What’s a McMansion - and how can we prevent more of them? | Kate Wagner | TEDxMidAtlantic

If you love to hate the ugly houses that became ubiquitous before (and after) the bubble burst you've come to the right place. Kate Wagner is the author of the blog McMansionHell, which aims to educate the general public about architecture, design, and urbanism by making examples of America’s most despised architectural style.
Kate Wagner's personal research is in how socioeconomic changes in the last 36 years are reflected in architecture and design at the consumer level. Kate is currently a first-year master’s student in Acoustics, a joint venture between Johns Hopkins University and Peabody Conservatory.
This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at ted.com/tedx

[@Avellania]

Most of these mansions look like something I built in The Sims as a teen. I was waiting for the giant cowplant and the pool without ladder.

[@skenney8325]

You built that because that is what you knew (because you had the Sims) and what they knew (because the Sims had been invented).

[@TheYasmineFlower]

+SKennedy And it certainly didn't help that "normal" designs aren't that possible in Sims (I still want rooms under the roof damnit!), so you kinda need to space out. And then you build the first part of it when your Sims are still poor unless you cheat, and then they earn more money and you expand it but you don't bother to replace the first part of it so you basically add boxes and boxes to the first box to get the space that you need. I do think that a lot of it is due to the mechanics within the game itself. I live in a country where there's no McMansions (because there's really strict guidelines on building, from the height to if the style you want fits into the neighborhood you're building in), and even I ended up building some in Sims.

[@hannahbonanza1075]

Totally Sim houses.

[@Patchuchan]

Yah i did that and once made a room with all fireplaces and another with toilets everywhere.

[@krashd]

Paulie, you'd love 70's British houses, it wasn't uncommon for the front door to open directly into the living room like you see on every single American sitcom ever made. Gesturing to your sister to tell your buddy that you aren't at home can be tricky if he can see you sitting on the sofa.

[@UseZapCannon]

The way Wagner talks is awkward but in a really endearing way, it reminds me of how I'd probably sound and talk if I were offered to speak at one of these things

[@radar_the_fox]

Same

[@hidenseek364]

to all the people getting offended because they live in a big house. it's not about you, it's about companies that put as little effort as possible into building homes and trying to pass them off as "luxury". I live in the burbs & used to be a realtor, so I've seen lots and lots of mcmansions. I know first hand how poorly some of them are constructed and how little attention is sometimes paid to function and purpose - even in multi-million dollar homes. what Kate is trying to do is educate people so that they can choose a quality home instead of mcmansion. it's like learning how to spot and avoid a Folex when you're really interested in a Rolex.

[@lumi2798]

Who cares if the homes pillars are hollow or not? Or if they're too big? It's all based on taste. Some people like different shapes of their houses or not 'architecture basic'

[@hippojuice23]

Or is it? Nouveau riche with no sense of taste! 😂

[@wolfgangsimonsiv9444]

Um, no sweetie, Kate is just a typical Millie that loves to complain. Maybe instead of complaining she should get a real job (not a blogger/speaker) and then she get be able to afford a proper house. HAHAHA.

[@jordanreynolds4688]

I'm your 1000th like. Couldn't leave you hanging.

[@doctorfritznoel]

@@lumi2798 hollow pillars are cheap and easily damaged

[@kittimcconnell2633]

What upsets me most about McMansions is their terrible, hyper-complicated roof constructions. Zig-zag mountain ranges of roof that will cost more to replace than most houses cost in the first place.

[@juanjuri6127]

iirc that's because they literally use an auto-roof generator when designing the house, as if they were playing The Sims. the house plans start by dragging in whatever room template the developer requires for extra luxury points, the actual appearance of the house on the outside (outside of mainstays like pointless columns and mismatched dormers) is an afterthought.

[@kingjbone1]

@@juanjuri6127 idk there was such a program. that explains all the nubbing.

