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Old 12-07-2006, 11:52 PM
 
Location: Dayton OH
5,717 posts, read 11,286,833 times
Reputation: 13410

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cosmic View Post
That ain't what he is talking about.

It is one thing to talk about super large new modern designed / built houses. Even those will probably kill you with the utility bills. It is another to talk about buying an old Ark for very cheap money and what the living experience might be like. I would expect many choices to be required and most of them restricted or bad in some manner.

A far better way to spend money on any house is pay very strict attention to how energy efficient it may be. It ain't the size, more the quality, comfort level and how low you can reduce your normal living costs that really counts over the longer run.
Cosmic just explained a big part of the whole "energy crunch" issue. McMansions need lots more heat or AC to make them comfy year round, compared to a simple, well built house of say 1500 sq ft. The big utility companies have to fire up more coal burning power plants to keep the AC humming, which spews out more junk into the atmosphere, which cranks up global warming, which makes the AC work even harder, which burns up more energy, and so on. Those mega houses might look impressive, but that's not something I crave for.
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Old 12-08-2006, 12:59 AM
 
Location: Navarre, Florida
328 posts, read 239,218 times
Reputation: 86
In my opinion, a house of about 2000 square feet would be perfect. We would love to have the normal living, dining, 3 bdrm, 2 bath and a big recreational room. After staying at a few hotels recently, I prefer to do all of my own cleaning...and a house bigger than that would be too time-consuming and more of a showplace than a home. I would visit, though....lol...especially if you had a yaht or pontoon to go with it!
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Old 12-08-2006, 06:45 AM
 
5,019 posts, read 14,095,578 times
Reputation: 7091
Quote:
Originally Posted by sablebaby View Post
However, to clean it would be another story! My house right now (1500sqft) is too small now. I hate being in bed and hearing my BF doing the dishes in the kitchen (well, actually I do like hearing that he's doing them!). The noise travels bad.
Ok, this is one of those examples where building smarter rather than building larger comes into play.

A competent architect should *catch* design flaws such as public (i.e. noisy) spaces being too close to private spaces. If you scale back your square footage, you can spend more $$$ on stuff like plaster walls (instead of drywall) and solid (rather than hollow) wood doors. Those things make a huge difference in the acoustics of a house.

I've been in a few poorly designed Mc-houses; you know the ones with the cavernous "great rooms" and the 3-story entry way. When done poorly, one can hear the kids playing in said great-room throughout the house. All the showerheads in the world won't make bathing there a "relaxing spa experience"

For furtner reading check out:

http://www.notsobighouse.com/

(And no I'm not affiliated, just a huge fan of this woman's work)
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Old 12-08-2006, 07:03 AM
 
5,019 posts, read 14,095,578 times
Reputation: 7091
Ok, since we are playing fantasy-time here...

If I had an unlimited budget, I'd still want a small house...only I'd want two or three! Greedy, huh ?

I'd want a tiny cabin the mountains. Maybe 800 sq. feet or so. Walls that slide, so I can open up to the world, concrete floors so I can just hose the snow and mud out. New Mexico perhaps? The skiing there is less hyped than CO.

I'd want someplace on the coast. 1000 sf max. Tile floors. An outdoor shower. More a "surf shack" than anything. Going back to my hometown (San Diego) would be a no-brainer, but I'd be open to Nor. Cal. or even the East Coast, or heck, the South of France (hey it's my fantasy!).

And then I'd keep a pied-a-terre in a great city (NYC? Chicago? Rome???). Something ~tiny~ like 500 sf or less. Just for dining/theater/museum trips.

