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Personally, I believe that people that buy McMansions want to portray an image, in an attempt to make themselves feel superior (and perhaps they cannot afford the real (custom made) house). Just like buying cubic zirconia.
Just a personal choice, but I would rather have nothing than something that is a 'fake'.
Maybe people just want features that are more commonly and less expensively found in a McMansion.
How about attached garages? Even people of modest means get tired of trudging through snow and scraping windshields in the winter.
How about an open floor plan? Oh I guess the less affluent people are banished to the cramped closed room in the back of the house to prepare meals, while everyone else is "living"in the living room.
How about jetted tubs? I guess only the rich deserve to soak in a hot tub.
How about a loft to allow for computer room? Oh that is right...only the rich have computers.
how about a roomy kitchen with a center island... lots of space.
That's right, I forgot, only rich people need to have more than 2 feet of counter space to prepare meals.
These are just a few of the amenities that are not common in older homes, but are found in new construction "McMansions".
You may find an older smaller home that may have 1 or 2 of these amenities.. but seldom will you find an older home that will have them all. If you do, then you are paying a helluva lot more than a McMansion.
A slang term that describes a large, opulent house that may be generic in style and represents a goodvalue for a homebuyer in terms of its size. This type of home is built to provide middle and/or upper middle class homeowners with the luxurious housing experience that was previously only available to high-net-worth individuals.
This is what makes the McMansion appealing to many people who want creature comforts.
I said before I was pretty shocked by the McMansion's I went in. I expected more I guess. As far as people wanting the desire to own one, I don't really care however I don't think the homes are appropriate for older neighborhoods that have much smaller homes.
Thanks for the pic fallingwater-
That pic perfectly exemplifies the original definition of the McM. Huge footprint, two story, that towers over the neighboring house.
Maybe people just want features that are more commonly and less expensively found in a McMansion.
How about attached garages? Even people of modest means get tired of trudging through snow and scraping windshields in the winter.
How about an open floor plan? Oh I guess the less affluent people are banished to the cramped closed room in the back of the house to prepare meals, while everyone else is "living"in the living room.
How about jetted tubs? I guess only the rich deserve to soak in a hot tub.
How about a loft to allow for computer room? Oh that is right...only the rich have computers.
how about a roomy kitchen with a center island... lots of space.
That's right, I forgot, only rich people need to have more than 2 feet of counter space to prepare meals.
These are just a few of the amenities that are not common in older homes, but are found in new construction "McMansions".
You may find an older smaller home that may have 1 or 2 of these amenities.. but seldom will you find an older home that will have them all. If you do, then you are paying a helluva lot more than a McMansion.
This thread has nothing to do with being rich or not... perhaps it has to do with personal likings and taste. Putting a huge house on a small lot, or building huge houses that are all clones, one after another in a neighborhood, or skimping out on quality building materials just to increase the size of the house, are all a matter of personal choices.
Some people want a big rock on their finger, and buy a cubic zirconia. Some people want to attempt to impress others, so they buy a fake Rolex at a flea market for $20...
Depending on where you live, I would wager you could find a true mansion, say 10 years old, for about the same price as a McMansion, which will have much higher quality. I know I did... here in New England.
Quote:"Maybe people just want features that are more commonly and lessexpensively found in a McMansion."
Last time I looked, a $4000 Miele dishwasher costs the same whether or not it was in a mansion or a double-wide.
For what it's worth, of the few McMansions I have been in, I saw laminate flooring (it is a picture of wood). Hollow-core pressed-wood doors, frequently painted trim (so they can use either the fake polyurethane trim, or fingerjointed wood), vinyl siding, vinyl windows, forced hot air, anything brick or stone is all veneer, etc etc.
Quote:"How about attached garages? Even people of modest means get tired of trudging through snow and scraping windshields in the winter."
Detached garages are relatively rare around here in southern NH, unless in addition to the attached there is a carriage house for the tractor, implements, and summer cars.