[@anastasiaphan4202]

kingjbone1 the sims isn’t a program. It’s just a very popular life simulation games where you can build virtual house, controlling virtual people with virtual life. Most people play this game just for the house building aspect because it pretty simple in comparison to actual architect professionals software.

[@kingjbone1]

@@anastasiaphan4202Ii was referring to the roof-planning software a/e's use to (not put $ into) modern roof-line design. try again.

[@coreygolphenee9633]

All so one of your three game rooms can have a bay window

[@themanonearth5163]

I love how she seems so awkward up there, she has the sort of anxiousness where she rocks back and forth and stuff on her feet and I love that. She's so human, she makes funny jokes about architecture and I think it's great that she got up here even if she seemed nervous to talk about something she was passionate for. (honestly, these are just opinions, actually sorry if she wasn't nervous)

[@user-vw2jq3to5e]

She seemed nervous to me as well which increases my respect even more, since she was willing to take on the anxiety to share her hate for these horrendous buildings with us!! We stan 😍

[@bb0930]

It is one of the hardest things to do, public speaking. I admire anyone who does it. It is easy to comment sitting down and being proactive

[@jergervasi3331]

I thought the same thing. It made me love her even more! I’ve enjoyed her writing for years.

[@larryjohnny]

😅I too enjoy her non chalant style and delivery. Unique is good and it’s obvious she’s brilliant on the topic!

[@penpolyon8179]

it this the girl who does Mcmansion hell?? on tumblr? ive been a fan of that blog forever.

[@Feraloidies]

IT IS!

[@fart63]

Pen polyon I adore how much this girl hates mcmansions

[@missmoxie9188]

Yes it is

[@cynthiasonier5142]

Mcmansions...so cheap and unimaginative yet so desperate to pass off as rich and fancy. What insecurity looks like as a building.

[@no-trick-pony]

Honestly every one of those McMansions too me looked like 1000x more imaginative than all the regular examples she showed (on here and on her blog). Regular houses look boring all the same with no character. McMansions might be fugly to some but they have some character. As for poor build quality, too big and poorly planned: Points taken.

[@SuperKing604]

@@no-trick-pony who says to big? its not your property so it shouldn't be your concern. as for planning as for building quality you can hire better builders yourself or get your city/state to put in better rules about built quality.

[@MrJstorm4]

@@SuperKing604 your house is too big if you have more rooms than you could possibly use for example having six or seven bedrooms or haveing six bathrooms for a family of four

[@toxicfrankie4352]

it's literally just a house

[@grizzlybears]

“Unimaginative”!?! McMansions are the definition of imaginative wether you think they’re bad or not

[@jasonbaker2126]

Yes. We need builders to build normally sized homes with better materials. She touched on the poor materials which is what really bugs me. You rarely see any actual masonry on newly built homes. Chimneys are just plywood boxes with siding. Porches are concrete with brick patterns stamped on them. You don't see real wood in woodwork. Woodwork is painted MDF. Bathrooms usually aren't tiled. They are just drywall with vinyl floors and fiberglass tubs. Most builders are just shitting out cheap square footage made of oriented strand board and vinyl. I'd rather have a smaller house made with quality materials.

[@WerdnaNiraehs]

Darn?

[@yesmaam5880]

Jason Baker //okay but if they did all that houses would cost x3

[@motherintoronto]

Saif 403817 Yes, I'm okay with paying more for a better built house. And I did. I bought an older house that was well constructed and has many more years left in it to enjoy.

[@nonyobussiness3440]

Well stop buying them

[@WiscoDrinks]

yo dawg.. even regular houses are built like small "McMansions".

[@ajgerbi]

Just because a house is large doesn't mean it's a McMansion though, many people in the comments seem confused by that. The majority of McMansions get their name from poor design, and cheap structure so that it is inexpensive to purchase this oversized home. They're trying to look fancy, but essentially they aren't.

[@anastasiaphan4202]

*Bad Word* so it’s cheap faking fancy oversized house, right ?

