Your Dream House

Honestly, my dream house is a castle built of stone out in the middle of nowhere so far from a city that you would need a helicopter to go grocery shopping.

After hurricane Wilma, I'd like a Hussein spider hole but with total comfort and the hope the next hurricane is dry.

I really dont care, but I know my wife would love a bigger kitchen.  For me, perhaps a jacuzzi in the master bath.

Mason, I think you and my dad would get along well.

steven, talk about your low expectations!

Dr. G, I live in my kitchen so a big kitchen is a must. We have a jacuzzi tub in our master bath and love it. Lot's of people say that it wouldn't get used enough to be worth it but we use it all the time.

so where are the big dreamers? Other than the castle, you guys are being way too practical!

Funny, I've been thinking of this topic recently too. My dream home would have a 3-story kids' playland built with adults in mind. It would sport ball pits that are at least 4' deep, slides up to the ceiling, a network of trampolines encaged in safety nets, an indoor water park, gymnastics equipment like crash pits and tumbling mats, and tons of climbing equipment to include an indoor climbing wall.

But that's all just a lavish dream. Right now if we actually owned the home we're living in, I'd settle for another water heater (my showers always end in a cold spray), new walk-in closets, a finished basement, a bathroom on the main level (it's no fun running upstairs for an emergency tinkle). I'd love it if this home would retain some heat in the wintertime too, and on that note I'd put thermostats in every room. As it is now, there is one thermostat and it's in the living room where it's often hit with direct sunlight, making the thermostat assume that the whole home is just that warm. That does nothing for the rooms upstairs, let me tell you.

I would love to have a big front porch with swings and rocking chairs and geraniums and always a cold pitcher of lemonaid and iced tea ready for friendly neighbors who visit. I really would love to be in an older established neighborhood. With sidewalks and big trees and a park, school, store within walking distance. Our house came with a 10 year home warranty. There aren't the worries that we would have had with an older home. Older homes just have so much more personality.

Mature trees. We are in a new subdivision with a crepe myrtle and pear tree in front and nothing in back. Even if we plant it's going to take years for them to mature.

I would love to have a big rec room. Air hockey table, a bar, big flat screen tv, comfortable, cushy sofa's - just a general hang out kind of room. Oh and if I get to have anything I want I want skee ball and dance dance revolution in there too - arcade sized not a little home sized things.

Oh a huge, organized craft/stamp/scrapbook room. Where everything was organized and ready to go and I could just leave whatever project I'm working on out and close the door on the mess.

Okay my fantasizing is taking too much space. I guess I'll quit here.

Funny, I've been thinking of this topic recently too. My dream home would have a 3-story kids' playland built with adults in mind. It would sport ball pits that are at least 4' deep, slides up to the ceiling, a network of trampolines encaged in safety nets, an indoor water park, gymnastics equipment like crash pits and tumbling mats, and tons of climbing equipment to include an indoor climbing wall.

Wow! Love it!

Oh a huge, organized craft/stamp/scrapbook room. Where everything was organized and ready to go and I could just leave whatever project I'm working on out and close the door on the mess.

Oh yeah! I gotta have that too!

Now we're talkin'!

I almost forgot, I was in this upscale home that had heated tile floors...I want that too.

I have lots of dreams. Like Mason I wouldn't mind living in a castle in the middle of the country on so many acres no one could see the house.

My wife is/was a residential designer so that makes for really big dreams. Some of them I can share and others are projects in home automation that I am still working on and since they may be a potential next big idea ... well ... you get the idea.

On my private lake I will have a boat house. It will be named the Dog House. This is where I will spend my away from the wife time. I envision this to be a Bar. Stage and sound equipment would be a must here as I love to listen to and enjoy live music. If I get to do it with a few friends over a couple of drinks, great! When I see it in my minds eye, I see more English pub than road side dive.

In the main house I will have a Theater/Game room. When I see this room, the theater will have the ability to be open to the main room or be closed to be sound proof.

The whole house will have microphones for voice control of the automation system. Everything will be automated. Lights, HVAC, all systems of the house (water heating, appliances, etc.) The programming of 'scenes' will be the most complicated part and over all I think I will have to build multiple automation systems in zones of the house to make it work right. The idea is to be able to sit on the couch and say movie time (or whatever) and have the house transform. The blinds would close based on the time of day. The lights would dim and the TV would become active. The movie would start and if I can figure a way to deliver it, sodas and popcorn would be delivered. I might need to add a couple of robots into the mix.

My house will embody technology.

Technology is great...when it works.

Technology is great...when it works.

I agree Mason.

Just John, sounds like the ultimate Guy house. Sounds like you and Tim Taylor would get along smashingly

heated tile floors

Yes, that's a must too! I've experienced homes like that. It feels great to walk around barefoot. I wonder why that hasn't been a standard feature in homes over at least the past decade already? Hmmm...

My dream home would be on a sleepy street with a wrap around porch, hard wood floors, lots of molding...each bedroom has its own bathroom....a nice big media room with surround sound...a lovely stainless steel kitchen with granite counter tops and a huge beaten up country table in the middle of the kitchen for use as an island and eat in kitchen table...leading into a family room with a large stone fireplace.

I'd like a spice/herb garden right off the kitchen....and the garden surrounding the house will have to be three times bigger than the house, with a gazebo and stoned walking paths lit with torches in the summer.

The house doesn't have to be huge, but adequate. I've lived in huge homes and I hate to clean them, and a maid never really does as good a job as you want. So somewhere around 3,000-4,000 sq ft would be perfect. And the closer it is to 3,000 the happier I'd be.