Quote:"How about an open floor plan? Oh I guess the less affluent people are banished to the cramped closed room in the back of the house to prepare meals, while everyone else is "living"in the living room.
Again, affluence has nothing to do with this. My house is not a McMansion, cost less than most of McMansions in this area, but I bought it when it was 10 years old. For open concept, it has 27ft ceilings in the kitchen. I am not sure I have ever been in a house where there is a 'cramped closed room in the back of the house to prepare meals'; usually the main kitchen is right near the family room and dining room.
Quote:"How about jetted tubs? I guess only the rich deserve to soak in a hot tub."
Around here, even virtually all of the starter homes have them. They are not exactly that expensive. I only put them in for resale.
Quote:"How about a loft to allow for computer room? Oh that is right...only the rich have computers."
You are really hung up on the 'rich' thing, that has nothing to do with this thread. Just use one of the bedrooms for an office/computer area. It is not hard to find a house with 4 bedrooms (and if you have 3 kids, it is also not hard to find a reasonably sized house with 6 bedrooms).
Quote:"how about a roomy kitchen with a center island... lots of space. That's right, I forgot, only rich people need to have more than 2 feet of counter space to prepare meals."
Apparently you have not been in some of the older homes that have massive kitchens (and pantries). These are easy to find. Some of the newer houses do too (though it took me a little while to find mine). What is even better is a smaller second kitchen as well, a 'butler's kitchen'. Those are not that hard to find either. This stuff is NOT expensive.
Quote:"You may find an older smaller home that may have 1 or 2 of these amenities.. but seldom will you find an older home that will have them all. If you do, then you are paying a helluva lot more than a McMansion."
I can give several counter-examples of both those statements. Two of those examples I own. Why would you want to find ' an older smaller home ' when you state you want a big home?
Take it for what it's worth, but I have owned a bunch of homes (never a McMansion, but will all the amenities, and more, with nothing 'fake', and huge, and paid a helluva lot less than a McMansion.
Everyone is entitled to buy whatever makes them happy. It makes no difference to me.
Quote:"Maybe people just want features that are more commonly and lessexpensively found in a McMansion."
The problem is that they are getting junk that breaks or cannot be used.
These places frequently hae all kinds of structural problems because they are slapped together in a rush to keep costs down.
Quote:"How about attached garages? Even people of modest means get tired of trudging through snow and scraping windshields in the winter."
Detached garages do require any more windshield scraping in the winter than attached garages. However attached garages look absolutely awful, create a risk of exhaust fumes in the house, create heating and insulation problems, security problems and infestation problems. If someone cannot walk 12 feet from a garage to a house, they probably should not be driving to begin with, they should be in a hospital.
Quote:"How about an open floor plan? Oh I guess the less affluent people are banished to the cramped closed room in the back of the house to prepare meals, while everyone else is "living"in the living room.
I am amongst the more affluent people and I think an open floor plan is awful. I do not want to live in a barn or a warehouse. If I have guests, I do not want them to have to shout over the sounds of Medal of Honor or whatever that game is called. I do not want the clanging banging sound or the mess in the kitchen to be part of my socializing. A traditional floor plan is much more classy and practical. I think that the whole "open floor plan is better" concept is something implanted into our sociecty by builders who wanted to cut costs by reducing walls and doors. The absurd "great rooms" are nto great at all. They cost a fortune to heat, waste a lot of the available space in a house and serve no purpose. They are also hard to clean.
Quote:"How about jetted tubs? I guess only the rich deserve to soak in a hot tub."
Junk. Most do not work after a few years if they get much use. However most of them never get used. If you want a hot tub, get a hot tub. Those hot tub/bath tubs are garbage. Even when they work they do not work well. When we planned our house, we put in only two bath tubs. I would have preferred one. The jetted big two person tub has been used about three times in five years. These are another feature promoted by builders a a must have. However no one really wants them until the builders work their magic and convince the sheep that it is a must have item.