[@deletice]

Anastasia Phan my house is the opposite it is 7000 square feet but it looks like a tiny cottage, and it is very well built (besides a few small errors but it was the 90s when it was built)

[@ronv6637]

Wrong criteria,the main point is it is overbuilt for the lot and for the occupants. 8 kids,need 6 bedrooms or a couple dorms

[@theminerva5326]

"Mommy really needs cathedral ceilings in her bathroom." lol

[@soygenialnumero1693]

Nobody laughed at that! So dissapointed😔💔

[@oscarosullivan4513]

Just why

[@vivian0duong]

I want an extended version. I bet she could talk about this for an hour and I’d totally watch that talk.

[@MySerpentine]

She has a tumblr

[@sierrasmith8722]

@@MySerpentinefc she does 😂 she’s too awkward and cute to not have one

[@sierrasmith8722]

right! id love her youtube channel

[@shammydammy2610]

We recently sold our century old farmhouse. We were a little worried because we'd started some maintenance on one of the rooms but had not finished it, so the guts of the construction were visible. After the sale had closed, the buyer said "I knew I had to have it when I saw the all wood construction."

[@davidbergaragonzalez5653]

Timber frame houses are beautiful.

[@oscarosullivan4513]

Quality assurance

[@ronv6637]

Found a real sucker

[@shammydammy2610]

@@ronv6637 Nope. They knew exactly what they were getting and it was priced accordingly

[@angelgjr1999]

Them old farmhouses will outlive all these McMansions.

[@jacobmtcastle5741]

My grandmother lives in a McMansion, and what’s worse is that they are just as bad on the inside too. Some of the perks include 1. A garage too short to park most cars in 2. A laundry room without a door separating it from the kitchen 3. A loft with a ceiling so low you can scrape your head on the roof at certain angles 4. A breakfast nook too small for most tables 5. A fireplace in the living room that does not work because of a design error 6. No door between the master bed and bath 7. The staircase to access the loft is in the laundry room 8. A horribly laid out jack-and-Jill bathroom for the guest bedrooms to work 9. The two guest bedrooms do not have access to their closets. The only access is through the shared bathroom 10. The kitchen is walled on nearly all sides

[@thetheatreorgan168]

Maybe the architect drove a Mitsubishi Mirage, eh?

[@johndoe-bk3de]

im a contractor that has to regularly work on these homes and i cant stand it. problem is property is worth so much you actually HAVE to build a gigantic house on it to even have a chance at getting a return on your investment. of course that only applies to new contruction, not remodeled older homes

[@jdfox37]

Aesthetics are up for debate, within reason. Architecture is first and foremost functional. Second its supposed to not fall apart, and third is it looks nice. People start with nice and go backwards and end up with horrific homes. Most of the things people think of or have picked up on as nice have a root in something older, which happens to look nice even though its very functional or was later improved upon to look nice to compliment function. Roof tiles and Plaster style walls come to mind, things you'd see on a medieval castle. Stonework parapets and turrets next, you start to see where some of these things get mangled into horrific amalgamations of bad design.

[@vilveyachke5103]

larger tax revenues for the local governments too.....$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ Ad Valorem taxation

[@JS-po8oc]

Would hiring an architect help get a good house that's really big?

[@_d0ser]

@@JS-po8oc Absolutely. Patrick Ahearn comes to mind immediately. Love his work.

[@robmcmuffin8453]

beautiful and smart! when I worked in heating and air conditioning, we LOVED mcmamsions! they usually required 3 times the materials (duct work , compressors and air handlers) for installation.

[@robertkelly9772]

Rob Mcmuffin I'm sure the oil and power companies love 'em too!

[@LucasFernandez-fk8se]

Rob Mcmuffin she is neither of those things

[@screamingweevil3410]

@@LucasFernandez-fk8se I think she is both of those things, as are most people.

[@imperatort1]

@@acf894 what good of a work would you do without the people that chose to write "words in places", or maybe you were born with that knowledge. Society can very well function without you as it can without her but everyone gives his part to it, its what makes us civilised.