I'd have to have whole house air filtration, a few skylights in the bathrooms, and a "sun room."

We plan on changing around our laundry room to put in two washers and two driers as well, and eventually hope to remodel our kitchen. Eventually, I'm going to need a jacuzzi, so we're going to have to find a place to put that as well.

Our only problem is water pressure, always a hazard in a small town. We're hoping to eventually remedy that by taking advantage of the fact we're on two lots and having a second meter put in for outside water and the jacuzzi (when finances allow us to get one).

Technology is great...when it works.

Well unlike the other computers in my house, my automation system has bee stable and running for over a year. Except for software updates, I haven't rebooted it.

Tova7 has described my dream house!

We recently resurected our present home, and tried to incorporate as many modernizations as we could afford, but we did all the work ourselves and ease of completion factored strongly.

Added closets, 1 1/2 bathrooms, jacuzi tub, bar, media room, updated kitchen, ceramic tile, refinished hardwood floors, cable/alarm/DSL in all rooms,Central AC, and a 2nd floor deck off the MBR ( eventually will add a spiral stair to the backyard)new paint/wallcoverings in every room, upgraded most eletrical ( shoulda done more of that tho)

Not a bad job, but now we've overbuilt in the "hood" ( the house is 80 yrs old in a "transitional" neighborhood)

Now, if I could move this crib onto about 10 acres near the coast.................

That sounds wonderful Tova!

Dyno, I remember you blogging while you were doing some of that work.  Sounds really nice!  I love hardwood floors.  I am going to try to talk Brad into letting me get hardwood in our dining room.  We have carpet right now and I hate it.

The 2nd floor deck sound wonderful too.  Sounds like a heck of a lot of work!

Dr. G, I live in my kitchen so a big kitchen is a must. We have a jacuzzi tub in our master bath and love it. Lot's of people say that it wouldn't get used enough to be worth it but we use it all the time.

Hey!  We can buy your house!

Jill,

You read that stuff I wrote years ago?!?

It would have made great cable TV, " This Damned Old Expensive House From Hell" is the working title.....

Can't really complain too much, we bought it out of repo for about 30k, spent 40k in renovations, and now have a 150k tax value ( we did all the labor, so it's not that great of a windfall) Now I have a paid for 4500sqf 4br, 31/2 bath, 2 story w/ all formal rooms, den, and office. 10 and 12 ft ceilings, 7 fireplaces...and a utility bill that could support a family of 5.

Reading about you people's current and dream houses is pretty interesting. My current home is a 20ft travel trailer I bought last year. It isn't big, or fancy, or even especially nice, but it's all mine and is really kinda neat in many ways. I've had fairly large houses with less storage space than this little thing has.

From the couch to the fridge is 2 whole steps. The bathroom is all of 20ft away. Everything else is in between. And cleaning is a breeze.

It's kinda like camping all the time.

Reading about you people's current and dream houses is pretty interesting. My current home is a 20ft travel trailer I bought last year. It isn't big, or fancy, or even especially nice, but it's all mine and is really kinda neat in many ways. I've had fairly large houses with less storage space than this little thing has.

That is a guy home! Anything more is our love's home!

True Guy. Remeber Martin Riggs' (Mel Gibson) place in Lethal Weapon? Same idea.

Hey! We can buy your house!

You'd have to move to the Detroit area though

It would have made great cable TV, " This Damned Old Expensive House From Hell" is the working title.....

I'd watch that! And yes, I have been reading your stuff for a long time now.

From the couch to the fridge is 2 whole steps. The bathroom is all of 20ft away. Everything else is in between. And cleaning is a breeze.

I used to absolutely love my grandparents' motor home. There were special nooks and crannies for everything. There is a lot to be said for a minimalistic life.

There is a lot to be said for a minimalistic life.

Agreed!

I was in this upscale home that had heated tile floors...I want that too.

My apt. has radiant heating, there's coils under the flooring. Not only is the floor warm, since heat rises it's quite a low cost heating systme.

My ideal or dream home would be of pink adobe bricks, rounded doors instead of sharp angular ones.

The shower would have multiple showerheads, have rocks built into it so it would look like a cave or waterfalls. There would be a place to sit down, and there are grab bars for safety.
The tub would be more like a pool you could walk down into with railings on each side. Plusating jets would soothe sore muscles.

My bedroom would face east, would have a heated waterbed like I used to, and would have a veranda with french doors and the Golden Retriever and the Collie would have their own sleeping area. The Llasa would sleep on the bed if she wanted to

The living room would have built in tv, vcr/dvd and doors to slide shut over it. There would be a fireplace in the center of the room, one half of the room would be for entertainment with a sectional that reclines. The other half of the room would be for conversing with people, comfortable on massive overstuffed chairs.

There'd be a large kitchen with the pots and pans overhead, there'd be a center island with built in stove top cooking, the oven would be built into the wall and it would be a microwave oven/convection oven/regular oven combination. Stainless steel freezer, stainless steel refrigerator/two door style.
The cupboards would have push button open doors instead of handles, and in fact all doors would have push button openers.

The garage would be a 2 car garage with an addition for a workshop. The garage would lead to the stable/paddock area where there would be a couple of Belgians and a thoroughbred mare.

There would be an outdoor pool, and a garden with tall hedges making a maze and a manmade waterfall in the middle of the maze.

There, all done! I DO dream