Howell - The Reserve at Manasquan River (Ramtown: coupons, custom home)

[Morton]

Howell - The Reserve at Manasquan River

Anyone have any information on Howell - The Reserve at Manasquan River. It is a development by Toll Bros, Ryan Homes and Lennar. It is about 90% done.

I am interested in buying here.

Also any info on Howell in general would be appreciated.

[howellnj]

Do you mean those MC MANSIONS!!!! and where are you coming from?????

[Morton]

Howell I guess you are familar with the area? Do you have any insight into the development. It appears to be very nice. The peole I hve met appear to be friendly.
I do not know about the "Mcmansion " reference. They are nice homes most are about 3500 - 400o sq feet, a little small for a mansion. LOL
Also I am coming from Staten Island.

[NewHomeHappy]

Dear Morton:
From my Google search: Social criticisms

The term "McMansion" is sometimes used as a criticism of capitalistic culture as a whole. It has been used in the context of "the biggest house on the smallest block for the lowest price" [13] —- criticism of the quality of the construction, criticism of the perceived wastefulness of McMansion developments, and criticism of their effect on nature.

The term is sometimes also used to negatively stereotype the owners and residents or such houses, with reference to their taste (or purported lack thereof) and their aspirations. In this context, the term may imply conspicuous consumption: that the houses are bought on the principle of paying the lowest dollar-per-square foot price in order to "get more house for the money", or that the sizes of the houses display the owners' wealth and social status.[14][15].

While McMansions may be stereotyped in these ways, similar criticisms are sometimes made of large suburban developments in general, as development strategies, design, and construction methods are similar in these types of developments as well.

So in MY thread, then someone threw the term "McMansion" at me, I replied, hey that's derogatory. Not nice to say, etc. But that's how it goes here. I'm sure this new development will be beautiful. See ifyou can visit one of the builders other sites. Talk to some homeowners. We all work long hard hours & clip coupons and are not wasteful. Dollars are invested & saved. This is how we can afford to live in our new beautiful development. I love my new home in NJ. Best of luck to you Welcome to NJ too! I love Ryan Homes !!! Send me a PM.

[dzrustyfan]

I live in Ramtown and it doesn't ring a bell. 4k sq ft!!! Sounds pretty McMansion-ish to me...

[howellnj]

THANK YOU!! some one aggress with me....

[dzrustyfan]

I also thought McMansion was a play on the convenience and ease with which you can now find such large homes in NJ. It seems like developments are going up like wildfire all over the place, usually with these big homes. Yet try and find a new development with slightly smaller homes, and all you find is 55 and over communities. I never really perceived it to be a cost thing.

How come I wander around and see the signs advertising "New Luxury Estates Starting in the 700s", yet I can't find a sign advertising "New Single Family Homes Starting in the 200s"????? Why does everything have to be a Luxury Estate???? Thing is, people are gobbling them up like french fries...

There's an area of property a short distance from my home, where a builder is putting up "2 custom homes starting at $789,000". Huh??? Why couldn't they put 3 new homes starting at 300 and give the new home buyer a chance???

Then again, we saw the signs we like during our visit to NC, but that's another story...

[BobKovacs]

Please bear a few things in mind when you look at these homes:

- Toll, Ryan, et al, are notorious for building crap that just barely meets code, but putting gingerbread like crown molding and tall ceilings in to make you think you're buying a "luxury" "custom" home. In reality, you're buying junk, but I guess everyone else is too, so at least you're part of a big group...lol.

- The market in NJ is starting to turn, and you're probably still buying right near the peak of prices. Therefore, don't buy with the intention of having any major appreciation in the near future, as you may actually end up with just the opposite situation.

- In reference to my first point, even though you're buying a new home, you need to have it inspected, preferably during construction if possible. Do NOT use an inspector referred by a RE agent (agents generally refer lenient inspectors who aren't "deal killers")- seek out an inspector who works specifically with new construction, and cheak his credentials. You aren't looking for someone who's going to tell you what you want to hear- you want someone who is going to find all of the flaws in the house, and provide detailed narratives and photos you can bring to the builder for remedial action.

There were several articles recently on major problems with new home construction in NJ, many of which involved water intrusion, mold, and structural defects- all items that the typical new home buyer will never see until it's too late.

Oh, and BTW- a 4,000 SF home definitely qualifies as a McMansion- call it a derogatory term if you like, but it's reality- does a normal-sized family really need 4 times the square footage that it needed 30 years ago???

Bob

[Wah]

Do you know any "strict" inspectors?

[BobKovacs]

Originally Posted by Wah

Do you know any "strict" inspectors?

Unfortunately, I can't help you there. One thing that may help would be to find someone with a professional engineer's (PE) license- at least that would indicate some level of formal training. NJ still hasn't fully ironed out how they're going to license home inspectors, so just about anyone with a ladder and a flashlight can call himself an inspector. Membership in the national associations like ASHI also doesn't mean anything other than that they've paid a $50 membership fee.

Sorry I couldn't be of more help in that regard.

Bob