[@timmmahhhh]

@@acf894 I'll put it in language you can relate to; she is resuscitating good architecture.

[@purplefreak3]

I make McMansions in the Sims game.

[@cole1714]

purplefreak3 That’s where they should remain.

[@rafael285pc]

same so big i dont even know what to do

[@ronniemokeev3322]

You should check the tiny houses thesimsupply has made in the sims 4. I remember at least 4 of them being 4x4 or under. And sims 4 doesn't have spiral stairs OR elevators :D

[@SarahAndreaRoycesChannel]

I made several on 10by10 land spots as this is what you start with when you make a runaway teen challenge. Usually two stories with a basement. That was enough for a pool, table tennis and designated washing machine area in the basement, kitchen and living room on the ground floor and an office, two person bedroom and a nice terrace on the second floor. Since you can only use 8x8 I surrounded the frame of the land with flowers. That small house looked great and my sim never left ;-)

[@kawaiidere1023]

@AnnieO it’s a challenge in the Sims. All your sim has is a cheap lot, no cash or furniture. Once you get a computer you can hack, program, and make cash. It’s really fun

[@bluebird5100]

I though I was strange because I never liked them but they keep being built. I agree that mcmansions are absolutely gaudy.

[@kittimcconnell2633]

Gaudy is the perfect description for them!

[@c.m.b.7567]

Your just jealous because you cannot afford them, sorry.

[@fuzzybuzzy3159]

@@c.m.b.7567 Did you Did you not understand a word she said

[@venus_envy]

@@c.m.b.7567 Can't afford an oversized house made of foam that doesn't know if it's supposed to be Tudor-era inspired, or mission inspired, or craftsman or Victorian of Modern so it's just combines all styles into a Gargantua-horror monstrosity? Oh no, whatever will I do?

[@m.f.3347]

@@c.m.b.7567 LOL. McMansions are owned by people who are desperate to appear rich. I'd rather a townhouse in the potato rows of Copenhagen or a Midtown Manhattan apartment that's worth twice the price of these flimsy MDF & foam hellscapes

[@augustpritchett4521]

I grew up in Charlotte NC and saw plenty of these. One time, my dad and I were at Phillips Place, which has high end stores, expensive restaurants, and luxury condos, to see a movie at the theater. Anyway, there was this low wall built as a border around the parking lot that someone hit with a car. The wall was literally Styrofoam covered with stucco! And you basically had to be super rich to live there.

[@andrewhuckstable5996]

August Pritchett People will make some awful choices to save money. Usually the downgrade from real stones to molded concrete! It’s also partially motivated by people who don’t plan on being somewhere more than a decade too.

[@antagonistb]

Hate to break it to you, but that ain’t stucco. That’s EIFS, a much cheaper, softer form of ‘stucco’. EIFS is also commonly known as ‘Fake Stucco’.

[@danielbabb4776]

Glad to see my hometown represented, terrible design in homes and roads $$thumbs_up$$

[@BlackOperations530]

@@danielbabb4776 I agree with you about the terrible design in homes and roads! And thats why I'm leaving Charlotte! 😡

[@WretchedNZ]

If Lisa Simpson was an architect

[@pearlescent1557]

yes!! that's what it reminds me of - that lisa simpson meme with the presentation!

[@cammy60467]

Lol facts

[@Whoknows-mf1cv]

I thought about the houses the Bluths built in Arrested Development for the duration of this video.

[@misscustomer3345]

Lydia Grace excellent point! Love that show!

[@markcarey8426]

@@misscustomer3345 Yeah. Me too.

[@Soupie62]

One of my pet peeves in housing design is "inefficient use of space". Housing here in Australia has ridiculous pricing, which is driving suburban houses onto smaller lots. Multi-level houses pop up, yet they have bizarre design options from the start... Standard house plans, even 2-storey designs, don't include a garage by default. You want a garage, the architects tack it onto one the sides of the house. Which leads to the debacle of being unable to use the space ABOVE the garage unless you abandon most architect designs. There's something ridiculous, bordering on obscene, in having so much space go to waste in a housing design.

