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Interesting that you point this out because that attitude is not very common IMO. In the Victorian era, you wanted the house on a busy corner or a busy street so that people could see how much money you have. Today, it seems, the biggest and most expensive houses are relatively tucked away where nobody sees them. Being at the end of a dead end street is considered a good thing. A side effect of the desire for more seclusion is that in most cities you find a lot of houses on the main roads dilapidated or destroyed, while one or two blocks in you find beautiful neighborhoods.
I would guess that carriage/horse/pedestrian traffic was much quieter than modern traffic noise.
My current house might be a reflection of me, in that the landscaping can get a little ragged before I stop being lazy and do something about it.
I'm also in the market for a fixer-upper in Youngstown's historic Wick Park neighborhood right now. The idea that others judge how successful I am by the house I live in, is not something I consider when looking at houses. I'm more interested in the features of the house that appeal to me, (like lots of original features, woodwork, general architectural character) and the house's potential impact on the neighborhood. The house I almost bought (until the owner backed out) was actually one of the more modest homes in the neighborhood. But it had many of the features I'm looking for in an old house. And, it is in a high profile location, so its restoration would have greatly benefited the "morale" of the neighborhood. The next house I may be looking at is much grander, and could probably qualify to be on the national register of historic places. But again, I'm more interested in the features the house has, and how its restoration can benefit the neighborhood. It is much more interesting architecturally, but is in a less-prominent location.
Hope that makes sense to someone else besides me.
Just wanted to add pics to illustrate what I'm talking about.
Here is the house the owner backed out on:
Here is the house I may be looking at next, two blocks away from the first one:
I think most people just want a house to live in, not to show off. There are of course some exceptions. For example these days some want a "green" house with solar and wind power and other features to show how environmentally conscious they are.
In all seriousness I can honestly say I have never considered what other people think of it. There's no HOA here. And I'm not trying to impress anyone. It's for my own utilitarian uses, aesthetic inclinations and occasional artistic silliness. It's currently painted barn red with billiard green trim. There's a 4 1/2' high fence because I like big dogs and the vegetable garden is in the front yard because that's where the sun is.
A persons house is always saying something about them, whether they intend for it to or not. At the very least like in ^sleepingwolfs^ case, his house might say " I dont necessarily care if you like my home, its my house, not yours.." Likewise someone who buys a huge stereotypical McMansion-esque house in a subdivision on a cul-de-sac, more often than not probably doesnt think to deeply into architectural/planning subjects, and their home merely says " I pretty much just care that my family and I project to the world that were normal and are successful enough to live where everyone else does." Or like it was said earlier, some people might be egotistical in their image, say like by retrofitting their home with as many green alternatives as possible. It doesnt have to be an ego thing, but it is for some people. Their home might be stupid looking, but they dont care, because they only care that you see that they are "green".
I personally dont own my ideal home yet, a home that truely represents me, but when I do, I hope that my house says something like.... " Im truely interested in the history and present day status of my neighborhood, and by my own houses image, im trying to contribute to the overall mutual aesthetic of my neighborhood, while maybe maintaining some slight little unique things about it." I hope that it looks like I care about the neighborhood as a whole, and not just my personal kingdom. Thats just me though.
It's possible to have a "green" house that doesn't look like a mobile home mating with the International Space Station. Insulating walls, rehabbing (not replacing with vinyl--ugh!!) wooden windows and installing proper curtains and awnings, ceiling insulation, high-efficiency HVAC, and other relatively easy and cheap stuff can make a historic home very energy-efficient indeed. And if your utility company has the option to pay a surcharge to provide energy from renewable sources (mine does, although they get about 25% of their overall power from renewables already) you don't even necessarily need solar panels on your own roof--you're using power generated from a solar panel or wind farm somewhere else.
I bought a historic house because I like the idea of living in a home that is a work of art in its own right, something rare and special today even though it was a very mundane sort of house when it was built a century ago, the house of a bank clerk and later a blacksmith. I fixed it up in a "green" manner in unobtrusive ways, but really, the greenest house is one that is already built.
A persons house is always saying something about them, whether they intend for it to or not. At the very least like in ^sleepingwolfs^ case, his house might say " I dont necessarily care if you like my home, its my house, not yours.." Likewise someone who buys a huge stereotypical McMansion-esque house in a subdivision on a cul-de-sac, more often than not probably doesnt think to deeply into architectural/planning subjects, and their home merely says " I pretty much just care that my family and I project to the world that were normal and are successful enough to live where everyone else does." Or like it was said earlier, some people might be egotistical in their image, say like by retrofitting their home with as many green alternatives as possible. It doesnt have to be an ego thing, but it is for some people. Their home might be stupid looking, but they dont care, because they only care that you see that they are "green".
I personally dont own my ideal home yet, a home that truely represents me, but when I do, I hope that my house says something like.... " Im truely interested in the history and present day status of my neighborhood, and by my own houses image, im trying to contribute to the overall mutual aesthetic of my neighborhood, while maybe maintaining some slight little unique things about it." I hope that it looks like I care about the neighborhood as a whole, and not just my personal kingdom. Thats just me though.
Thanks! This is generally what I was trying to say, but much more concisely.
We've had a good-sized potted cactus on our front porch for about five years. The point being that the people who live here are introverts who don't want to be bothered by door to door salesmen or LDS missionaries.
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) was actually one of the more modest homes in the neighborhood. But it had many of the features I'm looking for in an old house. And, it is in a high profile location, so its restoration would have greatly benefited the "morale" of the neighborhood. The next house I may be looking at is much grander, and could probably qualify to be on the national register of historic places. But again, I'm more interested in the features the house has, and how its restoration can benefit the neighborhood. It is much more interesting architecturally, but is in a less-prominent location.
