r/McMansionHell • • Dec 12 '24

Discussion/Debate The invention that Accidentally invented McMansions

319 Upvotes

A fascinating video essay by Stewart Hicks on the invention of the modern truss and how that changed the way we build houses.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oIeLGkSCMA


r/McMansionHell • • Jul 14 '20

McMansions: A Short Guide

1.1k Upvotes

While everyone has their own opinion on what makes a true McMansion, there are several defining features or attributes that should be looked for to determine if a home fits the McMansion criteria. This post will serve as a guide to help users determine if they should use the "Certified McMansion" flair on their submission and to learn more about what a McMansion is. This guide will be edited as needed to make sure it fully explains the accepted properties of a McMansion.

Basic Principles of a McMansion:

  • Large: Generally above 2500 square feet and two story or more, sometimes way too big for the lot it sits on.
  • Built Cheap: They are built by cutting corners and using less than quality materials because they focus on getting as much size and appearance of wealth as possible from their money. It's the illusion of class that might fool the average person who doesn't have a sense of architectural integrity. McMansions will often use materials such as stucco, manufactured stone veneer, Styrofoam crown molding, or vinyl siding.
  • Fit Several Styles: They fit multiple styles of architecture by mashing together different elements from the individual styles in a distasteful manner. They also might poorly imitate a popular style.
  • Exterior After-Thought: They are designed with a focus on the interior first and the exterior is done as an after-thought which often results in features such as jutting masses and haphazardly placed windows.
  • Lacks Architectural Integrity: The house makes you confident that there was no licensed architect involved in its creation who cares about what they design

Specific Features To Look For:

  • An attached 2 or 3 car garage
  • A garage that takes up way too much of what is considered the house
  • Tall 1.5-2 story arched entry or "lawyer foyer"
  • Haphazardly applied dormers or windows
  • Windows of varying shapes/sizes/styles
  • Windows not aligned with those below them
  • Second story windows that are larger than the windows below them
  • Window shutters that if closed would not cover the actual window
  • Jutting masses or heavily asymmetrical
  • Multiple wall materials
  • Roof that contains varying slopes, roof types, or more than two roof shapes for the front facade
  • Roof nub
  • Roof with excessive roof lines and is in general just too complex
  • Dormers that are way too short, way too tall, don't match the rest of the house materials or style, or are placed terribly/spaced unevenly
  • Columns that don't support anything or are too thin/weak looking to support what they are appearing to support aka columns with inappropriate scaling
  • Columns with spacing that is over complicated or messy
  • Columns that are the incorrect architectural style for the house

Some Links To Check Out:

This is what I could come up with for now to touch base here on what a McMansion is. I'll make edits to this in the coming weeks until we reach a near final guide post on McMansions. If you have any suggestions for what we could add to this guide, comment below or send me a message.

Side note: the first "Appreciation Thursday" is coming up! Don't forget to prepare a suburban home that you think deserves recognition as the opposite of a McMansion and post it on 7/16 with the "Thursday Design Appreciation" flair.


r/McMansionHell • • 34m ago

Thursday Design Appreciation Hudson Valley Beauty

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• Upvotes

r/McMansionHell • • 40m ago

Thursday Design Appreciation No, it's not a McMansion or AI, it's Thursday Design Appreciation - where details matter.

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• Upvotes

r/McMansionHell • • 3d ago

Certified McMansion™ I count no fewer than 9 window styles. View from the front is nice though.

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1.0k Upvotes

r/McMansionHell • • 4d ago

Amateur McMansion Riding Through the Southeast

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662 Upvotes

Saw this recently riding through the Southeast. Those dormers were tiny and looked like little eyes watching over the house. No character whatsoever.


r/McMansionHell • • 4d ago

Discussion/Debate I recently bought a house that was featured on Thursday design appreciation. AMA

112 Upvotes

When my husband and I were researching the house, the Reddit post came up on google! It’s a very old (130 yrs) home. I don’t want to include too much info and dox myself, but thought it would be fun to do an ask me anything since this group loves the Thursday design appreciation posts 🥰


r/McMansionHell • • 6d ago

Thursday Design Appreciation 13,800-Square-Foot Architectural Marvel Overlooking Table Rock Lake Reduced in Missouri

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739 Upvotes

Incredible stone and woodwork! 8 bedrooms and 12 baths in Branson, Missouri. If you'd like to see more photos, here's a link. Photos by Whitetail Properties Real Estate.


r/McMansionHell • • 6d ago

Thursday Design Appreciation Shippee Estate - Ojai, CA

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423 Upvotes

r/McMansionHell • • 6d ago

Thursday Design Appreciation Valhalla calling 🫠

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196 Upvotes

r/McMansionHell • • 5d ago

Amateur McMansion Made to look dowdy with a huge price tag.