[@Rudenbehr]

Alan Campbell Good thing these houses are always easy to bulldoze

[@ccggenius]

I'd be sold on a two story house with a loft above the adjoined garage. If it was good enough for The Fonz...

[@TerryReedMiss]

Or a media room above it! Perfect --- especially if you have teens! Get those noisy pups AWAY from the rest of the house, but keep them at home. LOLOL

[@GigawingsVideo]

I was in Melbourne for several years. For a country that literally owned an entire continent your housings are too inefficient sometimes. Did the 2008 housing crisis affect Australia too?

[@SarahAndreaRoycesChannel]

Then australian designers should make a practica at Japanese or Swiss architecture offices. Hint: The garage in small spaces is integrated in the house and often even underground.

[@ajc8815]

As a real estate agent, I would never take a client to any McMansion.

[@havek23]

Unless they asked you to

[@fl0pZ3]

Jeeto hey can you show me a mcma.. NO!

[@keironlunn123]

As a builder I refuse to work on McMansion sites. I only build with quality materials. If you have the money for a McMansion you have the money to build a proper, nicer house in my opinion

[@Topofthelinetommy]

It sounds to me that you do your buyers a dis-service.

[@WiscoDrinks]

too bad.. less scrupulous builders are going to jump right on that, though.

[@lakegirl239]

Glad to know I am not alone in distain for these buildings. I always imagine the architect sitting with the client describing many architectural elements possible for the design and the client responds saying they'd like one of each.

[@JOHN----DOE]

I've always called this "F$%@ You" Architecture, because the owners couldn't care less how their monstrosity fits into the aesthetic of their neighborhood, only what it looks like from inside. Better yet--they are the housing equivalent of Beanie Babies.

[@emmanuelmckoy5899]

John Doe its there house, they can build it how they want

[@ralphgoodman4670]

John Doe More like Cabbage-Patch Dolls.

[@smiley4995]

I get the first part, but what's wrong with beanie babies?

[@jenjenneration]

emmanuel mckoy *their*

[@diyboomboxesintexas2805]

emmanuel mckoy Its "their"

[@lunamcgrath3266]

I feel like McMansions look like some sort of ironic art piece in response to suburbanism and consumerism, but sadly they actually exist

[@wba6787]

Few points, none of them aesthetic: i] "McMansions" are usually the product of cowboy greenfield developers exploiting lax regulation around US property rights to build cheap, giant houses on the peripheries of urban centers. It's usually the municipality - not to mention the environment - that ends up picking up the bill. ii] These sort of suburban communities extend the boundaries of American cities almost indefinitely, until you end up with areas like Dallas, Atlanta, and Phoenix, where the "free will" of McMansion consumers actually produces negative externalizes (pollution, lack of access to nature, creation of soulless spaces, decentralization...) that harm other inhabitants of the city. iii] As Kate mentions, they speak to a new era of housing in which the emphasis isn't on livability, longevity, or design, but upon return-on-investment. iv] Not only do they fail in the above respect, as almost all trends suggest that every generation now prefers smaller houses in walkable neighborhoods with amenities and a sense of community, but their cheap square-footage obsessed construction also creates a slew of secondary problems. They're difficult to maintain, they create aesthetically jumbled neighborhoods, and they consume a disproportionate amount of energy. It's really not (all) about how they look. It's what they represent: people who - really only because they've been socialized not to think about anyone else - make decisions to the detriment of society, the planet, and their own well-being. Maybe commentaries like this aren't the best way to change those peoples' tastes, but it's certainly part of the reason why consumers are turning against stuff like this. It just creates bad places.

[@josephodell4830]

I loovveee big houses but I would rather have a cottage than a cheap big house

[@EyeLean5280]

Love her website! It's gotten my teenager interested in architecture and now she's going to request a class on it in school.

