Buying big house vs a small house

[OILFIELDTRASH]

What did you do and why? I bought a small house while I was single. I have a SO now and don't think I want a bigger house. I have a third of an acre and the house is only 1300 sq ft. I have less taxes, utilities, upkeep, etc. The thought of owning some monstrosity with a huge mortgage and tax bill is mortifying to me. Am I crazy to not want the American dream of a huge house?

 

[Brainonska511]

If you can do all you want with what you have, why go bigger? There is nothing wrong with living in a modestly-sized place.

 

[Tweak155]

My wife and I had a 1000sqft house the last 2yrs... was great because we had paid cash... low taxes and monthly expenses for upkeep (under $500/mo after utilities, taxes and etc).

But, it just wasn't big enough to "grow into". So now we have a 2800 sqft house and expenses to match... but it's still WELL within our buying power as long as we both keep working. We'll be having fun cutting expenses if either one of us quits working .

 

[z1ggy]

I'd go with the smallest house possible to accommodate all your needs.It'll be less expensive and easier to clean/maintain.

It will also likely allow you to have more left over money for traveling or hobbies. Why would somebody with say just 2 kids want/need a 3000 sqft house, even there were just 3 beds? My gf grew up with 2 siblings in a 3 bed house that was barely 1000sqft. Living cheaply their whole lives allowed them to travel all over the world, and the parents have crap tons of left over money via IRA/401k/savings.

They are now looking to buy their 3rd house (1 main, 2 summers).

 

[purbeast0]

i'm in my first house and it's about 2200sqft. it's me, my wife, and a 16 month old. we could definitely use a little bigger but it's not 100% necessary at this point. something like 3k sqft would be way more than enough most likely.

 

[vi edit]

This is all location dependent. In Manhattan 1300 sq/ft could be huge. In flyover states that's one of 3 floors. It also depends on tax rates. In IL a brand new, 3500 sq/ft house could be looking at $10,000 a year in property taxes. An older, 1300 sq/ft ranch could be $1500.

But in another state that $10,000 property tax could only be $5,000. It just really depends.

Best compromise is to get what you are comfortable with now, and then hopefully have an unfinished basement or "bonus" space over a garage you can build out later. Basement space doesn't typically count towards finished footage and taxes. And it's well controlled temperature wise. Cool in the summer and warmer in the winter. And if you are in a tornado area it's a good shelter if there's a tornado risk.

 

[SearchMaster]

I have a 4BR, 3BA house that's close to 3000sf, and frankly once the kids have moved out I'd love to downsize. I work from home and my wife works stupid hours in an office so I do the vast majority of the cleaning and maintenance inside and outside of the house.

I do enjoy having a lot of land though. It's quite private as you can really only see my across-the-street neighbor's house from ours. We are on an Army Corps lake which adds about 3.5 acres to our 1.5 acres. And since I don't own the majority of that land I don't have to maintain it (and would get heavy fines for doing so).

 

[msi1337]

I rent a 1300sqft duplex. It's tight for my family of 3, but honestly I wish I could live in a tiny house. I am a minimalist, so I don't need to surround myself with a bunch of stuff.

 

[Xonim]

I'm in my 2nd house and both have been 1900-2100 sq ft -- not because that's what I wanted, but because that's what was available without requiring massive investments in updates or renovations. Both of our places were 4BR/2BA ... the first was because the area didn't have any smaller single family homes. Seriously. The 2nd was because all the smaller homes we looked at, while cheaper, would have required huge renovation budgets that we just don't have.

We did almost buy a 3BR/2BA that I actually liked better, but the lot itself was terrible. Steep driveway in front, and a huge hill in back that would've had water running toward the house. NOPE. That would have been a perfect 1500 sq ft.

Ideally, that's what I would have liked ... 3BR/2BA and 1400-1500 sq ft. I just couldn't find one I liked.

 

[Uppsala9496]

Went with a 3,850 sq/ft home with a finished basement (adds another ~1,900 sq/ft of living space). Put 40% cash down on the purchase price and pay an additional $500/month on the principal.
Taxes at $10,000 a year suck.
2 of my bedrooms upstairs are never used, yet I wouldn't want a smaller house right now.

