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Aceplace makes some very sound observations in how this "status" idea comes into play but there are other aspects. When one accumulates a certain amount of wealth in cash or profits they have to somehow offset them w/ expenses. Otherwise Uncle Sam takes more than what one would like to pay. It comes down to pay XX amount in taxes or spend X amount and only have to pay X amount in taxes. I'm still out XX amount BUT w/ at least 1/2 of it I did get something in return be it a new car, house, etc. Most of this effects those that can determine their own pay and have a business they run. The business is making a great profit but at the end of the year if they don't spend some money they will have to pay a HUGE sum in taxes. OR, buy the boss (yourself) a new car and only pay 1/2 or less in taxes. Along w/ other items that are allowed to be used for deductions (updated computer systems, company vehicles, office furniture, etc). Sure we could live off of "x" amount in annual salary BUT that hurts the business in taxes. So you give yourself a raise and now you have to do something on the personal end to offset the taxes. Having a mortgage is one of the few items left we can deduct. Sure I'd LOVE to pay my house completely off but I sure as heck do not want to find out what my income taxes would be w/o the interest to deduct. Sure I can deduct the taxes paid but when every penny counts.......... it matters. It is a balancing act for sure.
As for the article I will say that what we DO NOT need more of are the cheaply built low-low end tract homes. These are the developments, neighborhoods and owners that have been hardest hit. These were the builders throwing up 4000 sq ft boxes for a whooping $140K and financing everyone they could. There was not one ounce of quality in these homes and they do nothing to help the area. Sure they might have gotten some people into a home that might not have ever been able to but at what expense. There property values do not rise nor do they attract the longterm homeowner that cares about their community. They turn into rental properties or have a high turnover w/ many foreclosures. Smaller homes are fine but the quality CAN be there at ALL LEVELS! When people/consumers get rid of the Walmart attitude of the biggest house for the least amount of money w/o caring about quality is when we will see a difference. These are also the homes that did not have the highest regards to saving energy and the options available to be a top notch energy efficient home were not used.
If and when we do downsize it will probably end up being the same amount dollar wise but a smaller home and still have lots of the upgraded amenities. I still want the quality and the craftsmanship of my current house. Downsizing does not nor should it mean that one has to forgo quality. There are some "zero lot" custom homes in one development by me that are on the golf course. I've been in several of these homes and they are STUNNING! They are smaller than the 4000 sq ft McMansions but they still have the quality one would expect in a house in that price range. Plus, they are selling. There are people that do want and desire a nicely built, quality home w/ the amenities but not the HUGE yards and less than 3000 sq ft.
Attitude towards solar power. That is one thing that needs to change BIG TIME!!! Not until cities and HOA's start accepting such things as solar panels as acceptable on homes will we see more go that way. I'd LOVE to have some solar panels. The thing is I don't want HUGE solar panels that take up 1/2 my roof nor do I want them on the ground. I've been thinking about checking on something to mount on the inside of the backyard on the fence that would get the afternoon sun. No one would see it but us as it would be in our backyard. Heck, I'd even let it slip and not ask for an architectural committee approval for it from the HOA . Seriously though this is a problem. Recently on the news they showed a homeowner that installed a small cylinder skylight in his home for his bathroom. On the roof it looked just like an attic fan probably smaller than w/ a small plastic clear dome on top. The HOA got all in a tizzy and made him take it down. He was just wanting natural light in an interior bathroom so that they would not have to use the artificial light all the time. This is the attitude that needs to change before we can make great strides in solar power.
Yeah, the HOA's are out of control. So much for personal property rights!
I lived in Allen and couldn't put up panels (not that I would, cause they are too expensive at this point in the game, price still needs to moderate some to be feasible in our region) cause my house faced South. They could not be placed on a street facing side.
My house in Dallas faces South. But now, there is no HOA stopping me from installing solar panels. Now, I can't deploy solar cause I love my mature trees. Supposedly, GGE SunCube just signed a distribution deal with a US partner. SunCubes are pole-mounted, so I can put a few mounts along the ridge of my house, out of the shade from the trees. 4 of them would cover 25-30% of my usage - especially since it would generate power when the grid needed it the most - during the middle of the day. I'd be an exporter of power by day and a consumer after 5pm, when my AC kicks back on before I get home.
That does depend on your electric provider. It is called Net Metering. My provider does support Net Metering, so I could spin the meters backwards when the sun is up and forward when it's not.
MOMOF2--yes, HOA that don't have a clue about issues like solar collectors are a big problem---but in TX with all our hail storms I don't know how insurance companies would cover solar panels--are they hail resistant...there are at least 2 companies in california that are making/selling roofing tiles/shingles that are photo cell collectors---they roof the house with then and plug them into the system...people can generate enough electricity to have a negative electric bill...but you have to have maximum sun effect -- if you have trees that overshade the roof line then you won't see any benefit...
