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The OP described my house exactly! Quite comical actually. We recently moved here from TN, and I just can't comprehend how people spend so much $ for houses/lots when you can look into your neighbor's window. A 750K home in TN will get you 5 ACRES and at least a 5K sq. ft house.
The OP described my house exactly! Quite comical actually. We recently moved here from TN, and I just can't comprehend how people spend so much $ for houses/lots when you can look into your neighbor's window. A 750K home in TN will get you 5 ACRES and at least a 5K sq. ft house.
There quite few nice responsive! Nice hear some different view from people on this. I don't have time to reply in detail right now, maybe later.
But to those people who I should move back to MO, I have no intention of doing so! I plan on staying right here in DFW since things are going great for me Looking at housing is kind of annoying. But working is going nicely, sometimes I actually enjoying going to work. A lot of other stuff to do (like Hindi Movie Theather, Anime Conventions, etc). I have no plan of moving out of DFW, what do plan on doing is eventually finding a nice house to buy here in DFW!!!
This thread is cracking me up. Please continue, everybody.
What is really funny is the challenge to the Texas pride unintentionaly posted by the OP. The reactions are priceless and nothing less than what I would expect from Texans.
If car jackings were the norm in Dallas suburbs than I bet there would be a handful of people here saying, " So what? Maybe we LIKE to have our cars broken in to! Go back to your car stealing free town if its so much better!"
Ya know, the topic of the thread is laid out right in the title. I first opened this thread expecting to see people piling on with their own gripes about their Dallas homes. Instead, I found people piling on the OP for daring to suggest that the DFW housing stock isn't perfect.
Beyond the OP's gripes, here are mine. Feel free to assassinate my character. But I'd prefer you'd list your own honest irritations about your homes.
1) Privacy fences. What gives with everyone having to encircle their land?
2) Brick houses. As a choice, they're fine. But it seems that 90%+ of the houses in the northern suburbs are red brick. As a siding, they are very difficult to refresh, so as the houses get to 30 or 40 years old, they look very shabby.
3) Bermuda grass. It hurts to walk on this with bare feet.
4) Garage size. My pickup barely fits in the garage of my (not cheap) brand-new house. What's up with that?
5) Storm drains. How come they don't have covers? I bet many a kid has lost baseballs, frisbees, etc., down these things. Also, they just seem dangerous.
Ya know, the topic of the thread is laid out right in the title. I first opened this thread expecting to see people piling on with their own gripes about their Dallas homes. Instead, I found people piling on the OP for daring to suggest that the DFW housing stock isn't perfect.
Beyond the OP's gripes, here are mine. Feel free to assassinate my character. But I'd prefer you'd list your own honest irritations about your homes.
1) Privacy fences. What gives with everyone having to encircle their land?
2) Brick houses. As a choice, they're fine. But it seems that 90%+ of the houses in the northern suburbs are red brick. As a siding, they are very difficult to refresh, so as the houses get to 30 or 40 years old, they look very shabby.
3) Bermuda grass. It hurts to walk on this with bare feet.
4) Garage size. My pickup barely fits in the garage of my (not cheap) brand-new house. What's up with that?
5) Storm drains. How come they don't have covers? I bet many a kid has lost baseballs, frisbees, etc., down these things. Also, they just seem dangerous.
Because the things the OP was looking for ARE available in the DFW area IF they bother to look. There is a HUGE variance of housing available in the DFW area that if someone can't find what they are looking for then I don't know what they want and it probably has never been offered anywhere in the country. Want a "round house", I know where some of those are. Want an underground house, know where several of those are as well. Want one on stilts, yes you can find that here as well. Want a basement, believe it or not there ARE some builders that have built them. Want a completely wood frame house, can get that as well. Want stucco, available. Lakefront, got it. There are so many TRUE custom home builders in the DFW area that anyone saying they can't find what they want is not looking. Well, unless they only want to spend a pentance and want the moon
1. Privacy fences. I have a pool and I prefer not to be parading around in my bathing suit or b-day suit for all the world to see. I grew up w/ a 4' chain link fence and a front entry garage. MANY areas still have this type of fencing and some areas actually only allow wrought iron fencing. It is possible to find such areas IF that is what one desires.