Fun game!
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Old 12-08-2006, 08:37 AM
 
Location: Central Jersey - Florida
3,377 posts, read 14,602,504 times
Reputation: 2272
I say yes. We have friends (husband, wife and 2 yorkies) that live in a 5,000 sq. ft. home. When it's all said and done they will be into that home for nearly 1.8 million. The sad part is they never get to enjoy it. Sometimes the wife jokes and says "I don't know if I've ever been in this room". They would do just as fine in a home half the size.
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Old 12-08-2006, 09:45 AM
 
Location: ♥State of the heart♥
1,118 posts, read 4,751,339 times
Reputation: 865
When we built this house my DH did all of the subcontracting himself. I did the leg work to find the best prices on materials, etc. so we saved alot of money which we put into the square footage of this house. Luckily, we bought the ground before the real estate prices shot through the roof in our area. With three kids, their friends, visiting relatives and three dogs (then) we wanted the space. We have put this 5000 sq. ft. to good use.

The upside: lots of space! We just had my DD's sorority retreat here last month and easily fit 50 (yikes! ) girls here. They were a joy and we were glad to have them.

The downside: cleaning. By the time I finish the last room, it is time to go back to the first room. It is never done. I have had cleaning people in here to see if they'd come in once a week or every other week. Their answer; the house is too big. (Okay, if it were smaller I wouldn't need YOU. )

Our kids are getting older, the youngest graduates from high school in 2-1/2 years and DH and I are preparing to downsize NOW. Getting rid of things we don't need, clearing closets, etc. We were going to put the house on the market next year but decided to wait, don't want to disrupt the kids last years at home before college more than necessary.

So, we will be happy to downsize (significantly!) and (hopefully) sell to a big family who will also utilize and enjoy the space.

Now, if I win the lottery tomorrow - I will hire a housekeeping staff, keep the house and travel to Paris on a regular basis.
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Old 12-08-2006, 11:49 AM
 
Location: WPB, FL. Dreaming of Oil city, PA
2,909 posts, read 14,067,178 times
Reputation: 1033
I dont think cleaning is as big a deal as you make it out to be. Why clean a room you havent used? I would clean unused rooms a few times a year due to dust. Ill clean the bathroom I use once a week, the others a few times a year. I wont need a/c in a cool climate like Oil city, PA and a well insulated house wont usually need heating either and if I do, heat to 50f and wear a coat, simple as that.
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Old 12-08-2006, 12:09 PM
 
Location: Springfield, Missouri
2,815 posts, read 12,971,981 times
Reputation: 2000001497
Quote:
Originally Posted by Need_affordable_home View Post
I dont think cleaning is as big a deal as you make it out to be. Why clean a room you havent used? I would clean unused rooms a few times a year due to dust. Ill clean the bathroom I use once a week, the others a few times a year. I wont need a/c in a cool climate like Oil city, PA and a well insulated house wont usually need heating either and if I do, heat to 50f and wear a coat, simple as that.
If it were only so simple!! Actually, believe it or not, unless the room is completely empty...I mean carpet and walls only, you're going to have to clean it. Whether you realize it or not, bugs get in, die, dust builds up, dustbunnies are created from thin air and find their ways into the cleanest spaces, it gets musty, etc. You have to clean any room that's furnished regularly.
As for bathrooms, even those require frequent cleaning. Obviously the one you use most needs the most, but the guest bathroom needs it too and any other bathrooms or half-bathrooms need it as well. The water in the bowls eventually leaves build-up or rings and like the unused rooms, somehow dirt finds it's way into them and becomes noticeable, even if you're not using it.
Northern climates also get very hot in July and August, hot and humid best describes them. Yeah, it may not be as pervasive as Florida, but it's hot nonetheless. You'll be running your A/C continuously in those months, it's just a question of what you set the thermostat at to trigger it to switch on. I set mine at 78F for the summer months and keep the ceiling fans on 24/7.
In the winter, even with a well-insulated house, you're going to find that it gets uncomfortably cold without heat at night. 50F is too low to protect the plumbing and pipe infrastructure from possible damage when temperatures are below 25F outside for long periods. Remember, a lot of the fixtures are under the house in the crawl space and if you keep the house at 50F, there's no residual heat to transfer immediately underneath. You have to keep it at a minimum of 55F, but even that is too cold to live in, whether you believe me or not! Most people keep their homes at the lowest 68F inside during the winter. I keep mine set at 65F during the day and turn it down to 60F at night when I go to bed (if I remember to). Yes, I wear zip up sweater jackets and sports pants in the house as well as booties, etc. to keep comfortable and I have those cheap fake fleece throws you can buy in rolls for $3 from Walgreens on the tv/pc room couches so I can grab one to cover myself and stay warm while watching tv, etc. If my grandmother comes, I'll splurge and set the temps up to 75F as she is constantly cold and I do that out of respect, however, that's too hot for me and I feel uncomfortable, though I'd never say anything. My parents when they come don't require any extra heating. They prefer it colder. It also depends on how your house is cooled and heated. I'm extremely fortunate that I belong to a cooperative electric company. Everything in my house except the water heater and heating is electric, yet for a 2301 sq. ft. house, my bills are usually $35-40 a month, except in July and August when with the A/C on it gets up to $90. My heating is propane and I just got the tank filled from 20% to 95%. The cost was $535, but it will last me through February. All in all, cheap. However, cleaning is a neverending necessity and if you have animals, believe me, no matter how little they shed, you'll have to clean.
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Old 12-08-2006, 12:44 PM
HKB
 
