So, How Big IS Your House?

[mickeyd]

My place is about 2200 SF. About 60% is down stairs. I could easily live in that 60% rather than spreading out over two floors. That said, anyone that wishes to drop by and saw off my second floor and stick the roof back on so it meets code, is welcome to make me an offer.

I could easily operate at a SF level of about 1300 SF I believe, assuming that my taxes would also decrease by about 40%.

 

[Sue J]

Ours is a 1500 sq.ft. 1.5 story cape cod style, built in 1955. We have 4 bdrms and 2 baths, 2 bedrooms and a full bath on each floor. So the first floor has our bedroom and a guest room/computer room. Nice size living room and a good size kitchen with a breakfast room. Our dining room is small. Full basement with one half finished and used as my son's recording studio.

1500 sq.ft. may sound small but I really like the floor plan. It's been a good house in which to raise a family. It not great for entertaining large groups, but our gatherings are mostly family things, 10-15 people at the most.

One of the nicest features is a 2 car attached garage with a huge attic storage space above. We added a full height door to the attic from the upstairs hallway so it's easy access and it's a high ceiling so you don't even have to stoop. The temptation is to store everything in there and it got out of control so in Dec 2006 we were all home and had a major clean-out and disposal of stuff and now the attic is usable again.

Our major improvements here were adding air conditioning and upgrading the electric in 1993. We also built a lovely 14x20 deck at the back off the breakfast room. And then we added one of those Sunsetter awnings after we realized that the deck was much too hot.

We plan on staying here, downsizing by not using the upstairs when we no longer need it. Taxes are $2340 a year.

 

[ziggy29]

Our major improvements here were adding air conditioning and upgrading the electric in 1993. We also built a lovely 14x20 deck at the back off the breakfast room. And then we added one of those Sunsetter awnings after we realized that the deck was much too hot.

Yeah, the central climate control was one of the first things we did when we moved into our current house. We had window AC units (older and inefficient) and we had natural gas feeding space heaters with piping coming up through the floor. In a Texas summer those window AC units are woefully inadequate. We put in a very efficient heat pump which has made a big difference. Fortunately the attic was spacious so there was a lot of room to add the duct work.

Next we plan either a deck or a concrete patio behind the house. Right now we use a dirt behind the detached garage for the patio furniture and my grill. It will be nice to have it in a better (and paved) area, perhaps with an awning extending from the side of the house to provide shade in part of it.

It isn't much, but it's cute and it's home.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I agree, that could be true if we used our furnace. We use our wood stove together with fans to distribute the heat. I turn on the furnace about five minutes per month so that it won't feel neglected.

If I close off a room it is much cooler than the rest of the house, showing me how much heat it would normally eat up.

Does that wood stove have its own separate intake, as in a contained combustion system?

If not, its combustion is creating the negative air pressure, and you're sucking a lot of air in from all the cracks and seams in the house, which is possibly where your dust is coming from...along with soot from the fireplace. Might be why those closed rooms get cold as well, since they're getting outside air infiltration but no direct heat.

I'm surprised that running just a wood stove in an insulated home in a high humidity area like yours doesnt create an enormous amount of condensation inside your house walls, in your ducts, and around the windows. Ever test for mold or sill/bottom plate rotting?

 

[Cattusbabe]

3300 Sq Ft. Just the two of us in a three story twin. I bought it when I was single. Two full baths two half baths ,finished basement and six bedrooms. Bought in 1992. We were going to downsize just after we got married six years ago. Sticker shock got us. Even though we do not use all of the space it was cheaper to keep what we had. Very low mortgage and property taxes and maintenance. Heating the place can be a bear but we have done a lot to insulate the place which helped a lot. Further no kids so no messing with the thermostat. We are here for life.