2. MOST builders and developers have specifications spelled out that houses w/ the same brick color must be "x" number of lots away. However, there are some builders out there that allow the same floorplans to be built in a row of each other and let the brick be the same. You just avoid those areas by looking around and/or asking if it is a new development. Besides, bricks in the red tones have ALWAYS been the most popular no matter where in the country one is IF brick is the preferred exterior of choice for that area. Sure beats having every house for miles all the same color of stucco.
3. If you don't like Bermuda you can always get St. Augustine. Easy fix. To even complain about this is........ well, petty to say the least. Most builders DO give an option.
4. Find a builder that DOES build garages the more proper size. Some builders skimp on this in order to have the "bigger" house in square footage and most people do NOT pay attention to garage size BEFORE they build. Most builders DO allow you to enlarge the garage IF there is enough room on the lot. If you REALLY want this then you just make sure to get a lot large enough to accomodate your needs which does require a lot premium usually AND you ASK for the dimensions for the garage BEFORE you build. I've never had a problem w/ any of our houses (3) not being large enough for a full size truck or Suburban or BOTH at the same time. That includes our "starter home" of all 1616 sq ft w/ only a 2-car garage we built brand new 15 years ago. Most builders now do build a 3-car garage STANDARD. If your in a new house w/ only a 2-car garage then you went w/ a builder that does not do that. Again, something that CAN be managed easily w/ some due diligence on the part of the buyer. When we built our 2nd home having a 3-car garage and a LARGE lot was a requirement of ours. We looked till we found what suited our needs and we went over the lot sizes w/ a fine tooth comb with the salesman to insure a 3-car garage would fit.
5. Grew up w/ them like this. No big deal at all. Actually I have never lost anything in one. Guess I'm just lucky.
ME,
1. I don't like the lots where the houses are crammed on top of each other and the yard is hardly big enough to spit. So I avoid those areas. I don't care if the house is over $1M........ I won't spend it on something w/ a postage stamp sized lot.
2. I don't like builders/developers that do let the same floorplan and exterior colors be the same right next to each other. I avoid those developments.
3. I don't like entire neighborhoods of front entry garages. Grew up w/ it, inlaws ALWAYS had them, I drive thru one every single day and I just flat out don't like it. I've found houses in areas that don't do them. Well, the one now has the front j-swings for the golf course lots and I can deal w/ that.
4. I don't want to be the only house in a development w/ certain features like a media room, 3-car garage, etc that add value to my home at the time of my purchase but don't hold as that is not the "standard" for the area.
5. I don't like HOA's that spell out EXACTLY what flowers and trees one is allowed to plant. I don't like HOA's that don't allow outdoor kid features like the swingsets/forts. Or tell me what kind of car/truck I'm allowed to have.
6. I like HOA's and neighborhoods where the owners care about their property and take care of it. I like neighborhoods where there are activities to get involved in and get to know your neighbors.
As for what I don't like about my own house: I wish it had a GIGANTIC mudroom. Other than that I'm perfectly happy w/ it. Then again we only looked at houses that fit our criteria and made sure we would be happy w/ our decision and would not have any regrets. We almost bought another house before this one. We were looking for over a year and found one and put a contract in on it that got accepted. That day right after we signed I got sick to my stomach. I've NEVER felt like that after buying ANY property be it for our personal home, business or pleasure. My gut told me it was not the one for us. Within 3 days we said no thanks. I did not care if I lost my earnest money or not. That day I instantly felt better. A week later the house we did buy went on the market and we put in a contract on it w/in the first week of it being listed. Never regreted it since and am GLAD we did not buy that other house.
When I first came to Fort Worth in the eighties, I came to Texas with the "everything is bigger in Texas" slogan creating certain expectations. The first and most notable exception to this that I saw was the tiny lot sizes. Mind you this was in the early 80s. What I was used to in the southeast, decent lot sizes, large backyards, was the exception in Texas.
