Browse Forums Building A New House Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 43Dec 03, 2008 2:07 pm shazburger forget what everybody else says and do what make you two happy....after all that is all that matters... Ok, Im going to be the one to spoil the party here. Why would you build such a huge house if you wont use half of it? Are you aware of the amount of materials and energy required to build a house? It concerns me that people still have this mindset as per the quote above. We've all seen An inconvienient truth, the world is in serious trouble through global warming. We should ALL be trying to reduce our carbon footprints, not increase them because it makes you 'happy'. Concrete, brick and steel manufacturing processes are some of the biggest culprits of global warming. 'Use only what you need.........Just a thought? Pat. Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 44Dec 03, 2008 5:45 pm Another thought - and one which influenced us - is that any potential extra space has to go somewhere - especially in a single story house.
Presuming your land is a finite size, you have a choice - I value gardens and outdoor space so chose this rather than rooms I won't use Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 45Dec 03, 2008 6:32 pm Other people always have an opinion (about everything) but I agree with the general consensus: do what pleases you!
We've had a lot of people comment on our 35 square home, with one of these unasked-for opinions: 1. 35 squares? Are you crazy? Just think of all the cleaning you'll have to do! My opinion, which after all, is the one that matters: Our original 12-square house had one kitchen and two bathrooms and those are the rooms that take the most time and effort to clean. Our new place still has one kitchen and two bathrooms - the only extra work will be more vacuuming. Big deal. That's my 16-year-old's job anyway. 2. But your kids will leave home and then the house will be too big. OK, this one is just STUPID. Our youngest is 13. He's not leaving home any time soon. My eldest is still at uni and couldn't save money if his life depended on it, so he's not going anywhere. And since housing is so expensive these days, it's likely that our kids will struggle to save a deposit on a home - and there's a very good chance that one or more of our 3 sons will move back home at some point with a wife/partner in tow, while they save money for their own home. So...I think it's a GOOD thing to have plenty of room, to give all of us some privacy and space. I get a lot of people being critical of things I do, because they're not "normal". Do I care? (in case you're wondering, the answer is NO). If it makes me happy, and I'm not harming anyone else, then whose business is it anyway? Enjoy your big house, kids or no kids. The critics are just jealous. Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 46Dec 03, 2008 7:26 pm We had the same comments. "How many kids have you got? Only 2!" "The bedrooms are huge?" " "What do you want an office that big for?" etc etc
build what you think is right for you. If you feel your reasons are valid and justified go for it. Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 47Dec 03, 2008 7:58 pm There's this overwhelming amount of advice and encouragement here that all seems to come down to: "If it feels good, do it".
I think that's an extremely poor way to rationalise a decision. Do the hard jobs first. The easy jobs will take care of themselves. - Dale Carnegie Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 48Dec 03, 2008 8:08 pm Kexkez, thanks for that......just when I was starting to develop a guilt fixation about destroying the planet
Re Pat's comments, we won't be building anything we won't use. The house will have big rooms with high ceilings rather than lots of normal-sized rooms. Things like pianos, pool tables, audiovisual gear, library, computer room etc can really eat up space if you don't like a "crammed-in" look. Add a bit of guest accommodation, mud room (this is a "farm", after all) and you get to a fairly big house quite easily. We don't travel much, or bush-bash in a 4WD or do lots of other things that are supposedly ecologically unsound. If enjoying a bit of space around us at home is environmentally irresponsible, then I guess that's what we are. But the alternative of living in what feels like a confined space is something we choose to avoid at all costs. In the long run, when we're carted off to a nursing home or similar, we might have to get used to it Or maybe I'll just dig in my heels and stay here until I have no other choice....well that's the plan anyway. Cheers zeke Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 50Dec 03, 2008 8:22 pm Cabinfever There's this overwhelming amount of advice and encouragement here that all seems to come down to: "If it feels good, do it". I think that's an extremely poor way to rationalise a decision. I beg to differ. If it's a decision about one's personal priorities and it does no harm to others, I think it's a reasonable way to rationalize a decision. However, I recognize the argument that there may be some environmental implications that could be regarded as affecting everyone. I've looked at that and come to my own conclusions, rightly or wrongly. I guess I don't see it as productive to pursue that argument in this forum. But FWIW, my stance is not "I don't give a damn". It's more a case of having some doubts about the accepted dogma. In fact, I'd say my life experience is that "everyone knows that" is an extremely poor way to rationalize a decision. Lot's of things that have been accepted as fact over the years have ultimately been shown to be misinformation. I hope this will be accepted as a plea to accept the right of others to have alternative opinions.....something that was a long and painful learning experience for me Cheers zeke Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 52Dec 03, 2008 9:49 pm Go for it... if you find its to big you can always sell it later but I think if you don't you will be left wondering and will not appreciate a smaller house as who will always be thinking that you would have more space if only you built that big monster of a house Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 53Dec 04, 2008 8:37 am First of all Im no eco warrior by any means.
