Active housing inventory for sale is rising on a year-over-year basis in almost every state.

[GON]

40 inch front door is nice but I never see it.

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This isn't the 1940s when life expectency was 50 +/- years of age.

How does one get a wheelchair through the front door with a very aging population? Homes built in the early 1900s generally didn't need a entrance wide enough for a wheelchair. We know today, that a wide door is proper because of a aging population. Zero reasons to jot down a proper entrance, except to exploit profit. Which is fine, but the home is in fact undesirable.

 

[SC Maintenance]

The builder gets away with that build because very ample buyer demand. Those home in the picture will get really old really quick for older homebuyers going up and down stairs. I bet the homeowner can't even open the door if a full size car without hitting the interior garage wall with his door.

Unless the pictured homes are waterfront, which apparently they are not, easy pass. No way I am buying a 1 million dollar home, new construction, new development (not a tear down lot), without a two car garage. Speaks volumes of what is really happening.

Welcome to a 350 year old city. I don't want one either - but your options are this - or a 600 square foot shack for maybe $100K less, or live an hour away. Were trying to decide what to do. More money doesn't get you a lot better - maybe nicer place with water view - but still space constrained. Realize stuff here was deeded when King George still ruled, and trying to merge lots or something - even if you have money - probably takes years.

You can get 2 in the garage, but one is blocked in. Overnight street parking is limited also.

Its not a one size fits all. I would rather live under a bridge in Charleston than a house in an old Northern City.

 

[GON]

Welcome to a 350 year old city. I don't want one either - but your options are this - or a 600 square foot shack for maybe $100K less, or live an hour away. Were trying to decide what to do. More money doesn't get you a lot better - maybe nicer place with water view - but still space constrained. Realize stuff here was deeded when King George still ruled, and trying to merge lots or something - even if you have money - probably takes years.

You can get 2 in the garage, but one is blocked in. Overnight street parking is limited also.

Its not a one size fits all. I would rather live under a bridge in Charleston than a house in an old Northern City.

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Your perspective is very understandable.

On my "micro" basis, no way I am buying a new construction home that I can't open my car door without the door banging into the garage wall.

If people had my mentality, I suspect these very pricey yet poorly built homes, maximized for profit, would not have buyers. But people like my wife sure love the shiny new South Korean built appliances over a garage that actually meets it intended requirements

 

[AZjeff]

How does one get a wheelchair through the front door with a very aging population?

So a 40" door is for a wheelchair not esthetics. The ADA recommends 32" minimum width for wheelchairs. 36" front doors are standard. Why the need for 40"?

 

[GON]

So a 40" door is for a wheelchair not esthetics. The ADA recommends 32" minimum width for wheelchairs. 36" front doors are standard. Why the need for 40"?

Life experience has been getting large items through an exterior door into as house, a 40" door makes things considerably easier. Having my Wife wheelchair me through a 40" door will be considerably easier for her than navigating a 32" door. A 40" door generally allows better maneuverability at the inside of the door also. No different than a staircase to a basement that is wide enough to bring furniture into the basement, or a basement staircase that punches the minimum size requirements, but makes bringing bulky items into the basement a stressful challenge.

American Airlines latest 737 max main cabin design has bathrooms that are brutally small. Yes, they can get the job done, but really do a poor job of it, and a disservice to their main cabin passengers.

 

[MFHORN]

Nothing of any quality on the market in my part of Michigan . Just the typical repossessions . Seems like people with a great interest rate are happy to hold on to it . Divorces are a constant turnover for housing , I think people are getting divorced and still living together .

Nothing in my part of Michigan either. Not enough new construction to keep up with demand, and now it costs too much to build and too much for land. Used to be able to rent for a decent price, and now even that is sky high. Bad state government policies chase away businesses, roads are crappy as always. Near highest cost of car insurance in the country. High fees and taxes on everything. It's a poorly run state. It is beautiful though if you get up North.

 

[scoot]

I've toured quite a few houses outside of Las Vegas thinking of a winter home. Even the houses that were as they call the higher end in my eyes were junk compared to a nice Michigan home . Cheap windows etc . I know they don't have the extreme climate we have in Michigan but I did not see the quality I was willing to pay for .

 

[AZjeff]

Life experience has been getting large items through an exterior door into as house, a 40" door makes things considerably easier. Having my Wife wheelchair me through a 40" door will be considerably easier for her than navigating a 32" door. A 40" door generally allows better maneuverability at the inside of the door also.