[@alexasmith3886]

Kids can REQUEST CLASSES!?!?! WHAT!!? I went to a poor public school in the 90s and early 2000s, so that wasn't an option for us. I think that kids requesting classes is the best idea I've ever heard. Not to say that any kid who wants a class on manga design should get one at the financial expense of other students' interest, but every kid should have a chance to express what they are into, and providing that the subject doesn't challenge the ethics of the school (i.e. a class on how to build pipe bombs), or replace core classes, and is requested by enough kids to make it worth the money, I say Brilliant!

[@SouthernSara23]

She is actually really funny and makes great points!

[@jparsonsfilm]

Former homebuilder here. Part of what contributes to the sqft bloat is the permit fee structure. In most municipalities in the US, the developer pays a building permit fee *per unit*. This encourages them to build fewer, larger units to lower their overhead rather than the many smaller affordable units we actually need in this country.

[@aliciamack3923]

I love your blog and this talk! I just spent an hour learning about McMansions on your blog; never knew I had an interest in architecture!

[@jeangenie2689]

Honestly when she spoke about being heard more when you disagree with something opposed to agreeing with something is right on so many levels....

[@eligibleguest3868]

Plato wrote that beautiful objects whisper important things about the truth to us. The architectural disharmony of the Mcmansions is reflected in ugly behaviour (lust vs. love) of the dwellers of such mansions. Also cars today look like hissing animals.

[@coreyorman4972]

That's great. I'm sure that you've also heard it said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. If you have to "educate" someone as to why something is beautiful, or not beautiful, maybe you're just being a snob.

[@eligibleguest3868]

the unconscious automatically responds to perennial archetypes. solely the conscious observer can choose what he projects into a given visual information.

[@eligibleguest3868]

you know the maslow hierarchy of needs? there has to be a rung for any personality type on the ladder. also the higher rungs have to be dealt with

[@JOHN----DOE]

Actually, many of them look like Trump's face.

[@LucasFernandez-fk8se]

J. Weissenheimer better than back in your day when houses were 800sqft box and a car just as boxy

[@stripedsweater520]

This was one of my favorite talks that day haha I knew nothing about McMansions but have definitely seen them

[@TerryReedMiss]

I studied drafting in high school, then architecture in college -- for two semesters. Then I realized, it wasn't for me. BUT -- I did learn what was good and what was not! When the McMansions started coming up in Austin in the 80's, I wanted to barf! With all that gorgeous Hill Country environment to build in, they chose to put those monstrosities all over the lands around Austin. RUINED it all, imo. And, they're cookie cutter too -- miles of curving roads, with nearly identical in BAD FORM houses lining them on postage stamp sized lots. You can almost hear the neighbor's toilet flushing! Insane. They're still there, except for a few that were burned down (lucky! or purposeful??), and each year, the neighborhoods fall further and further away from what's desirable among new buyers. If anything, that 2008 busted bubble did us all a favor, MAYBE it ruined the market for those horrid dumps!

[@nerveagent1905]

I am in love with this woman and her snark.

[@bredbandtva7177]

Passive-aggressive smarm = nope

[@nkwari]

Yeah - She took something boring and made it funny

[@LordVader1094]

+Centennial Agreed. Lol

[@AshleyPomeroy]

"nub"

[@badgerattoadhall]

women + snark = nope

[@emmacat3202]

McMansions remind me of fast fashion for some reason.

[@vaderladyl]

Probably the fast fashion version of architecture.

[@jimjones308]

My sister owned a McMansion in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Her next, next, door neighbor was Prince's ex girlfriend. Her other next, next, door neighbor was a former 76-er. The amount of money in that area was insane yet all I ever saw were working-men's trucks. Plumbers. Carpenters, Roofers. Electricians. Because these places were literally falling apart ALL THE TIME. My sister's house, she purchased from a former Villanova professor had a hot tub in the master bedroom that over the course of several years rotted the floor around it to the point that water leaked into the kitchen below. Her flooring pealed up off the floor at random...ON and on it went.

[@shoulders-of-giants]

Why are all these windows so small. I wanna cry.