Quote:"How about a loft to allow for computer room? Oh that is right...only the rich have computers."
Why woudl you want computers in a loft? Lofts are hot, they are open to noise, hard to get to and from. I like having computers either in a closed room where I can work or play without disturbance, or in a place where I can quickly get up and answer the door, or stir the pot or whatever. A loft is none of these. Although I have an office and a library with computers in them, I do most of my at home computering in the bedroom with a laptop. A loft os another one of those features that are really useless, but seem neat and are easy to convince sheep buyers that they must have one. Since they are really cheap to build comared to an actual room, builders love to promote them as a luxury feature.
Quote:"how about a roomy kitchen with a center island... lots of space. That's right, I forgot, only rich people need to have more than 2 feet of counter space to prepare meals."
A roomy kitchen is nice. Our old farm house has a good sized kitchen (21x26) but we built it on. Many very old homes have small kitchens. However you do not need a McMansion to get a larger kitchen. Large kitchens do not require tasteless architecture, a dozen pointless roof peaks, and absurd fake features. _
Quote:"You may find an older smaller home that may have 1 or 2 of these amenities.. but seldom will you find an older home that will have them all. If you do, then you are paying a helluva lot more than a McMansion."
If you include worthless and stupid features, this is true. However you can get the truly nice amenities in a reasonably sized and designed home. If you want a giant entry hall, wasted space for a loft, great room, several huge seperate bath tubs that you will never use, worthless fireplaces that generate no heat and look awful, a kitchen "nook" that holds a table for two (when you have a family of five) and a pantry that can hold enough food for five months, then yes, you probably need to sacrifice quality, taste and durability for these items.
I like the comparison of a McMansion to a Hummer. Sure it is big, but it is completely useless for anyhting that you would want it for. The big space is mostly wasted, so it only holds four people (I have seen 5000 s.f. McMansions with only three bedrooms). It has lots of shiny useless features and attachments. It is not good performing on road or off road, not efficient, ugly, tacky and tasteless, but hey it is big and it does say "I spent a lot of money"
I just thought of another good comparison. Those kids bikes in discount stores that have loads of fancy looking junk on them, weigh a ton look great int he store, but are too heavy and poorly made to ride any distance at all.
I do not much care whether people choose to buy McMansions, or Hummers, or those department store bikes for kids, but I will never understand it. I will never say or think hey cool house (or car or bike). Actually I generally come away with the impression that a person who buys any of these things is a fool and easily led by marketing. Eventually I might determine that a McMansion owner is capable of original thought, but it would take some convincing. I guess I am a house snob.
I jsut thought of another great comparison. Remember those boom boxes with all kinds of big chromed plastic things, flashing lights and dials that serve no purpose, large fancy appearing speaker housing with tiny junk speakers hidden in them.
Here's the thing. There are different people and they have different thoughts on what features are useless or stupid.
I don't find an open floor plan, a jetted tub or loft to be useless. I don't like a house with a million tiny rooms.
Some thins are unarguably useless. a 15x 12 pantry cannot serve any purpose unless you are feeling large numbers of people on a commercial basis. Those two story "great rooms" serve no purpose but to waste interior space. Bath tubs big enough for three people with cheap underpowered jaccuzzi type jets that break in a month if you use them cannot be argued to be particularly useful. 17 roof peaks on a house that is just a basic rectangle - how is that not useless? A dining room that is too small for a table and four chairs. Useful? Not stupid? How so?
You can argue the loft, but have you ever actually lived in a house that has one? They are incredibly neat looking. The concept is exciting because it is different. However in real life usage, they are horrible and a waste of space. We ended up just making it a decorative space in the place where we had one.
Some things are a matter of taste like stainless steel appliances, marble floors, granite counters. However some things are just plain useless and or stupid. Sorry you will never convince me of the modern philosophy that there is no good or bad, just different viewpoints.
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