The reason I put my post in there was to provoke a response, be it negative or positive. Really what I want to do was make people aware of the impact the construction industry has on global warming, land fill, green house emissions, ecology detriment, watercourse disruptment etc etc. And the ongoing impact a new building has through heating, cooling, maintaince etc etc. I question a lot of todays project homes, do people really need a media room?, a rumpus room?, a home theatre?, an alfresco? a library?, a computer room?, the list gose on and on. Some sensible planning can incorporate a lot of these extras without blowing out the square meterage of a building, one dedicated multi purpose room could suffice, instead of 5 seperate rooms. One simple example would be an oversized bedroom with a built in 'study nook' doubles as both a bedroom and a computer room. Yes, I know this wont suit everyone, but its a start. Finally: Quote 'If it makes me happy, and I'm not harming anyone else, then whose business is it anyway?' This is why I make these posts, It does harm people...its killing our planet and its all our buisness, I dont want to sound like the grim reaper but, we are on a major planetary countdown, we may not see it in our lifetime, but our children will, and their children will. End of lecture. Pat. Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 54Dec 04, 2008 9:06 am Soo I'm only giving my opinion because you asked for it BUT I do think there is something wasteful about building such a big house for two people.
Don't get me wrong I will ooh and aaah over it like everyone else on this forum and am filled with jelousy when I see all of these big beautiful houses! At the end of the day you are the only one who needs to be comfortable with your decision and if like you said, you feel that much space is truly warranted then that is fair enough, but for me I think the environmental concern is a valid one as is the pure practicality of cleaning, heating and cooling so much space. Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 55Dec 04, 2008 12:56 pm A perfect life needs balance. To much of on one thing usually means something else has to give. If a big house is the only thing that well make you happy then go for it.
But you need to consider the additional running cost epsecially that of a double storey. Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 56Dec 04, 2008 8:23 pm Pat You said something about a bedroom with a study nook.
not having multiple rooms. etc etc I guess part of it depends on how often you plan to move. We plan to stay in our home until we are kicked out into senility village/nursing home. We have moved not to a farm but its out in the country and certainly too far from almost all of our friends except new ones for them to pop in for a visit. 1. So we need accommodation for visiting family and friends. In this day and age it's common for children to stay at home longer or to return home often with partners in tow for long periods of time. ( minor bedrooms are doubles.) 2. I don't believe it is sensible for children to have internet access in an unsupervised area. ( hence our smallish games room which will be full of computers) 3. I need an area to work quietly related to my job where i can completely close off from the rest of the family if need be. I also have a huge amount of reference material related to my job. I have several hobbies which are space hungry. DH has 2 hobbies which require space. I don't want to disappear to a shed miles away from my family which wouldn't be appropriate for most things I would want to use the office for anyway. DH is of the same thought. We can pursue our hobbies/interests but still feel close to family not isolated. Hence our huge single office. Which if we sold could be turned into a proper professional office or an additional bedroom and ensuite. Potential here for B n B accom. We've organised the house so sections can be shut off. it can be zoned for heating and cooling. I have at least another 15 years of working life ahead of me. Probably more. Our "big" house allows us to be close together as a family but still be able to withdraw to our own space when required. Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 57Dec 04, 2008 8:34 pm I personally would hate to have a large house.