Of course I paint with a large brush, but the general rule of thumb was true. Now, I see these type of crammed developments rising in Atlanta and other southeastern cities, but Texas, IMO had it going on from the get-go.
The reason for no basements (as I have been told) is the expanding clay soils, they will not support basements without extra foundational support systems that make them not as cost effective as in other parts of the country. Almost all homes in the southeast had basements and it is a wonderful feature to have so much extra space for not all that much more money.
When my kids go back to Georgia to visit family, they comment on the "huge" yards. Being an unabashed supporter of my homestate, I remind them that this is normal and their Texas lot is tiny. But then, we are now encountering my personal biases as my kids were all Georgia born but are now in Texas because their mother got the judge to let them all move to texas with her but I digress into my personal soap opera that none of you came here to read about...........
This is another example of "what we grew up with is the norm" and then being aware of the differences when we go to another region where things are different. The OP has come into some criticism for his/her critique of the pervasive suburban TX home. It is what it is, so we accept it and it does make for some conversation items to compare. However, no one likes outsiders coming in and saying "it is better where I came from..." and the standard "you can go back then" reply.
There are things about the housing stock that is better than where I came from in the broad scheme of things. For example, the majority of the Atlanta suburban housing stock from the eighties on is brick front only with siding on 3 sides. This is so tacky to me, I refused to buy one and went for a 60s era ranch in Cobb County even though it lacked some of the amenities I could have had in a newer home. Texas homes for the most part are all brick. I appreciate this difference. I could list others, but I am rambling now..........
But the "everything is bigger and better in Texas" idea (dare I say myth?) that is commonplace does lead one to be at least a little shocked to find broad examples to the contrary. The trees are another counter to this as well, but that is another topic that has already been beaten into the ground on this forum.
Hey, I'm no different than anyone else; there are times I have to do my best impression of a whirling dervish to get my business done - who among us hasn't? But even when I find it necessary to contort and bend like a gold-medal gymnast, I've found that even the most confining water closet enclosures are adequate. In fact, I've found the proximity of the walls useful for leverage on more than one occasion.
I would say that my biggest complaint is a lack of soundproofing and exhaust fan capacity in said enclosures. Hey, I may emerge from the ordeal sweating, with my hair messed up, and out of breath, but I don't want someone down the street hearing what sounds like two wildebeasts mating, and I don't want the odor to cause the plaster to peel .
"What is really funny is the challenge to the Texas pride unintentionaly posted by the OP. The reactions are priceless and nothing less than what I would expect from Texans."
And I'd expect a reponse like this from someone who can't read. As others have commented, it's not a "Texas pride" issue. The OP made a broad (and incorrect) complaint about "DFW houses". And it's just a silly claim to make.
Dallas has (literally) every type of residential building type imaginable. And if the houses in Plano (or Richardson, or M Streets, or Forney, or Uptown, or Murphy, or Preston Hollow) aren't to your liking, there are plenty of other alternatives.
Of course, complaining on an internet message board is probably the most effective remedy...
I agree with the original poster. That was a pretty good description of many of the suburban areas of DFW. I think most of it has to do with real estate developers wating to get the most out of their development, i.e. they cram as many homes as they can into their development so they can make more money.
Second (and maybe I am stereotyping a little here) many people in DFW want to have bigger and nicer things. I have never seen so many Hummers, Porches, Mercedes, etc. driving around than I have seen since being in DFW....except maybe California. I think the same might apply to their homes. They would rather have a large (impressive) home on a small lot than a more modest home on a large lot. So, I guess what I am saying is, the builders will build what people want to buy. People in DFW evidently want large homes on itty-bitty lots.
You can find areas in DFW that have the type of home you are looking for, but they are definately the exception, not the rule.
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Looking at housing is kind of annoying. But working is going nicely, sometimes I actually enjoying going to work. A lot of other stuff to do (like Hindi Movie Theather, Anime Conventions, etc). I have no plan of moving out of DFW, what do plan on doing is eventually finding a nice house to buy here in DFW!!!
Most builders DO give an option. 