Regarding the smaller but stunning patio/zero-lot homes...Cambridge Homes does great developments using that concept --the problem for us is that their cost per sq ft is 160 dollars--that is a little steep--most other homes like that have the same cost per sq ft as conventional construction and sometimes higher--making a 2700 sq ft house (3/2.5/3) more expensive than a 3400 sq ft home--with a smaller lot---that is not an economic package that most people see as a good deal...
there are two kinds of homeowners who are concerned about the energy features of homes--those who can't afford to pay an outrageous electric/energy bill because of their income and those who care about environmental issues--sometimes they live in big houses and sometimes they live in small houses...I do think that in time enegy needs will become a status market like size or a pool or location are now....but I know two builders of custom homes 4000+ sq ft that usually cost more than half a million now--they don't do much energy design/features except for thermal decking and recycling h/w systems--and standard thermal windows because most of their buyers until now at least could care less about energy features--if they can afford to buy the house, they don't worry about the electric is basically how they look at it...doing someting like a gray water system would not happen in a spec home--too much money with probably no recouping it...
did anyone realize that one of the worst energy drains in a home is the electric garage door opener---needs lots of electricity to power the motor--
think that Green bldg is getting a much bigger push because so many companies have finally realized that it IS cheaper to build with an eye to energy features and water saving design because that cuts overhead for YEARS maybe--and think that once people work in Green designed buidings and hear how much it really cuts the maintenance cost of owning they will be more ready to buy or integrate energy features into their homes...
the problem is that DESIGN is the crucial element becuase so many energy features are cost effective at the intial stages and retrofitting them is just not cost effective...
take radiant barriers on roofs--you can do it when you build or if you had a wood roof and are re-roofing you can do it then--but once a composition shingle roof is up (with its plywood base) you can't afford to take it off to add a thermal barrier...you can add reflective paint to inside the roof in attic or add reflective strips to help beat back the heat but those are not as effective and really require some quality installation to work effectively...we missed that opportunity when we re-roofed about 8 years ago--did not realize then how much better we would have been to have spent the extra 1500 --
Gray water systems YES_-every house should have been designed with them for the past 10 years in TX because we have know about our looming crisis of water shortage...but it is expensive and requires planning to accomodate those features--also requires a somewht bigger lot and some type of basement or storage facility--this is an expensive system to design for a small home because of what it adds to the price per sq ft...
I agree with many of the features that NEWBIE put out--but having better design of developments where homes have better orientation to the sun--where trees are really kept and integrated into the plan--where storm drainage is designed to filter rain/run-off water and use it to irrigate the common areas of the development---would help---try not building so many new developments and instead refurbishing what you have (there is just not as much money there is there?)
Cities could do so much to reduce the idiling time of cars if they better organized their system of traffic contols/red light systems to maximize traffic flow...
they could institute better masss public transportation instead of planning on adding more toll roads and hugh belt ways that just encourage people to live far away and drive to work...
Having a builder liscensing program with high standards and enforcing code would be a big step forward in quality construction---having a better system of dealing with buiders who build defective homes would also help...
Last edited by loves2read; 09-22-2007 at 07:26 AM..
It is interesting that our first home purchased for retirement is larger than any home we have ever owned. There are a number of reasons for this:
- The majority of the desirable lots are developed with higher value larger homes.
- The majority of homes with higher quality finishes are larger homes.
- Resale of compact homes has been difficult, although that may change.
So selection of moderate size homes is very limited. We wanted a certain setting and level of features, and those we not available with smaller homes. We were not interested in shopping for land and managing a custom building project.
There were a few lifestyle issues that made a larger home work for us:
- We are in a new area and wanted to have room for family visits so more than a small guest room was needed.
- We are in a ten year process of converting IRA to Roth with taxable consequences so it is an ideal time to have the tax incentives available with housing ownership.
We moved to an area with a very moderate climate and lower utility costs so the priorities are different than they would be in Texas. We looked at downsizing and did the opposite and I am very pleased with the result.
Solar is still quite expensive. The only cost effective solar energy right now is to use it to supplement your hot water heater and for your pool (which also can act as a radiator at night to cool it off).
What I'm interested in is wind power. The area has enough wind in the winter months to generate power, but not quite enough on most summer days. You can get vertical axis turbines that hook into your panel for around $3500... which is a really inexpensive figure compared to most solar installations. In a place like Amarillo or on the coast it would be a no brainer.
It may seem trivial to some, but it is absolutely essential to social harmony that people are able to exhibit tokens of status (or stature) in the consumer goods they use.
Anyone have any ideas?
Sure. That could be resolved with an active gym membership...
Looking down the road, when these large cheap houses get older and start turning over, my guess is they will be filled with multi-generational families or just multiple familes. Some already are. I know some folks who live in a new Grand home in Allen, over 4,000 sq feet homes, and several of their neighbors are multi-generational (and from other countries where maybe it's typical to do that?).
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. Seriously though this is a problem. Recently on the news they showed a homeowner that installed a small cylinder skylight in his home for his bathroom. On the roof it looked just like an attic fan probably smaller than w/ a small plastic clear dome on top. The HOA got all in a tizzy and made him take it down. He was just wanting natural light in an interior bathroom so that they would not have to use the artificial light all the time. This is the attitude that needs to change before we can make great strides in solar power.
Supposedly, GGE SunCube just signed a distribution deal with a US partner. SunCubes are pole-mounted, so I can put a few mounts along the ridge of my house, out of the shade from the trees. 4 of them would cover 25-30% of my usage - especially since it would generate power when the grid needed it the most - during the middle of the day. I'd be an exporter of power by day and a consumer after 5pm, when my AC kicks back on before I get home. 