But that’s just me. Internal and External Building and Colour Consultant Online - Worldwide http://www.denovoconcepts.com Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 58Dec 05, 2008 8:56 am kexkez Pat You said something about a bedroom with a study nook. not having multiple rooms. etc etc I guess part of it depends on how often you plan to move. We plan to stay in our home until we are kicked out into senility village/nursing home. We have moved not to a farm but its out in the country and certainly too far from almost all of our friends except new ones for them to pop in for a visit. 1. So we need accommodation for visiting family and friends. In this day and age it's common for children to stay at home longer or to return home often with partners in tow for long periods of time. ( minor bedrooms are doubles.) 2. I don't believe it is sensible for children to have internet access in an unsupervised area. ( hence our smallish games room which will be full of computers) 3. I need an area to work quietly related to my job where i can completely close off from the rest of the family if need be. I also have a huge amount of reference material related to my job. I have several hobbies which are space hungry. DH has 2 hobbies which require space. I don't want to disappear to a shed miles away from my family which wouldn't be appropriate for most things I would want to use the office for anyway. DH is of the same thought. We can pursue our hobbies/interests but still feel close to family not isolated. Hence our huge single office. Which if we sold could be turned into a proper professional office or an additional bedroom and ensuite. Potential here for B n B accom. We've organised the house so sections can be shut off. it can be zoned for heating and cooling. I have at least another 15 years of working life ahead of me. Probably more. Our "big" house allows us to be close together as a family but still be able to withdraw to our own space when required. Im hearing ya loud and clear. I know people have different ways of living and different needs for a building, and I have no problem with people who can justify the need for specifically dedicated spaces in a building. I knew my sugestion would not suit everyones needs. Really what I was attacking in this thread was the attlitude that people were putting out there; Quote: forget what everybody else says and do what make you two happy....after all that is all that matters... As a really good example, there is an indian couple in perth who own 'burral' (the biggest fertilizer manufacturer in WA), they are proposing to build a 30 bedroom mansion in the 'Taj Mahal' architectural syle, with gym, cinema, banquet hall, 4 swimming pools, the list goes on and on. PS-They have 2 children. I just think how egotistical, how ignorant, and how wasteful. If you break that down, a typical new house needs approx 12 concrete trucks to lay the slab...their mansion will need about 200 trucks of concrete! As I said before, Im no Al Gore, but this kind of excess in todays day and age is neither sustainable, practical or dare I suggest ethical. End of lecture. Pat. Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 59Dec 05, 2008 9:08 am Some very interesting comments here. We're also building a 43 sq house for currently 2 people, but in the future 4-5.
My way of thinking about it is that I'm building a house that will allow us to do everything - small family gatherings of 12 people to my extended family gatherings of 60. No waste in going out to a restaurant for a big party when we can do it all from our house - there's even room for a marque if we ever wanted to do a huge function at home. I'm offsetting my large house by doing a few things to help the environment: * public transport to work - and instead of driving to the train station, riding a bicycle * decorative gardens that require no irrigation besides natural rainfall * edible gardens to supply most of what we need - veggie beds, fruit trees espaliered to increase yield (I'm also on the waiting list to buy a share in a cow - $50 quarter gives you 6.5L of milk, butter, cream each week) * worm farm & compost bin - so no scraps go to waste - and no need to buy compost * when solar power in NSW moves to gross tariff - we'll go for a system that can run our whole house I think it's about trade-offs - so as long as you're comfortable with the ones you make. After 4 years - we're in! Re: Are we crazy building a 40sq house for the two of us? 60Dec 05, 2008 9:13 am Pat the draftie As a really good example, there is an indian couple in perth who own 'burral' (the biggest fertilizer manufacturer in WA), they are proposing to build a 30 bedroom mansion in the 'Taj Mahal' architectural syle, with gym, cinema, banquet hall, 4 swimming pools, the list goes on and on. PS-They have 2 children. I just think how egotistical, how ignorant, and how wasteful. If you break that down, a typical new house needs approx 12 concrete trucks to lay the slab...their mansion will need about 200 trucks of concrete! As I said before, Im no Al Gore, but this kind of excess in todays day and age is neither sustainable, practical or dare I suggest ethical. End of lecture. Pat. But at the end of the day Pat unless you walk in their shoes and live their lives you don't know what their needs are. Yes they may have 2 children but many times in the Indian culture they will have extended family living with them. Again you are entitled to your opinion but whenever someone says anything negative about someone else decision it can come across as sour grapes. We are building a 50sq home - but in that really the only thing that I see as extravagant is the ensuites in every bedroom - but we too are looking long term. Both sets of parents will be living next door to us and should the need arise they are able to move into our home with their own bathrooms for privacy (eg FIL is a bowel cancer survivor and will not share a bathroom with anyone other then MIL - and I respect that). We do not have any formal areas however do have a 6 car garage. This will be fully utilised with 2 American sportscars, one ride-on mower plus another two family cars - as well as all the other usual paraphenalia that goes with day to day life with two small children. Bag away but as I said previously unless you walk in someone's shoes .......... Some things are worth waiting for. I had 28m2 of engineered pavers laid six months back and it was difficult to find someone not taking the pi$$. Internet suggested it should be $85-100/m2 to lay them.… 3 12408 The price you're seeing for a high-spec 2-storey home in Perth sounds steep, but unfortunately, it's kind of the norm these… 8 8009 "is it exempt or do I need to get permission from council" Call your Council and ask them 1 1581 |