Big Houses Are Not Green
Big Houses Are Not Green: America’s McMansion Problem
The recent mansion boom produced millions of energy-wasting homes with thousands of square feet that Americans don’t need — not the behavior of a society that’s thinking about a sustainable future.
Big Houses Are Not Green: America’s McMansion Problem | Alternet
Other Cities Stand Up For Their Neighborhoods Too!
(McMansion Prices Down By 38% in San Francisco)
The McMansion’s day has come and gone
Now, as he digests the loss he must take, he notices other homeowners nearby going through the same shock with homes known as McMansions. One neighbor recently marked his home down $750,000 to $1.95 million.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-mcmansions-price-drop-chicago-0906-biz-20160902-story.html
Appeal of big homes dropping…
In San Francisco, according to Trulia data, the McMansion premium is down by 38 percent. In Los Angeles and Boston, it’s down by 25 percent; San Diego by 19 percent; and Oklahoma City by 15 percent.
http://www.columbian.com/news/2016/sep/05/harney-appeal-of-big-homes-dropping/
Bigger house yields big profit ……
A year after Belmont City Council was embroiled in a debate over whether to stop people from building “McMansions,” a developer nearly doubled the size of a house ….
The opponents said that allowing for larger homes would create McMansions. They also worried that too many homes would be flipped, where a developer buys a house, improves it and sells it.
De Melo is suspicious that the 1120 Ladera Way home was “flipped” since Capovilla sold it 2 1/2 years after he bought it.
Source: Daily Post, September 13, 2016.
How well have these homes kept their value? Not well, compared with the rest of the U.S. housing market.
…McMansion owners are losing out because the market considers their homes an ugly investment, too.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-08-23/mcmansions-define-ugly-in-a-new-way-they-re-a-bad-investment
City passes moratorium on lot splits: Temporary urgency ordinance in San Carlos while city officials look at residential zoning rules – See more at:
……..The city has received numerous emails and correspondence from residents complaining about homes being too big on lots that are too small…….“This is the will of residents. From what I’ve heard they want to maintain that small-town feel and this is a step toward doing this,” Mayor Cameron Johnson said.
http://www.smdailyjournal.com/articles/lnews/2016-06-30/city-passes-moratorium-on-lot-splits-temporary-urgency-ordinance-in-san-carlos-while-city-officials-look-at-residential-zoning-rules/1776425164302.html
Labor unions, environmentalists are biggest opponents of Gov. Brown’s affordable housing plan – “It would be a disaster for local government, local communities, the environment and the citizens of California,” said a May 18 letter to state lawmakers from the State Building & Construction Trades Council, the Natural Resources Defense Council and other labor and environmental groups.
http://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-sac-labor-enviro-housing-20160524-snap-story.html
‘Help, a McMansion Is Going Up Next Door!’
Big homes – big problem
What’s going on in Mountain View is an extreme version of a problem cropping up all over the country: Huge houses are being built on plots of land originally meant to accommodate smaller dwellings, sparking a heated debate over what’s best for the community. Some argue that owners of larger homes pay more taxes, which can benefit all. But if your home happens to have its air and light blocked by a behemoth next door, you would likely be very, very upset—and can most likely kiss the idea of cashing out on your home sale goodbye.
http://www.realtor.com/news/trends/mcmansion-next-door/
Second-Dwelling-Unit Debate Arrives at LA City Hall
…the lenient state standards would foist “one size fits all” rules on our vast city, allowing enormous SDUs to be visible from the public streets and permitting their construction everywhere, even in delicate Hillside areas.
http://www.citywatchla.com/index.php/the-la-beat/11679-second-dwelling-unit-debate-arrives-at-la-city-hall
Construction on John Gregorchuk’s secondary dwelling unit has been stalled because of a legal ruling against the city of Los Angeles. (Marcus Yam / Los Angeles Times)
Group says it will sue over city development
A group of Redwood City residents are preparing to file a lawsuit to slow the massive development in Redwood City, an attorney told the Post yesterday.
From: NewsBank — service provider for
Daily Post Archives<newslibrary@newsbank.com>
Date: Tue, Aug 30, 2016 at 1:25 PM
Subject: Daily Post (Palo Alto) Document, Author: EMILY MIBACH, Daily Post Staff Writer
Copyright, 2016, Daily Post, L.L.C., All Rights Reserved.
Record Number: 15F1690E93763B50
Homes are bigger than ever. Now there’s a backlash against the ‘mansionization’ of America.
Back in 1950, according to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), the average new house clocked in at 963 square feet. By 1970, that figure had swollen to 1,500 square feet. Today’s average: 2,400 square feet. One in five are more than 3,000 square feet.
Oddly, as houses expanded, the number of household members shrank, from 3.1 people in 1971 to 2.6 people today. The average building-lot size contracted also, to about 8,000 square feet from 9,000 in the 1980s.
http://money.cnn.com/2005/08/18/real_estate/monster_home_backlash/
Invasion of the Monster Homes / Silicon Valley trend spreads — raze a small house, build a mansion.
