefixepa]

Syracuse, I happen to agree with you in my area. It's a general statement, and generalities are there for a reason. This forum leans to the more conservative minded people so many here will not fall into this generality. That said I agree with you....

[Gruntina]

In my case the sq ft house I mention (1300) would seem large in most cases but you can not walk in the upstairs since the ceiling except for 4 ft strip since the ceiling bows to the floor after 4 feet. Its 13 by 15 ft upstairs. I guess can be used for storage and not much else. The other room is super long and skinny. 13 by 7 feet. But the kicker is the closet is on end and the door is on the other long end. Can’t put a bed in there without jumping over it. so I feel the sq feet usage is miss leading and reality it just a one room house as the useable bedroom is large enough for a bed but only a bed with a limited closet. This house cost over 400,000 in the "as in" condition and there is just nothing with that price in any surrounding areas where I live stretch out for 3 hours around. So smaller house where we live does not mean cost efficient!


It’s either living here or live in a 600 ft town home with no yard and no privacy and only one bedroom surrounded in a very congested bad side of the city for the next level price. I much rather live out in the mountains were deers traverse on our yard.

I am seriously suspicious of how so many people own all these millions of homes located here. An older home of 40 years of age runs for 750,000!!!!

[tinapbeana]

syracusa, having lived in the atlanta area i can say that sandy springs is a hotbead of the mcmansion mentality and may not be giving you a very well rounded view of the area or country as a whole (and you're right, i say this not know where else in the country you have lived or visited).

most older american homes are right in keeping with what is a more traditional view: like the bungelows in candler park off of ponce between decatur and midtown. i lived in a 1300 sqft 3BR house in that area on a tiny lot and absolutely loved it. by current builders standards, you could never fit 3 BRs in 1300 sqft.

i think part of it may be the 'fill it up' mentality. america is a very big country, and places that are undeveloped can seem overwhelming. i think a lot of builders try to fill the space up. again, just one of my many opinions.

[JanH]

I, too, wonder what on earth people in this area are putting into these humongous houses and how many people actually live there. I'm not sure it is a totally new phenomenon. Last century, my great grandmother lived in a high-ceilinged, large roomed, three story house in town with a full attic and basement. Her neighbors did, too. We have Historic homes in this area that are fairly large, and plantations and other areas have mansions for the Vanderbilts and other high society. In other countries, there are castles and estates. I am sure there are many more of these huge homes than ever before, but the reasons for building them probably have been around for a very long time.

[JanH]

Okay, so I thought about the art thing again. A large, tasteful painting would look better on the walls. But I still don't have a problem with people putting photos on display. Especially those people who can take awesome photographs and capture amazing scenes, including those with their loved ones in them. I have several amazing ink drawings from a guy whose eyesight is now too bad to draw. I absolutely love some of these.