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

currently living in 1200 sq ft (plus car port & covered patio) shotgun cottage on about 10k sq ft of urban jungle, a three-mile bike ride to beach and about the same to downtown fort lauderdale. city records of house destroyed but county seems to show foundation laid 1942 (very old for florida) and house built in 1948 of now nearly extinct dade county pine (known to be termite-resistant do to its extreme strength) by a guy who had a nursery on las olas blvd (a fancy street in lauderdale) when that was just a dirt road. next to me are three log cabins built as hunting lodges in the 1920s. across street from me two neighbors have built 3500plus square footers which they hope to sell for over $1mm each (but i think they still have bubbles on the brain).

i purchased this cracker house when this area was crack town complete with drug rehab center (now a fancy loft-style condo bldg). since moving here 14 years ago this area has become gay mecca with numerous good restaurants and about five of the most popular bars & nightclubs within walking distance, so it would market well to any old gay drunk with a dui on his record. when over his hangover he could take a short afternoon stroll to the nearby supermarket.

i've got two rooms i don't use at all, one pictured below. officially it is the living room but it is really just a memorial to my mom's old sitting room. only the round arty piece and the new orleans wrought iron over the office door is mine. i think maybe i sat in the living room five times in the last five years. the other room i don't use is the largest bedroom where i just store stuff that could all easily be thrown away. i had an unusually large bedroom growing up (the previous owner built it as a dorm for their many children) yet now i prefer the smallest bedroom for me.

though this place is relatively easy & cheap to keep, i look foward to downsizing one day to space under 500 square feet. i'm thinking something 40 feet long with a 12.5-foot beam and maybe a 5-foot draft so i can get over reefs and into good harbors.

wasted space: the "living room" which i have set up as a large foyer:

the so-called living room aka mom's memorial:

 

[playaman]

We are building a home with 2,775 square feet of heated/air conditioned space in an "active adult" community. Smaller than we live in now (or last few previous houses) but more than enough to retire in. Does have thoughtful floor plan, though, which in the model at least makes it seem as comfortable as a home with more square footage.

 

[Rustic23]

2,200 sf in the main house. It is one bedroom, and 600 sf in the guest house. ReWahoo, do I count the dog house?

 

[REWahoo]

We are building a home with 2,775 square feet of heated/air conditioned space in an "active adult" community. Smaller than we live in now (or last few previous houses) but more than enough to retire in. Does have thoughtful floor plan, though, which in the model at least makes it seem as comfortable as a home with more square footage.

It looks like you're going to have a very nice shopping center (with a Lowe's!) opening up nearby within the next 3-4 months. I hope the road construction keeps pace.

 

[REWahoo]

ReWahoo, do I count the dog house?

If you spend as much time in it as I do, yes.

 

[Lakedog]

1450 sqft brick house plus 300 sqft screened porch and a one car garage on 1/2 acre with 250 ft of lakefront. Just me and one dog so the perfect size house for my situation. I have a master/bath on one end with an open greatroom/kitchen/dining area in the center, and 2 bedrooms/1 bath on the other end. The lot is basically no maintenance (covered with large trees and no grass). Have a three-level deck off the screened porch on the lake side, a large pier, and two floating docks. I cannot imagine living in some of the huge houses described here (or having to clean/maintain them).

 

[TromboneAl]

Does that wood stove have its own separate intake, as in a contained combustion system?

Yes.

I'm surprised that running just a wood stove in an insulated home in a high humidity area like yours doesn't create an enormous amount of condensation inside your house walls, in your ducts, and around the windows. Ever test for mold or sill/bottom plate rotting?

The only places we have trouble with condensation is in the two rooms far from the wood stove. The dehumidifier has eliminated most of that.

 

[W2R]

I am having trouble reconciling these mansions with the budget and spending discussions we have.

You guys only buy wholesale?

In a sense, if you consider the East and West Coast to be the "Neimann Marcus" of real estate, then the South or Midwest would be "K-Mart". I bought my house at the "Dollar Store" of real estate, New Orleans.

My home is a 1558 square foot, 3 bedroom 2 bath, brick house built in 1972 on a 5,000 square foot lot in one of the nicest/safest of New Orleans neighborhoods. Here are some old photos (though it still looks much the same) showing the house from the front yard, and a shot taken in the back yard:

.....

It is beautiful inside, with lots of granite, molding, alcoves, high end light fixtures and hardware, and French doors. The best thing about it for me, is that there is no mortgage or rent to pay. One point of all the LBYM'ing and scrimping and saving was to get that result before ER and I did it!

I do wish it had a garage, so when we move north that will be on my "wish list". I will hate to leave it, but as always, logic must prevail.