I can honestly say I don't think I've ever seen a 40" entrance door on a residence. Above my pay grade no doubt.

 

[SC Maintenance]

How does one get a wheelchair through the front door with a very aging population?

I can honestly say I don't think I've ever seen a 40" entrance door on a residence

While I totally understand @GON point, I have had many relatives live late in life and none were in wheelchairs. Not saying it couldn't happen, but do you build every house ADA accessible in order to accommodate that scenario?

Honestly when I am old I want to live in a condo in the city. My mother's issue was she had a stroke and can not drive. After Dad died she was essentially shut in. She could get around just fine. My wife's mother was the same way.

 

[alarmguy]

AZJ, having to put in paver supplements on a two-car driveway to be able to have two cars in the drive, and exit the car without stepping on grass is a sign of a house that wasn't designed desirably from the start.

Nothing wrong with paver extensions, or concrete extensions. But for a home built in the last 20 years and have the smallest width driveway possible, simply to save the builder at max a few hundred dollars in materials, speaks volumes on how the rest of the house is likely built, how the subdivision, and township has low thresholds, etc. No drain tile off gutters on a new construction home, undesirable home. I can go on and on.

This video shows likely $800k plus USD homes that were blown over during construction by high winds. And it tells a bigger story, and a buyer like me can spot these homes a mile away of fancy features with poor foundation/ build. Undesirable.

Every single home in the below videos look like dream houses in pictures, advertisements, and to my Wife. Yet, I know they are undesirable.

In all fairness many if not all of those homes in the first video were under construction and not occupied. Also faulty construction is not something that only occurs in today's world.
In a country building close to or as many as 1.5 million homes a year. It's easy for video influencers to make videos of a small percentage of buildings that were not built to code.
Today's building codes when enforced and adhered to produce a far stronger and efficient home. There are criminals in every industry sadly.

 

[zzyzzx]

You reply is key to a lot of the rising inventory on a MACRO basis "Nothing of any quality on the market". Rising inventory is not of quality/ desirable homes on a MACRO basis.

Wife and I continue to look for a home in about a half dozen states. Quality homes are always under contract just days after being listed for sale.

As picky as you are you should have gone custom years ago.

 

[IndyIan]

As picky as you are you should have gone custom years ago.

And then plan to build another one, to fix the design issues that you bug you. I'm told by a few guys that the 3rd house they built was the keeper.
I think the wheel chair access thing is a bit over blown, as by the time one of you is in one, the other partner really isn't likely to be able to take care of you anyways. Also the design features to really make a place easily accessible, no one seems to want to live with for the 30 years prior, as it will kinda feel like you are entering a commercial space, and your whole lot has to be designed for the ground floor of the house being very close to ground level. My MIL in a wheelchair, did still do yard work as she was in pretty good health but lost her leg to an infection, but their house had the ground floor 3-4' above grade with a step up from the mudroom or porch, so it wasn't going to work with a slight 90 yr old to wheel her into the house even with ramps everywhere.
My in-laws went into a retirement home and its 10 times better for them than being in their house. It's sort of like going back to college dorms, but you don't share a room, have your own bathroom, and no one is up past 9pm... Food is pretty good really and you can still order in whatever you want.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Interesting chart, especially Nevada which seemed was a destination for many to migrate to.

What the chart doesn't show is a comparison to average inventories over the past 25 years. I suspect even though single family home inventories are rising year over year, overall single-family homes currently on the market are likely well below the 25-year average (speculation).

Additionally, every chart I look at shows single family home prices continuing to rise on a MACRO basis. The exception is the less desirable single-family home, the value of those homes are not rising when compared to a desirable home in the same subdivision, etc. With mortgage interest rates above six percent, growing inventory- people are no longer willing to pay full price for an undesirable home.


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Nevada has always pulled from California. Californians have a ton of equity and have no problems bidding up housing in "border" towns like Reno and Las Vegas. Remember Nevada has no state income tax and both major metropolitan areas are close to California.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

I understand why you would want this - but around here you won't find it. The new builds are tightly controlled based on how much land is open for water to be absorbed - I have forgotten the technical term. You can only cover a certain percentage of your lot - the more you cover, the less house / patio / whatever you can have. A lot of new builds are still "Charleston style" which just means they have a non attached garage on an alley in the back - the house is near the street - so the highest amount of useable square feet is possible.

