McMansion

10 Stories

A Megamansion Backlash Appears to Be Growing

Wall Street Journal reports towns across the US are imposing, or at least considering, size restrictions

(Newser) - In East Hampton, New York, big-box stores are capped at 15,000 square feet. Personal homes, though, can go up to 20,000 feet. It's a point made by the planning director of the municipality, where a working group has proposed cutting the biggest-allowable house size in half, to...

Chris Pratt Isn't the Only One Tearing Down Famous Homes

It's part of a larger trend of razing historic houses to erect McMansions, per 'WaPo'

(Newser) - Chris Pratt and his wife, Katherine Schwarzenegger, recently created quite a stir after buying, then demolishing , the Zimmerman House, a famous midcentury home in Los Angeles. Kriston Capps says that's nothing too out of the ordinary, however, writing for the Washington Post that it's part of a "...

Remember McMansions? They Were a Bad Investment

It's not just McMansions; luxury homes built earlier are also going for less

(Newser) - McMansions, defined loosely as mass-produced homes built between 2001 and 2007 weighing in at 3,000 to 5,000 square feet, have long been teased as shoddily built, poorly designed, and outrageously unsophisticated—the fast food version of luxury homes. (See the anonymous blog McMansion Hell for examples.) They...

'Chinese Beverly Hills' Comes to America

Wealthy buyers snap up McMansions in Arcadia, Calif.

(Newser) - Dozens of new McMansions are cropping up in an LA suburb with the usual wine cellars and marble-lined entry halls. What's turning heads: Asians are buying most of the properties and transforming Arcadia, Calif., into what some call the "Chinese Beverly Hills," the LA Times reports. In...

Goodbye McMansions, Hello Small Homes
Goodbye McMansions,
Hello Small Homes 
analysis

Goodbye McMansions, Hello Small Homes

When new houses start selling again, they'll be downsized

(Newser) - It's possible that when the housing market finally wakes up from its long recessionary nap, Americans will be just dying to live in newly constructed giant homes again, writes Witold Rybczynski at Slate . "But don't count on it." It's far more likely that we won'...

Exurbs, Once Meccas for Homeowners, Now for Rent

Economy trumps plans for thriving communities

(Newser) - Not long ago, the exurbs were were among the fastest-growing parts of the country, drawing people seeking to own affordable homes on sizable pieces of property. But after waves of foreclosures and soaring unemployment, more and more people are turning to renting. Renting keeps landlords afloat, but it also drives...

McMansions, Like Everything Else, Are Shrinking

Average home size declines in what analysts call 'right-sizing'

(Newser) - Confirming what industry professionals have long suspected, builders and buyers alike are foregoing super-sized “McMansions” for smaller, more economical homes, the Wall Street Journal reports. The average home started in 2008’s third quarter was 2,438 square feet, down from 2,629 in the second quarter. The median...

McMansion Era May Be Over




 McMansion Era 
 May Be Over 

McMansion Era May Be Over

Strapped Americans now prefer cozier homes

(Newser) - As strapped Americans develop a conscience and, er, sense of taste about living, the practice of razing existing homes to make way for super-size replacements is slowing, reports the Christian Science Monitor. Languid McMansion sales have brought quiet back to historic neighborhoods, drowned out for years by bulldozers and upset...

Mortgage Crisis? Blame George Bailey
Mortgage Crisis? Blame George Bailey
OPINION

Mortgage Crisis? Blame George Bailey

It's A Wonderful Life hero helped poor buy unaffordable homes

(Newser) - The housing bubble that triggered the current economic crisis began with a post-Depression attitude toward owning a home presented in the classic Christmas flick It’s a Wonderful Life, writes Ross Douthat in the Washington Post. Hero banker George Bailey’s chief goal was to loan the poor enough money...

Slump Stings Vegas McMansion Owners

Curious aspect of swelling home inventories: unsold palaces

(Newser) - The housing crisis has caused the number of homes for sale across the country to grow, but in Las Vegas, brokers are dealing with an unusual aspect of swelling inventory—an excess of $1 million-plus listings. Although they're luxury properties with pools and excesses of polished marble, those constructed more...

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