 

[Dawg52]

1450 sqft brick house plus 300 sqft screened porch and a one car garage on 1/2 acre with 250 ft of lakefront. Just me and one dog so the perfect size house for my situation. I have a master/bath on one end with an open greatroom/kitchen/dining area in the center, and 2 bedrooms/1 bath on the other end. The lot is basically no maintenance (covered with large trees and no grass). Have a three-level deck off the screened porch on the lake side, a large pier, and two floating docks. I cannot imagine living in some of the huge houses described here (or having to clean/maintain them).

Lake Martin is a beautiful area to live. Some expensive homes there too. I saw one listing over 3 mil. Might be a consideration for me one day. Not the 3 mil variety though. Probably would have to consider something off the lake.

 

[jIMOh]

I note on the "poll" there is not an option to select "3000 to 3500 sq ft"

which would have been my vote.

 

[prgsdw]

1450 square foot ranch, built in 1954, 3 bedrooms, 1 bath. Plenty for my wife and I.

 

[Lakedog]

Lake Martin is a beautiful area to live. Some expensive homes there too. I saw one listing over 3 mil. Might be a consideration for me one day. Not the 3 mil variety though. Probably would have to consider something off the lake.

I have been in my place for about 12 years and have really enjoyed living here. You can find some smaller cabins/homes in some of the older neighborhoods for around $450 to $500k but the newer developments are typically over $1mil (even some lots are in the $1 mil range). I have considered selling but not sure where I might relocate. The biggest downside for me is the distance to a large city (two hours to Atlanta or Birmingham, even an hour to Montgomery).

 

[bpp3]

Ye gods you people are livin' large. Here the lot sizes are measured in square feet and people build their ohana homes out right to the lot line. New construction is usually 1600 sq ft, two stories on a slab in a 4000 sq ft lot.

4000 sq ft?? Sheesh, that's about twice the typical lot size around here. Though at least our property taxes seem to be proportionately lower, too.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Uh oh, we're about to get to the "clinging to the windowsills because we cant afford floors" stage...

 

[samclem]

Built in 1959, 3BR/2BA ranch over a semi-finished basement with another .75 bath in that basement. Approx 1800 sq feet (main floor plus basement) plus the attached garage. Plus the 700 sq ft shop in back.

Located in Ohio where something like this typically runs less than $200k

 

[SteveR]

I note on the "poll" there is not an option to select "3000 to 3500 sq ft"

Fixed it.

In a house like that, you shouldn't have to feel like trailer trash!

When the market allows, I'd suggest selling and looking for a more established neighborhood where the neighbors are nicer and where you don't feel like that. Either that, or working on just not noticing/caring what the neighbors think.

The trailer trash comment was in relation to what the OTHER houses in the area are like. Mine is "average" for the area. We are in the process of listing the house with the desire to sell and get out of the area and move to a smaller home. We will see what happens.

Utah seems to have many McMansions, sometimes justified by LARGE families. SteveR, how many people live in your McMansion? I'm thinking maybe we should all come visit (at the same time)!

1240 sq ft here. Size about right.

Two people and two dogs currently with a flow and ebb of family visits several times during the year.

One reason there are so many big homes here is of course related to church doctrine which results in large families. The other is the influx of Californians with lot of $$$ to put into a house. The builders comply.

...Do I really want to know what Utah requires you to store in a large cold room?

The predominate religion requires space for one year of dry goods storage for "when it happens" so they will be prepared. Cold storage here is basically underground...in my case under the rear covered patio.

My previous house was 3500 sq ft of living space but the cost of housing here (in 2002) allowed me a lot of house and no tax issue with the sale of my other house which appreciated a bit in 10 years in the Chicago suburbs.

 

[bpp3]

Uh oh, we're about to get to the "clinging to the windowsills because we cant afford floors" stage...

What are these "windowsills" of which you speak, you bourgeois poodle?

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

They're what we hang from all night, small furry rodenta leaping and snapping at our backsides. Before we awaken refreshed, eat a handful of hot gravel for breakfast, clean up the broken glass, and walk to school in 20 feet of snow. Uphill. Both ways. Only to discover that we dont actually have a school because we're too poor.

Oh, and we have to carry a two story 4000 square foot duplex on our backs all day.

Bourgeois poodle?

Oh man, am I once again sorry that we cant change our own usernames any more...

 

[REWahoo]

You forced me to do it... YouTube - Monty Python - Four Yorkshiremen

 

[Sarah in SC]

And an excellent choice, REW! I love that skit more than anything else they have ever done. Luxury!