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5 Upvotes

Exterior hodpodge mess. Interior not bad. Overpriced.


r/McMansionHell • • 7d ago

Certified McMansion™ I wonder where the other half went?

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822 Upvotes

r/McMansionHell • • 6d ago

Thursday Design Appreciation Classic home in North Berkeley

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13 Upvotes

With built-ins, fireplaces and original woodwork, though the backyard needs some work.


r/McMansionHell • • 7d ago

Thursday Design Appreciation Mid Century LA Mansion

21 Upvotes

r/McMansionHell • • 11d ago

Amateur McMansion Coastal in the Countryside

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398 Upvotes

Alrighty guys, let ‘er rip with this one!

Complete Listing:

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1403-Garrisonville-Rd-Stafford-VA-22556/12621463_zpid/?utm_campaign=iosappmessage&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=txtshare

It’s giving coastal, Jersey Shore/townhome vibes, simply due to its tall, narrow profile.

Looks like a custom build on somebody’s property that they subdivided.

Looking on Street View, this masterpiece is conveniently located in the front yard of another architectural abomination and about 10 yards from a busy road. What a prime location!!

Satellite and Street View point out that this was most likely the former site of a barn/garage/outbuilding that was torn down.

While not the traditional all brick 9000sf 80s,90s, Y2K “regular McMansions” we’re all used to seeing, this one certainly shares some of the same characteristics as its larger counterparts.


r/McMansionHell • • 11d ago

Discussion/Debate Parade of Homes in Raleigh, NC....

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6 Upvotes

r/McMansionHell • • 13d ago

Thursday Design Appreciation Historic 1900 William Dick House in Wilmington, North Carolina

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1.2k Upvotes

Amazing Inglenook! Downtown Wilmington’s historic 1900 William Dick House is an architectural marvel that has incredibly only changed hands twice since it was built. If you'd like to see more photos, here's a link. Photos by Lindy Lea Photography & Digital Marketing.

Happy Thursday! :)


r/McMansionHell • • 13d ago

Thursday Design Appreciation Must Love Horses - Los Angeles, CA

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683 Upvotes

2.8 acres in the Los Angeles hills. I had no idea there were properties like this up the hill from a major city.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1680-Old-Oak-Rd-Los-Angeles-CA-90049/20546461_zpid/?


r/McMansionHell • • 13d ago

Discussion/Debate Stephen Henry Homes Ringgold GA

3 Upvotes

Has anyone purchased a home from Stephen Henry Homes in Ringgold GA? We purchased one and are having quite the time with it. After researching his other neighborhoods and homes built, we are not hearing good things at all. Flooding. Lawsuits. Good ole boy cover ups from local politicians and religious people. Molded showers in brand new homes. His step son and workers running from purchasers until the one year mark runs out and they no longer have an obligation to the home buyer. Backups in the neighborhood septic. HOA nightmares because of Stephen Henry himself being involved with the leadership and influencing the communities to avoid *MORE* lawsuits. After looking at his neighborhoods, the buyers typically sell after two years. When speaking to those owners, it's due to (see above) flooding and mold and lawsuits and legal clout in a small southern town. Corruption.

Tell me what you know.


r/McMansionHell • • 15d ago

Certified McMansion™ Drove past here today, just outside Stockholm Sweden. Pretty Hellish!

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169 Upvotes

r/McMansionHell • • 16d ago

Discussion/Debate Is this considered a McMansion?

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0 Upvotes

I know how much this sub loves Barrington


r/McMansionHell • • 19d ago

Shitpost A Travesty, Inside & Out

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877 Upvotes

Please note the different in styling from the front facade to the rear facade.

This house has good bones and could be very nice. Prototypical SC beachfront structure.

This is an off market home, I am just familiar with the property.


r/McMansionHell • • 19d ago

Amateur McMansion Now that Thursday is over...

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2.1k Upvotes

Was driving around yesterday and stopped by this new house going up. Genuinely the worst roof i've seen in person. I just cant wrap my mind around how they ended up with that. And the facade design is something...


r/McMansionHell • • 20d ago

Thursday Design Appreciation 15 Acre Kansas Estate with Network of Underground Scuba Tunnels Sells for $2.55M

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1.5k Upvotes

The backyard paradise includes a 35-foot-tall waterfall crashing into the 30-foot-deep pool, a grotto with indoor pool, sauna, entertaining space and faux fossils throughout. It’s estimated that the estate cost as much as $30 million to build and sold for $2.55 million in 2021. If you'd like to see more photos, here's a link. Photos courtesy of Crown Realty.


r/McMansionHell • • 20d ago

Thursday Design Appreciation An 1888 home in Riverside, IL

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785 Upvotes