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All very good point. It boils down to compromise and what's important to you. You can't have everything with a given budget. Some people don't mind a neighbor with very little trees but I prefer to live where there are plenty of trees but that comes with a price. It's a lot of clean up come the fall and spring.
I would not write off the older homes so quickly if you see the way these new cookie cutter homes are built. Most of the stuff they put in will fail after 5 years (Home Depot and Lowes are around for a reason).
It all comes down to what newer home and what older home we are talking about. There is a lot of crap out there in newer homes and there are lots of older homes that the owners have failed to maintain and update. You need to do your homework no matter what group you are shopping in.
I guess my general point was that chances are in a newer home you are going to have new windows, good insulation, high effeciency HVAC, etc. In an older home you may have all those things, but chances are you won't. I will give you that the quality of construction in an older home is generally very high and you are buying good bones.
Quote:
Originally Posted by southbound_295
You're right, technically, most of Cherry Hill could be termed cookie cutter, but I watched houses being built in the Cherry Hill developments, in the 60s & 70s & the construction was still based on the old techniques & materials. You can even find plaster walls in one tiny development that I know of. Certain builders would vary the house to suit a customer. Many have had additions or changes made to the exterior over the years, so many of those developments offer a good variety. Erlton, south of Rt 70 is the best match for what the boyfriend wants. It was never cookie cutter & the prices have always lagged the majority of the developments. There's another, similar neighborhood off Church Road, behind Pathmark, but Erlton has always been considered nicer.
That is very true, while the developments would fit the "cookie cutter" definition in general most of them certainly don't look like it anymore. That seems to be true for many of the older developments as well. What was modern and "cookie cutter" when built, 30+ years later it begins to look like any other traditional neighborhood.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NJGOAT
It all comes down to what newer home and what older home we are talking about. There is a lot of crap out there in newer homes and there are lots of older homes that the owners have failed to maintain and update. You need to do your homework no matter what group you are shopping in.
I guess my general point was that chances are in a newer home you are going to have new windows, good insulation, high effeciency HVAC, etc. In an older home you may have all those things, but chances are you won't. I will give you that the quality of construction in an older home is generally very high and you are buying good bones.
That is very true, while the developments would fit the "cookie cutter" definition in general most of them certainly don't look like it anymore. That seems to be true for many of the older developments as well. What was modern and "cookie cutter" when built, 30+ years later it begins to look like any other traditional neighborhood.
Bob scarborough was the master when it came to making a development not look cookie cutter, plus high quality of construction. That's why, to this day, his housing developments in Cherry Hill command the prices that they do, ~50 years later, in some cases. They are out of reach for the OP, but I went to school with kids who lived in that section of Erlton. The houses are well made & it's always been a good area.
The so called suburbs are just the "cities" of today. The difference is that they are built for cars not for pedestrians. Thats why most people think they prefer to live there. They value the use of thier car over and above all else. Move into a real town with streets and stores. It costs more and you get less but your kids wont become disaffected zombies.
. . . I think the areas your bf wants to look at will probably have more of a community feel, will be easier to meet people, it's just a different vibe. You are looking at practicality, your boyfriend is looking at lifestyle . . . .
Well said.
Quote:
Originally Posted by southbound_295
I remember watching houses being built when they were built to last for generations. I've seen the way these cookie cutter houses are built. It's not the same. You'd have to get a custom built house from a very good builder to get close to the way houses used to be built. Old houses have character. As ocnj girls said, you get a different type of neighborhood when you don't live in the cookie cutter neighborhoods.
It all comes down to what newer home and what older home we are talking about. There is a lot of crap out there in newer homes and there are lots of older homes that the owners have failed to maintain and update. You need to do your homework no matter what group you are shopping in.
I guess my general point was that chances are in a newer home you are going to have new windows, good insulation, high effeciency HVAC, etc. In an older home you may have all those things, but chances are you won't. I will give you that the quality of construction in an older home is generally very high and you are buying good bones.
This is an excellent point. OP, if you and your bf are looking at an older house, you must look at how well-maintained it is (from the previous owners). Otherise, you'll run across the "beat up" ones like you mentioned.
We lived in the suburbs in a new home for 20 yrs. After 20 yrs of a cookie-cutter, vinyl sided, HOA homogenous neighborhood, I was just plain sick of it and we moved further out into a historic district and an older home. However, this older home (1930s Arts & Crafts) was very well-maintained. Hardwood floors throughout, 9.5 ceilings, plaster walls, solid brick, solid wood doors, glass doorknobs, unbelievable molding and trim, french doors, pocket doors, fireplaces, 3 outdoor spaces, etc. The previous owner installed natural gas as well as AC (hard to find in historic houses).
We looked at other houses that need some work but honestly, there's an old saying: "Don't buy a fixer-upper unless you're ready to fix it up." Ours cost a little more but it's all relative when buying an older home.
The space in this house gives us a completely different feeling than the former new home. And, we are in a "real" neighborhood and people are extremely friendly.
We do have some work to do but this is what we wanted. An older home has concerns and problems of its own, but it's really up to you as to what you want. Good luck!
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