221 posts, read 801,119 times
Reputation: 148
Quote:
Originally Posted by Need_affordable_home View Post
I dont think cleaning is as big a deal as you make it out to be. Why clean a room you havent used? I would clean unused rooms a few times a year due to dust. Ill clean the bathroom I use once a week, the others a few times a year. I wont need a/c in a cool climate like Oil city, PA and a well insulated house wont usually need heating either and if I do, heat to 50f and wear a coat, simple as that.
NAH, I've been reading your posts for a few weeks. I don't mean any disrespect, but you seem to be a little out of touch with the realities of homeownership. I assume that you're relatively young since you still live at home with your parents, so perhaps your inexperience accounts for it.

You can't keep your home at 50 degrees in a northern climate. Not only would that be extremely uncomfortable to live in, but you could do major damage to your plumbing.

Your views on home prices are also very unrealistic. I understand that the median home price in many markets are out of reach for first-time and lower income homebuyers, but it is even more ridiculous to move halfway across the country to buy the cheapest home you can find without considering why the house is so cheap.

It would make much more sense to save up for a downpayment and buy a fixer-upper in an economically stable region. Bargains are out there.... you just have to do some research and keep an open mind. Once you own the property, slowly start improving it to build equity. When the time comes to sell, you'll be able to afford an even nicer house. Repeat this stepladder process until you're satisfied with your living situation.
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Old 12-08-2006, 12:48 PM
 
Location: Lots of sun and palm trees with occasional hurricane :)
8,293 posts, read 16,136,922 times
Reputation: 7018
My turn, my turn.
My house is a 3/2.5. 1650 sq. ft. solid concrete, barrel tile roof, dah dah dah and totally remodeled (by us) - roof, windows, floors, kitchen, bathrooms, etc. The only rooms I really use are the family room, 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom and the kitchen. My family room has a snack table, plasma tv, stereo system, computer, desk, 1/2 bath, laundry/utility room, fish tank, sofa and love seat, trunk as a put-your- feet- up table, cat condo, and dog crate which my little dog hides in when he sees too much commotion going on. The bedrooms are tiny, the bathrooms are tiny. The living room and the dining room are the dogs and cats domain. I need a bigger kitchen so I can have a island with a sink and my dear husb and I can stay out of each other's way. BUT, in the back we have a HUGE, HUGE, HUGE, triple shed that looks like a guest house, made out of concrete block and that's what sold my husb on this house. And we have a little bitty land, enough for the dogs. The shed and the yard are his territory and he could probably stock Home Depot with all the tools he has in there. Plus a stereo and TV. However, personally, I would like something like 2,000 sq. ft. just to have some more elbow room. I'd like an apartment that big, on a top floor of a say 20 story building. I grew up in NYC so I like that stuff and, like another poster mentioned, another few apts, here and there around the US, Europe and the Caribbean, just for a change of scenery, wouldn't hurt at all!! :-)
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