A mansion used to require two acres, not just a 5,000-square-foot lot,” said urban designer Peter Calthorpe, who has offices in Berkeley and Portland. “But (in Silicon Valley), proximity to work and not being stuck in traffic are valuable, and people have to express their wealth. That is the fundamental mix.”
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Invasion-of-the-Monster-Homes-Silicon-Valley-2898908.php
Big Houses Are Not Green: America’s McMansion Problem
The recent mansion boom produced millions of energy-wasting homes with thousands of square feet that Americans don’t need — not the behavior of a society that’s thinking about a sustainable future.
http://www.alternet.org/story/61523/big_houses_are_not_green%3A_america’s_mcmansion_problem
DATA PROVES MONSTER HOUSE EPIDEMIC IN NOE VALLEY
In Noe Valley, the typical monster house project creates a new structure of 4,000 to 8,000 square feet on a block where houses average less than 2,000 square feet. Peterkofsky added, “Clearly, one key way that monster houses disturb the feel of the neighborhood is by overwhelming the scale of the surrounding homes, typically far less than half the size of the new structure.”
http://protectnoescharm.com/resources/press_release_monster_house_data.html
Burbank Passes Limits on ‘McMansions’
A decade ago, the city enacted similar restrictions on residential construction. But in recent years, rising land values and low interest rates have provided powerful motivation for developers and homeowners to find and exploit loopholes in that earlier law that allow for much larger structures than were intended, a city staff report said.
http://labusinessjournal.com/news/2015/apr/01/burbank-passes-limits-mcmansions/
Corona Heights: Testing Ground For Effort To Block More ‘Monster Homes’
Large new home developments have been mostly blocked in the area, due to legislation sponsored by District 8 Supervisor Scott Wiener that passed last March. Weiss and others say they are open to new developments that “fit” the scope of existing houses.
http://hoodline.com/2016/02/corona-heights-testing-ground-for-effort-to-block-more-monster-homes
‘McMansion’ crackdown war wins first battle in LAHomes
Jan Reichmann, a real estate agent and resident of Comstock Hills in Westwood, said her neighborhood “has been ravaged by aggressive speculators, tearing (down homes) and creating duplicate mansions.”
“Don’t be fooled by those who say the older homes are not big enough for today’s lifestyle,” she told the commission. “Once a house is torn down next to you, your house is immediately devalued,” with natural lighting and privacy reduced.
http://mynewsla.com/government/2016/07/15/mcmansion-crackdown-war-wins-first-battle-in-la/
No more ‘McMansions’ in Los Angeles for two years, says council
The new rules came amid a “proliferation of out-of-scale developments that threaten the cohesion and character” of neighborhoods, a city report states.
http://www.dailynews.com/government-and-politics/20150325/no-more-mcmansions-in-los-angeles-for-two-years-says-council
Residents Fight New Development That Would Bring 53 New Homes in Walnut Creek
Tice Valley residents are gathering signatures for a petition to block what they consider a threat to their semi-rural neighborhood.
http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Residents-Fight-New-Development-That-Would-Brings-53-New-Homes-in-Walnut-Creek-351968101.html
Commentary: A lot of hard work by key people helps keep ‘Saratoga the way it is’
Thus, the answer to the initial question of “Why is Saratoga so beautiful, quiet, safe and different?” is because of direct action by our residents, placing homeowner and neighborhood needs above those of development interests. The West Valley stadium fight, Measure A, our slope-density formulas, our major and minor ridgeline prohibitions, our tree ordinance, Measure G, the North Campus: those are primary reasons Saratoga is not Cupertino or Campbell.
http://www.mercurynews.com/top-stories/ci_23333745/
Proposal to ban two-story houses splits Palo Alto neighbors
“If I built a second story on my house, I might be able to sell it for more money, but at least six neighbors would be negatively impacted by the loss of privacy and daylight AND the value of their houses would likely be diminished, at least until they too built up. The single story overlay is essential to maintain our neighborhood.”
http://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/2016/04/15/proposal-to-ban-two-story-houses-splits-palo-alto-neighbors
Antioch: Proposed large housing development faces stiff opposition
Other opponents cited the city’s chronic shortage of police officers and the additional crime that goes hand-in-hand with an uptick in the population. Some argued that building more homes would depress real estate values further, resulting in more Section 8 housing as landlords snap up the bargain investments.
http://www.eastbaytimes.com/breaking-news/ci_28940081/proposed-large-housing-development-faces-stiff-opposition
San Diego city planners consider doubling waterfront height limits to 60 feet.Bay Park residents fighting to keep view
http://www.cbs8.com/story/26644882/bay-park-residents-fighting-to-keep-view
Venice Residents Say No More To Secret, City-Approved Development Projects
Such serious bending of the rules for development approvals have been taking place across L.A. — in Koreatown, Mid-Wilshire, Chinatown, Hollywood, the Westside, Boyle Heights and the list goes on.
http://2preservela.org/venice-residents-say-no-more-to-secret-city-approved-development-projects/
Ask Belmont Citizens 
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