In some of the more desirable areas there bulldozing old homes and building homes with garage under the house, then 2 or 3 living stories to maximize square feet. The pics below show houses that went for $700K when built a couple years ago. The ones with a marsh view off the back were $1M+.

40 inch front door is nice but I never see it.

This is not silicone valley. Median income and such is right around average.

Land here is expensive. If you want an acre - your an hour from the city minimum. The city is not that large. I live way out of town so we have a more traditional build - but with the kids grown up and not caring about schools, I would like to move into town. But 4 flights of stairs are definitely not on my wish list. These would not have an elevator - but the nicer ones around the corner likely do. No idea what there worth - not on my paycheck anyway.

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Don't forget flood zones. Raising the elevation means no flood insurance required.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

And then plan to build another one, to fix the design issues that you bug you. I'm told by a few guys that the 3rd house they built was the keeper.
I think the wheel chair access thing is a bit over blown, as by the time one of you is in one, the other partner really isn't likely to be able to take care of you anyways. Also the design features to really make a place easily accessible, no one seems to want to live with for the 30 years prior, as it will kinda feel like you are entering a commercial space, and your whole lot has to be designed for the ground floor of the house being very close to ground level. My MIL in a wheelchair, did still do yard work as she was in pretty good health but lost her leg to an infection, but their house had the ground floor 3-4' above grade with a step up from the mudroom or porch, so it wasn't going to work with a slight 90 yr old to wheel her into the house even with ramps everywhere.
My in-laws went into a retirement home and its 10 times better for them than being in their house. It's sort of like going back to college dorms, but you don't share a room, have your own bathroom, and no one is up past 9pm... Food is pretty good really and you can still order in whatever you want.

My stepfather had this situation and my parents installed an elevator in the garage so he wasn't homebound in the wheelchair. Granted they didn't pay for all of it (Veterans Administration) but it is an option.

 

[SC Maintenance]

Don't forget flood zones. Raising the elevation means no flood insurance required.

So if there built on stilts above flood 100 year flood stage. - no flood insurance required for mortgage?

Of the flood washes the whole thing away - stilts and all - who pays?

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

The builder gets away with that build because very ample buyer demand. Those home in the picture will get really old really quick for older homebuyers going up and down stairs. I bet the homeowner can't even open the door if a full size car without hitting the interior garage wall with his door.

Unless the pictured homes are waterfront, which apparently they are not, easy pass. No way I am buying a 1 million dollar home, new construction, new development (not a tear down lot), without a two car garage. Speaks volumes of what is really happening.

In part the builder gets away with it because the county is looking to maximize tax revenue on detached-single family homes. Wider driveways mean larger footprints which mean less units per acre of land. Interior access can be mitigated with an elevator or lift.

 

[SC Maintenance]

My stepfather had this situation and my parents installed an elevator in the garage so he wasn't homebound in the wheelchair. Granted they didn't pay for all of it (Veterans Administration) but it is an option.

I looked at some places on HHI years ago that were new construction - back when they were semi affordable. They were like this, and I seem to recall the elevator was about $30K - which I thought was reasonable? Much easier if you design for it up front.

 

[Greenbeforeblue]

I wonder how many of those for sale listings are for people who "bought" more house than they could afford? Little things like inflation, increased property taxes, vehicle loans and CC debt may have buried some people.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

So if there built on stilts above flood 100 year flood stage. - no flood insurance required for mortgage?

Of the flood washes the whole thing away - stilts and all - who pays?

Basically if you raise the house to a 500 yr zone (X) you are not required to obtain flood insurance. The homeowner will obtain an elevation certificate proving the height of the structure. Obviously the stilts have to be deep enough to keep them from shifting during a flood but that's how it works.

The flood doesn't wash the house away. It's normally the wind which gets into the house (broken windows, glass doors) or uplifts the roof which tears it off the stilts. As a teen my parents had a house on Isle of Palms and we drove down a few days after Hugo came through to check out the damage. I don't remember any missing houses which were raised, but I do remember a ton of houses which were pushed off their foundations by the storm surge. The storm surge on our raised house came within 1 ft of the framing. The house was raised around 10-12ft. Wind/Hurricane insurance is a must obviously. Also building codes have been written to reduce the potential amount of wind damage (Hurricane windows/shutters, hurricane roof ties, etc)