Do all homes on house hunting trips start to look alike to you?

[loves2read]

if you ever visit any home design sites with forums about kitchens--there are plenty of people who have moved on from granite countertops and the ersatz Tuscany look that is still going strong in some parts of DFW home construction
and anyone who follows home design will know that wallpaper is making a strong comeback for some rooms like entry halls and guest bathrooms if not every room

and it is pretty easy to mark the change in home construction in Dallas area from the shift from local, smaller builders to large US tract companies where there are 10 exteriors to pick from in 5 price ranges with specific brick combos that match the interior choices--
it is just group think carried over to home construction...
and people want what they are "taught" to want by mechandising and media--

we own home in Bedford built in early 80s--and after we bought and moved to newer home we did big renovation on the Bedford house--more expensive than really necessary because we anticipated putting it on the market and having to compete with new homes in same price point where people would be seeing upgraded bathroom fixtures and granite countertops...

people buying older homes in developed neighborhoods DON'T/can't spend the time/money to upgrade right after buying--and complain and complain about walking into home that is 20+ yrs old and finding wallpaper and original "brass" fixtures...
our son moved in unexpectedly because of a divorce and is renting it now--so it has not gone on market yet--
will just have to see when he moves out what happens

[Lakewooder]

My mother lives in some of those 50s homes- there are about three long blocks north and south of homes of the same era - and some are similar, but I swear not one of them is EXACTLY like the other. I've been looking at them for several decades. Also you have different aspects of the lots - some have a huge pecan tree, some live oaks, some are creek lots, some are more elevated than others, some have pools, some have garages with a storage room, etc. That is in addition to the various states of being redone or original. Plus a lot of those homes have kitchen and other cabinetry, floors, paneling, tiles, feature windows, ironwork, trim and brick fireplaces that were built on-site for each particular home. There were still artisans back then..in my mind they went downhill in the 60s with the slabs and pre-fab stuff. Most of those don't have hardwood floors, either. Bob-O-Links in Lakewood, which was built mainly in the mid-1970s, still had some old builders who did it the right way.

[TurtleCreek80]

Originally Posted by loves2read

if you ever visit any home design sites with forums about kitchens--there are plenty of people who have moved on from granite countertops and the ersatz Tuscany look that is still going strong in some parts of DFW home construction
and anyone who follows home design will know that wallpaper is making a strong comeback for some rooms like entry halls and guest bathrooms if not every room.

True, but what Kelly Wearstler is doing with wallpaper today is noting like the dated Waverly "stripes with floral bloom borders" from the 80's.

Just like with apparel trends, home trends always come back a little different the second - or third- time around.

[loves2read]

agree--