[@perfumaphilia3246]

Great talk! I love it when someone addresses something that I never put words to. Sure, I can see how her personality could rub some people the wrong way, but I personally enjoy it a lot, and thought she gave a funny, interesting, well-structured, organized, easy-to-follow, and informative presentation.

[@christinewade1530]

I agree with you, 100%, EXCEPT that I don't think Ms Wagner's personality could rub people the wrong way. Her personality displayed the passion she has for her subject.

[@GigawingsVideo]

Christine Wade I think it's because many Ted talkers tend to have training in public speaking or a social personality so they can create an interesting flow in their speech. Ms Wagner topic is a great topic it's just that she's not really an orator.

[@JeffreySelbst]

The message was fine but she does herself no favors with the juvenile snark.

[@nadjak3410]

@@JeffreySelbst The snark is the best thing about her blog :) but yeah she delivers it better in a written Format.

[@bigstar66]

The only problem with her talk is that she was an abysmal public speaker. I cringed watching this at times. That will get better with time of course.

[@charredskeleton]

I was in a "million dollar house" once, spent a night there. It was maybe 5 years old. I was not impressed. What a waste of space. I own a minimal traditional built in 1950. What a wonderful place to live. It's durable, simple, pretty and right. It's the colonial type. A classic form. It's oh so well thought out. It's only 1400 square feet but it feels much larger because of how carefully the space is designed and used. The mcmansion had these sprawling spaces but so little of it was usable. In my mind minimal traditionals represent rightness, I use to like them now we have one and I love them.

[@oarck]

bet

[@asrr62]

70s ranch styles are pretty bad!!

[@StinkyMink]

Salty

[@davejoseph5615]

I agree that wasted space seems to be a hallmark of many modern homes. I ended up buying a large home recently but I carefully avoided the most common feature -- absurd ceiling heights. Twenty or thirty foot vaulted ceilings may be somewhat attractive but they are a huge waste of cubic footage and materials unless you are perhaps a paper airplane aficionado.

[@noahatwoodvlogs1983]

Well there is a difference between a mansion and a McMansion btw. Of course anyone would rather live in an actual mansion. And as a child, I loved mansions that my rich friends lived in, who wouldn’t unless jealous? But I agree that McMansions are pointless because they’re cheaply built mansions. There are true mansions that are absolutely stunning.

[@shan8130]

She is so funny and adorable, she made this really engaging for a topic that I’ve never cared about before

[@conogirl]

Great job Kate! Judging the reactions from the limited vocabulary posters in the comment section, it would appear that you've struck a nerve with the half-arsed and lazy builders that are responsible for these horribly constructed monstrosities, because why in the world would people be offended by you educating the typical consumer on why not to purchase these homes?

[@LucasFernandez-fk8se]

conogirl because she is picking and choosing the ugliest ones she could find to represent all McMansions most of them are nice and have more space than regular houses but she is calling a few terrible looking houses all of them

[@Johnf85]

Lucas Fernandez If you live in a spacious home that was built properly then you don't have a McMansion. Are you saying she shouldn't be pointing out hideous homes? If it's not hideous and it's built properly it's not relevant to the subject.

[@TheYasmineFlower]

+Lucas Fernandez But are they nice and spacious AND well-built? Or do they cost you a fortune in heating etc for no good reason? Space isn't everything. You can fit anything you need into a perfectly normal-sized home. IKEA's got your back.

[@keironlunn123]

Lucas Fernandez Clearly you didn’t take much from her speech if you think she is saying all big houses are terrible. McMansions are houses built without following basic architecture rules and constructed with low-cost materials. There is nothing wrong with building a large house as long as you follow the 3 guidelines of architecture. I hope you get a chance to re-watch her presentation so that you can get a better understanding, it is very useful information!

[@shammydammy2610]

I think they're offended to see someone take a skeptical look at their dream houses.

[@zippersocks]

I used to work servicing air ducts and insulation. You can really tell that these huge newer houses in general are cheaply made compared to older houses. