Is it worth it to build a big house — all cons

In the summer of 2022, as well as in the past, an unusual group of services began to be in demand on the real estate market. Its essence lies in the fact that there is a huge house, the disadvantage of which is that you only use it often.

The rest of the parts should be mothballed and insulated (including electricity and the heating system). The question is why build such a big house? Let’s take a real example. There is a man, let’s call him Alexander.

He decided to build for himself a huge house measuring 20 * 12 meters, and to the logical question “Why is it so big?” he said he always dreamed of it.

The history of one big house

This despite the fact that he has a small family — only one child and a wife. He was involved in the family business in 1990 — at that time they owned a couple of food stalls. In the 2000s, when the Russian Federation was on the rise, and also began to receive much more money from the export of oil products, the incomes of citizens began to grow, as well as the turnover of entrepreneurs. The family business grew, new objects appeared, they even managed to get to the station. The family was chic at that time — they changed the car for a new one, bought several apartments.

When the crisis hit in 2008, Alexander had already started building a house, and it took a lot of money. Due to a decrease in demand, his establishments were no longer as profitable as before, and the construction of the mansion had to be frozen. In 2014, success in business completely faded away, which is why the outlets had to be closed. It turned out that his «empire» was built and grew rapidly thanks to loans, and then he had to sell his property, including apartments, as he constantly needed money. At some point, even the apartment where he lived with his family had to be sold. Due to irrationality, he now lives in a house that was never fully completed, and if his desires were more modest, he would now live in a cozy little house, but without tension.

The crisis is an unpredictable thing, and it caught by surprise many people who built themselves incredible «oil» mansions. Now they need to spend a lot of money to support them. There are also often problems with the sale of large houses — the purchasing power of the population has fallen, and now not all people want to take on such a burden. In addition, recently there has been a fashion for eco-friendly houses — with solar panels, small ones, with a solar collector system. Most people who still live in huge houses try to keep costs to a minimum, and in order to do this, they often turn off part of the premises from the heating system, as if «conserving» an unused area.

There is another example from the words of the master — he conserved both floors at once for an elderly couple — they once built a large house on 3 floors. They are the parents of four children, they thought that everyone could fit there, even when they grow up. But the children have matured, moved to Moscow, and come to their parents only for holidays, for 7-15 days. Now, a married couple needs only a bedroom, a kitchen-living room, a study and a couple of guest rooms, and the rest has been isolated from the heating system, the electrical wire has been partially replaced and blocked until a better time.

The conclusion is that housing should be economical and comfortable, and you should not build large mansions if you have a small family. According to experts, an area of ​​100 square meters is enough for a comfortable stay of 3 people. You should understand the fact that every square meter will «suck» money out of your wallet. Even if you have funds and business success now, what will happen tomorrow? By ramping up consumption in full abundance, you can set yourself up for hardship during a crisis. Build smart.

Another true story

The family decided to build a country house with their own hands

They bought a suburban area and began work. Passionate about their work, they shared their experience. Husband and wife are city dwellers to the marrow of their bones, and no one has had much experience with suburban life before. Like many people, the country house seemed to them the embodiment of a childhood dream — a wonderful, beautiful and large building that stands in the middle of a green lawn on the edge of a forest. As former citizens of the USSR, constantly living in cramped apartments, in which there were few square meters, they dreamed of a house in the «weave» for each person.

As soon as the money became better, the couple rushed to build a dream house — large, brick, with arches and turrets, everything was as it was in the imagination. You probably understand what is at stake. This legacy of the 90s built up the first villages with cottages. Large houses where 2-3 people live, who do not go to the second floor for weeks and do not shout through the rooms, but call each other.

They had heard a lot from their acquaintances about the disadvantages of large houses, and therefore, when planning the construction, they did not try to make it big. The project was drawn up independently and as it seemed, he came out with only 250 squares. Not so much when compared with the apartments of the «new Russians». And after so many works done by yourself, you begin to understand that a living room of 40 squares is no better than a hall of 30 squares, two bedrooms are enough, and guests (if there are many) can spend the night in the hall on the second floor or on the sofa in living room.

And do not expect that grandchildren and children will live in the house. Of course, sometimes they will come to visit, but most likely they will not live with their parents. It was several hundred years ago that people lived in large families, practically communities, and now love grows stronger only at a distance. One of the main mistakes of novice developers is the desire to build a huge house. But it will take much more effort and money for maintenance and construction.

Before you start building a large country house, you should think about the following:

1. You are building a house, most likely, only for yourself and your wife. Sooner or later, the children will move out, most often this happens immediately after graduation.
2. A comfortable stay does not require a large area and dozens of rooms, and the option of a living room and a bedroom will be no less convenient than 5 pieces. It is best to spend additional resources on communications and the general arrangement of the site.
3. You will need to spend a lot of money on heating and maintaining the entire house. Even those extra rooms you don’t use. Why heat the area where you were last six months ago?
4. If you’re planning to sell your home, few will appreciate the grandeur, and larger homes are harder to sell than the simplest homes.
5. And if you are building a house with your own hands, you should remember that all the extra square meters will need to be built on your own, and this is money, effort and time. Your neighbor from a small house will fry the barbecue on the grill while you continue to plan, bash and saw, if you can complete what you started at all.

And now consider the list of the largest, tallest houses

What do you imagine when you hear such a combination of words as «big house»? How many square meters do you think? In this article, you will find 5 of the largest houses on the globe that are for sale right now.

Premium winery in Ribera del Duero (Spain, province of Burgos)

This is the largest winery located on a small hill in Spain. The house, or rather a huge full-cycle winery, covers an area of ​​​​more than 6,000 square meters, and is also surrounded by 40 hectares of vineyards. Here you can rethink your understanding of the word «huge». The kit includes a warehouse that is designed to store 1,200,000 kilograms of the best grapes in ideal conditions.

Interestingly, according to a recent study by Night Frank, “investing in wine” outperformed even real estate in London in terms of profitability! Over the past couple of years, wine assets have grown by 25%, and over the past 10 years by 232%. This incredibly large facility will be of great interest to connoisseurs of vast spaces, profitable investments and wine. The cost is 14.4 million dollars.

Longview Mansion in Alton (New Hampshire, USA)

The biggest offer that has ever appeared in the New Hampshire area is a property with the interesting name «Longview», and it is named so for its incredibly beautiful view of the largest lake in the state of Winnipesaukee. Two luxury houses with a total area of ​​​​almost 5,900 square meters were built in 2004. On the territory there is a unique tea house with a beautiful view of the lake, and on the shore there is an amphitheater made of stones, boathouses and docks. Moreover, there is also an infinity pool with a grotto, a tennis court and a helipad. The object is a private, closed access road runs through the territory with an area of ​​2.5 hectares, which is decorated with manicured lawns. This property can be bought as two lots separately — for 25 and 24 million dollars.

Homestead in Holmby Hills (USA, Los Angeles)

If in the UK you will be amazed by the ideas of converted strange objects into incredibly beautiful residential buildings, then in the USA you will be amazed by the dimensions. The third big object on the list will be a manor in a prestigious area of ​​​​Los Angeles (yes, Michael Jackson spent the last months in that area), and this is the largest residence in LA, and probably the most luxurious home in the world. The mansion is designed in the style of a French chateau and designed by architects James Langenheim & Associates and built in 1988. In 2011, a reconstruction was carried out there, and in order to bring the building into the appropriate form (to modern trends), they certainly did not spare money. The house has 14 bedrooms and 27 bathrooms, and the price of pleasure is $ 200 million.

Residence in Jardin Botanica (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

What do you associate with the word «Rio»? Probably very beautiful views with the mountain peaks of Corcovado, the statue of Christ the Redeemer, a beautiful panorama of the city and the bay. Unbelievable postcards of Leblon and Ipanema, and then imagine a big house with such views. It’s breathtaking. The residence, which is surrounded by a nature reserve in a prestigious area, includes 6 bedrooms with bathrooms (the area of ​​​​the largest bedroom is more than 110 square meters), a living room with a high ceiling, an office, a room with a bar for relaxing, a panoramic terrace overlooking nature, as well as an apartment for guests. And there is also a professional kitchen, a staff area, a laundry room, parking for 5 cars, a spa, a lounge area with a swimming pool and a terrace of 47 squares and the best view of the Botanical Garden. The area of ​​​​all buildings is 3,700 square meters, and the price of luxury housing is classified.

Chalot Castle in Oud-Valkenburg (Netherlands)

Who hasn’t dreamed of their own castle? Such a magical structure will close the ranking of the largest houses in the world that are for sale. It is located on an island, and the total area of ​​the plot is 2.2 hectares, and the living area is more than 4000 square meters. Perhaps 37 bedrooms will be enough for everyone. The island is surrounded by unique natural monuments that are protected. Also attached to the castle are outbuildings, and it can be used as a residential residence, or as a commercial facility. You can get to the castle through the bridge. Such a childhood dream costs only 7 million dollars.

Can you imagine how much maintenance and annual preventive maintenance of such houses will cost? After that, you should think again about whether to build a big house.

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