 

[JM Aggie08]

We bought a ~2000sqft home a almost 2 years ago, to get our feet wet. We'll probably start having kids in the next few years, and will probably need to move up in size. We could obviously fit kids with a 3BR2BA, but we really want extra space for family to come and visit.

A bigger kitchen and dedicated media room wouldn't hurt either. Oh, and a 3 car garage. I'd like to build out more of a 'shop.'

 

[FerrelGeek]

My wife and I are about to become (virtual) empty nesters; youngest is started college in a couple weeks. I want to make the (hopefully) final move in my career and head south; get out of bloody OH once and for all. Since it'll be the 2 of us, we're thinking small. Sell off most everything or have the kids help pay for storage for things they'd like to have when they're ready.

 

[96Firebird]

I bought a 1600sq ft 3BR/2.5BA house (plus basement space) on 1/3 acre for me and my dog.

I need my space damn it.

 

[PricklyPete]

My family of 5 lives in 100 year old 2000sq ft bungalow (3 bedroom/2 bath). Detached garage and half of the basement being unfinished allows for plenty of storage.

Not interested in getting anything larger. If it starts feeling tight as the kids get older...might consider work on current house...or possibly moving to a new house. Not really wanting the last option as a 4 bedroom in our neighborhood is a million+ these days...I don't like the idea of that much of my money being stuck in a single residence.

 

[Brainonska511]

My family of 5 lives in 100 year old 2000sq ft bungalow (3 bedroom/2 bath). Detached garage and half of the basement being unfinished allows for plenty of storage.

Not interested in getting anything larger. If it starts feeling tight as the kids get older...might consider work on current house...or possibly moving to a new house. Not really wanting the last option as a 4 bedroom in our neighborhood is a million+ these days...I don't like the idea of that much of my money being stuck in a single residence.

Even if it starts to feel tight, you may forgo expanding. A short while after it starts to feel tight, kids will likely leave for college or start their own lives, leaving you with more space than you know what to do with.

 

[Genx87]

What did you do and why? I bought a small house while I was single. I have a SO now and don't think I want a bigger house. I have a third of an acre and the house is only 1300 sq ft. I have less taxes, utilities, upkeep, etc. The thought of owning some monstrosity with a huge mortgage and tax bill is mortifying to me. Am I crazy to not want the American dream of a huge house?

You are not crazy. The biggest problem in Murrica is people buying more than they need. I own a 2100 sq foot home I rent out. I live with my wife in her 1400 sq foot home. I grew up in an 8000 sq foot home my dad still lives in by himself.

The big home is great if you have a bunch of kids. But if it is just a couple people all a big home presents is more work, more expenses, more taxes. A kitchen remodel goes from 20k to 60k. A new roof from 30k to 100k ect. Also heating(if you live in northern climates) and cooling cost more. My dads heating bill when he sets the temp at 60 degrees in the winter in January in MN can run close to 600 bucks. Eff that. I'd rather take my money and put it in the market.

 

[Eug]

For two people 1300 square feet is fine. For a family of four, not so much. Of course, it's definitely livable, but my preference is something much bigger for a family in North America.

I live in a huge house, but I'd say the sweet spot for a family of four is probably like 2000 square feet plus garage if you can afford it.

A new roof from 30k to 100k ect.

What?!? Are you talking shingles or the entire roof including all the wood and supports and insulation? Cuz for asphalt shingles you should likely be looking a 4-digit $ cost. For $30000 you could probably re-shingle the roof and cover it with solar panels.

 

[PricklyPete]

Even if it starts to feel tight, you may forgo expanding. A short while after it starts to feel tight, kids will likely leave for college or start their own lives, leaving you with more space than you know what to do with.

Believe me...I will do everything in my power to make it work.

 

[kranky]

When starting out we thought we would follow that path of apartment - starter home - bigger home like many of our friends did but we stayed in the modestly-sized "starter home". Did the math and found that if we stayed in our perfectly adequate starter home, I would probably be able to retire 8 years early all else being equal. As time went on we revised the plan to 4 years early to ensure a bigger cushion in retirement.

