Small House in McMansionized District (Live Oak, Howe: apartments, mover, how much)

[jdallas]

here's an article from the Nashville area related directly to the original discussion:


This Old House | Features | Nashville Scene


quote pretty much sums it up:
'Architects and realtors say that the teardown trend is propagated by people who essentially want dream homes at addresses where they know their property values will be secure.'


That said, I really wish we would pass an ordinance governing the volume of dwelling as a percentage of lot size.

[mikestrong]

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

There's little difference in quality between $600k new construction in the M Streets and $200-250k new construction in Forney, Little Elm, or Providence. The price difference is due to much higher land values in the East Dallas @ $400k++ vs $50k in the outer burbs.

Thats true. 600k in Mckinney would be radically different then 600k there. I would hate to see the lot cost on those in Dallas.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by mikestrong

Thats true. 600k in Mckinney would be radically different then 600k there. I would hate to see the lot cost on those in Dallas.

In East Dallas, lot value runs in the $300-600k range. Lot values are a lot higher in Preston Hollow, the Park Cities, and the prime 75209 neighborboods like Greenway Parks and Bluffview.

[mikestrong]

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

In East Dallas, lot value runs in the $300-600k range. Lot values are a lot higher in Preston Hollow, the Park Cities, and the prime 75209 neighborboods like Greenway Parks and Bluffview.

Wow.

[EDS_]

Originally Posted by TurtleCreek80

In East Dallas, lot value runs in the $300-600k range. Lot values are a lot higher in Preston Hollow, the Park Cities, and the prime 75209 neighborboods like Greenway Parks and Bluffview.

One of my wife's friends and her husband just bought a lot, probably .9 or 1 acre, close to Northwest Highway and Midway for $1.1M, pretty sure the zip is 75209.

[BigDGeek]

Originally Posted by EDS_

One of my wife's friends and her husband just bought a lot, probably .9 or 1 acre, close to Northwest Highway and Midway for $1.1M, pretty sure the zip is 75209.

I've got a family member in that zip code whose .3 acre plot is worth about 1/3 of that. Funny!

[aznkobee]

I am just wondering... if people are tearing down houses to rebuild McMansions in the neighborhood. Doesn't that mean the area is becoming more desirable that people with more money than the avg homeowners in the area are coming in? If that's the case shouldn't the rise in land value more than offset the decrease in home value? So why complain when you can make money selling the house and move to somewhere you like?

[BigDGeek]

Originally Posted by aznkobee

I am just wondering... if people are tearing down houses to rebuild McMansions in the neighborhood. Doesn't that mean the area is becoming more desirable that people with more money than the avg homeowners in the area are coming in? If that's the case shouldn't the rise in land value more than offset the decrease in home value? So why complain when you can make money selling the house and move to somewhere you like?

Because to some people, money isn't everything. McMansionization (as I call it) also changes the fabric of a neighborhood...and not always for the better.

The neighborhood also looks terrible while it's in transition; there's always a construction site or two on every block. It sucks if you want to stay put.

My parents moved north to Melshire Estates after the Preston Hollow neighborhood I grew up in was almost thoroughly gutted by McMansions. My childhood home was replaced by one. Over the years we watched as family after family moved away and lot after lot was scraped bare and replaced with houses so tall that they blocked out sunlight. Seriously. We also kissed privacy goodbye in the backyard...those massive 2/2.5 story houses had windows looking down into our yard when previously we'd been surrounded by more modest houses...and since the houses were smaller, there was more open space between them too. Not anymore.

Sure, you can move and make money selling the house...but what if you don't want to? And what if moving is something you're not physically capable of doing? My parents are disabled. They couldn't move if they wanted to; they'd have to hire movers and it would be very expensive, very disruptive, and very stressful. But who cares? There's money on the table! Gotta get that MONEY!

[turf3]

It's tricky.

I have a small, old, but nice, house worth, say, $250k in a close-in neighborhood that is (slowly) McMansionizing. I'd like to have a little more space and convenience (for example, a second bathroom). I can't sell it and move to a similarly convenient neighborhood and buy something similar for the same price, unless I want to essentially move down the street.

1) I could sell it and move way way out, and get a much bigger house, in an area that would be less preferable to me.

2) I could sell it and put a bunch more money with it (say another $200-300k - maybe more) to get my own McMansion, and be in a similarly convenient neighborhood, in a much bigger house, and oh by the way, with double or more the property tax. (I'm in my 50s, so I cannot expect long term ongoing increases in my income; I have to be concerned about the long term cost of ownership of which property tax is a significant proportion; I have already inherited everything I'm going to inherit, so if I take a big mortgage I have to either pay on it till I'm in my 80s or use retirement savings to pay it off, thus starting my retirement years with a big house, high property taxes, and a reduced retirement savings.)

3) I could tear it down and build a replacement on the lot, thus incurring more than a year of stress and hassle plus probably a year's worth of rent somewhere while it's being built.

4) I could do an addition to get just a little more space that would be desirable, but I'd probably never get any return on the cost, should I sell the house in the future.

These are the kinds of situations that a significant fraction of the USA are put in, and I am not very happy about it.

[aznkobee]

Originally Posted by turf3

It's tricky.

I have a small, old, but nice, house worth, say, $250k in a close-in neighborhood that is (slowly) McMansionizing. I'd like to have a little more space and convenience (for example, a second bathroom). I can't sell it and move to a similarly convenient neighborhood and buy something similar for the same price, unless I want to essentially move down the street.

1) I could sell it and move way way out, and get a much bigger house, in an area that would be less preferable to me.

2) I could sell it and put a bunch more money with it (say another $200-300k - maybe more) to get my own McMansion, and be in a similarly convenient neighborhood, in a much bigger house, and oh by the way, with double or more the property tax. (I'm in my 50s, so I cannot expect long term ongoing increases in my income; I have to be concerned about the long term cost of ownership of which property tax is a significant proportion; I have already inherited everything I'm going to inherit, so if I take a big mortgage I have to either pay on it till I'm in my 80s or use retirement savings to pay it off, thus starting my retirement years with a big house, high property taxes, and a reduced retirement savings.)

3) I could tear it down and build a replacement on the lot, thus incurring more than a year of stress and hassle plus probably a year's worth of rent somewhere while it's being built.

4) I could do an addition to get just a little more space that would be desirable, but I'd probably never get any return on the cost, should I sell the house in the future.

These are the kinds of situations that a significant fraction of the USA are put in, and I am not very happy about it.

I am sorry... I am sure this is a big problem to you but there's plenty people out there with bigger problem. There's young families, single moms who can't buy houses because the price has gone up so much since you bought your's. There's people who bought houses in neighborhoods that turned ghetto and now their house is underwater or its not worth anything at all.
You have many viable options that you mentioned yourself. To other's they may be great options. Don't be so pessimistic.