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I've been wondering as well! The suburbs are filled with 4-5 bedroom McMansions— smaller 2-3 bedroom homes are hardly being built at all (except in the form of

I've been wondering as well! The suburbs are filled with 4-5 bedroom McMansions— smaller 2-3 bedroom homes are hardly being built at all (except in the form of a townhouse, maybe). So one can't even just "move to the 'burbs" to save money instead of living right in town. It's all the same price.

eeeeeeeeeeeee 8y ago
Yep, even the houses I've looked at in the suburbs here are all enormous. This seems odd to me considering how people are having fewer kids these days anyway. Plus I really hate the look of the "sea of suburbia" with big box houses that have enormous garages that take up 2/3rd of the front of the house, looks ugly. So you basically need to find a mid-sized city with houses from the mid-late 20th century when sizes were more reasonable.
atombender 8y ago
I'm so confused about why America is so reactionary when it comes to architecture, and to design in general. I've been browsing Zillow and Redfin lately, trying to plan a few years into the future, and the architectural landscape is just horrific. My ideal is a modern, minimalist, fairly flat-roofed 1- or 2-story (think Rummer [1], Gropius, Eichler, the Eames case study house, Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth house, etc.). I wouldn't mind oodles of raw concrete and exposed steel. Nothing ostentatious or expensive, mind you; just good design and modern materials. I'm not that hopeful that anything close to this style appears in the areas I'm looking or in the price range. Instead, what you get are column-infested McMansions or hideously old-fashioned shingle monstrosities. The average home in the US seems to look like this [2]. The kitchen is always dark and brown. Random hideous reactionary baubles from Colonial Revival architecture abound. Beveled wood paneling is everywhere. Now and then a rare (very rare) mid-century modern house come up that might be within my price range, but of course it doesn't have modern insulation, electrics, heating, moisture barriers, air flow, etc., so what you've got is a beautiful but cold, damp, technologically outdated and energy-inefficient box. Ultimately, it seems good, modern design in the US is for rich people, which makes me sad. [1] https://www.curbed.com/2018/8/27/17773540/midcentury-home-tour-portland-oregon-robert-rummer https://www.curbed.com/2018/8/27/17773540/midcentury-home-to... [2] https://www.redfin.com/NY/Orchard-Park/30-Knoche-Way-14127/home/112987150 https://www.redfin.com/NY/Orchard-Park/30-Knoche-Way-14127/h...
- Gibbon1 8y ago
  > column-infested McMansions Thing I realized is these things are basically lowest common denominator residential construction meets Mr Potato Head.
- toast0 8y ago
  Most people buying a home plan to sell it at some point. A non-conformist home is going to be harder to sell later, so it's harder to sell now. You're unlikely to get something how you want it, unless it's built for you (and even then). You're probably going to need to find something with the outside you want, and budget to put the inside you want too. But more specifically, an Eichler simply isn't going to have insulation and continue to be an Eichler. They're designed for a climate which doesn't need insulation, and as such, there is no room for insulation (at least for the ceiling). Try to find one with a big tree on the south side, shading the house (but make sure the tree is in good shape).

eeeeeeeeeeeee 8y ago

Yep, even the houses I've looked at in the suburbs here are all enormous. This seems odd to me considering how people are having fewer kids these days anyway. Plus I really hate the look of the "sea of suburbia" with big box houses that have enormous garages that take up 2/3rd of the front of the house, looks ugly. So you basically need to find a mid-sized city with houses from the mid-late 20th century when sizes were more reasonable.

atombender 8y ago

I'm so confused about why America is so reactionary when it comes to architecture, and to design in general. I've been browsing Zillow and Redfin lately, trying to plan a few years into the future, and the architectural landscape is just horrific. My ideal is a modern, minimalist, fairly flat-roofed 1- or 2-story (think Rummer [1], Gropius, Eichler, the Eames case study house, Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth house, etc.). I wouldn't mind oodles of raw concrete and exposed steel. Nothing ostentatious or expensive, mind you; just good design and modern materials. I'm not that hopeful that anything close to this style appears in the areas I'm looking or in the price range. Instead, what you get are column-infested McMansions or hideously old-fashioned shingle monstrosities. The average home in the US seems to look like this [2]. The kitchen is always dark and brown. Random hideous reactionary baubles from Colonial Revival architecture abound. Beveled wood paneling is everywhere. Now and then a rare (very rare) mid-century modern house come up that might be within my price range, but of course it doesn't have modern insulation, electrics, heating, moisture barriers, air flow, etc., so what you've got is a beautiful but cold, damp, technologically outdated and energy-inefficient box. Ultimately, it seems good, modern design in the US is for rich people, which makes me sad. [1] https://www.curbed.com/2018/8/27/17773540/midcentury-home-tour-portland-oregon-robert-rummer https://www.curbed.com/2018/8/27/17773540/midcentury-home-to... [2] https://www.redfin.com/NY/Orchard-Park/30-Knoche-Way-14127/home/112987150 https://www.redfin.com/NY/Orchard-Park/30-Knoche-Way-14127/h...

Gibbon1 8y ago
> column-infested McMansions Thing I realized is these things are basically lowest common denominator residential construction meets Mr Potato Head.
toast0 8y ago
Most people buying a home plan to sell it at some point. A non-conformist home is going to be harder to sell later, so it's harder to sell now. You're unlikely to get something how you want it, unless it's built for you (and even then). You're probably going to need to find something with the outside you want, and budget to put the inside you want too. But more specifically, an Eichler simply isn't going to have insulation and continue to be an Eichler. They're designed for a climate which doesn't need insulation, and as such, there is no room for insulation (at least for the ceiling). Try to find one with a big tree on the south side, shading the house (but make sure the tree is in good shape).