4 ms·
not necessarily true. there is a distinction to be made between cheap and affordable. around where I live, there are no affordable houses being built anywhere.
by weegee 18y ago
not necessarily true. there is a distinction to be made between cheap and affordable. around where I live, there are no affordable houses being built anywhere. every new home is at least $600k, far outside the wage of the average resident. I can remember in the late 1980s you could buy a new home for less than $100k. Good luck doing that now!! I find it incredible that people can afford to buy, and live in, these huge homes. They pay hundreds a month just for electricity. Astounding.
- qqq 18y agoLarge home. Hundreds per month on electricity. Hmmm. Maybe they need the space and power for their dozens of computers? ;)
- rsheridan6 18y agoI was thinking more in terms of a Bucky Fuller-style $10,000 house that would be as good as a house that costs $100,000 to build. If you can't find anything around $100,000 in your area, that probably is due to a land shortage. There are actually still affordable new homes going up in areas with lots of land and few regulations on construction. As you can see, you can easily find a new home in the Houston area for little more than $100K: http://www.lennar.com/findhome/city.aspx?CITYID=HOU&_kk=pearland%20house&_kt=cbf8ce79-ad19-4f87-9de2-a8ab420cb21c http://www.lennar.com/findhome/city.aspx?CITYID=HOU&_kk=... I'm sure you could buy an older house for much less.
- hugh 18y agoI don't know where exactly you live, but for any house worth $600K, the land value is probably at least $400K. The difference in cost between building a smallish 3 bedroom house and a hugeish five-bedroom house is quite small as a portion of the total cost (<$100K). On the other hand, in any major metropolitan area the difference between having a small backyard and a big one is huge. Hence, new construction tends to be huge houses on tiny lots.