When doing the math we factored in higher property taxes, higher mortgage payments (adjusted for a bigger interest deduction), higher maintenance, more furnishings, higher utility bills, and a fuzzy value for "increased pain from a longer commute" we would have had.

Not that it is a purely financial decision, but we simply could not come up with meaningful reasons to get a bigger house. We have more than enough room in a 1700 sf place. We like the location. It's safe. Our neighbors are great. The streets I need to use for my commute are kept maintained in winter. So none of those things were a problem that would add urgency to wanting to get a bigger house.

 

[vi edit]

Not that it is a purely financial decision, but we simply could not come up with meaningful reasons to get a bigger house. We have more than enough room in a 1700 sf place. We like the location. It's safe. Our neighbors are great. The streets I need to use for my commute are kept maintained in winter. So none of those things were a problem that would add urgency to wanting to get a bigger house.

No question about it, if my wife and I were kid free we'd be in a house half the size we have now and probably in some more urban dense area. Kids really changed what we wanted in housing.

 

[PricklyPete]

When starting out we thought we would follow that path of apartment - starter home - bigger home like many of our friends did but we stayed in the modestly-sized "starter home". Did the math and found that if we stayed in our perfectly adequate starter home, I would probably be able to retire 8 years early all else being equal. As time went on we revised the plan to 4 years early to ensure a bigger cushion in retirement.

When doing the math we factored in higher property taxes, higher mortgage payments (adjusted for a bigger interest deduction), higher maintenance, more furnishings, higher utility bills, and a fuzzy value for "increased pain from a longer commute" we would have had.

Not that it is a purely financial decision, but we simply could not come up with meaningful reasons to get a bigger house. We have more than enough room in a 1700 sf place. We like the location. It's safe. Our neighbors are great. The streets I need to use for my commute are kept maintained in winter. So none of those things were a problem that would add urgency to wanting to get a bigger house.

I think a lot of people are coming around to realizing that the huge houses their parents pined for make no sense to lust after. So many other things are worth your investment to enrich your life. A huge McMansion in the suburbs does not.

 

[Eug]

We are in a very large home and my preference when the kids grow up and we retire is to move into a higher mid-end condo. However, my wife wants to stay in the big home. We shall see.

 

[skyking]

The why: We are frugal, and needed a place near my in-laws. We took care of them in their last years.
We are just two and have lived in 1300sf for 21 years now. I do think the setting makes a difference. It sits on 1.25 acres, with an 8x12 shed for the outdoor tools. There is an 8x22 covered porch. I think it all adds to the space.
I built a 24x24 detached garage with a drive through 18' deep carport in front of it all under the one roof. The cars stay in the carport and the garage adds a great deal to the house space, as I keep it warmish and have it organized. Big chest freezer out there, workbenches, tunes.
I recently remodeled and optimized the house quite a bit.
One of the reasons we are happy to stay is the ability to keep it nice. I see these 3800 sf McMansions and wonder if the vacuum cleaner has a seat and is John Deere green
We talk about a dream house, and it tops out at 1800 sf or so. I'm sure it is a product of living here so long.

 

[evident]

I had a 3bed 2.5 bath 2000 sq ft townhouse and moved to a single family that's much bigger, 3200 sq ft., half acre lot

the upkeep on the lawn and garden is awful. my opinion might change later, but all of the grass and outdoor space have no benefit or use to me. I love my deck, but I just want all green grass ripped up and have jersey shore landscaping put in (gravel, everywhere!). It's extremely frustrating to keep up w/ the grass, and it's disheartening to wake up to huge patches of grass ripped up by voles, and deer shit all over the place.

I miss not having to do lawn work, but i'm not yet at the point to pay someone $50 a week to cut my grass, let alone all the costs for mulch, weeding, all that crap.

What i really do like about my house, is my two car garage and finished basement. My townhome had zero storage space. 500sq ft of my townhome was a useless "landing" on the second floor that we couldn't utilize for anything. we ended up having to use our small one car garage for storing stuff. I bet if we had a basement in our townhome we'd be there longer.

 

[Eug]

I would have no problem paying someone $200 a month to cut the grass and weed. But that's me. I consider it similar to paying condo fees.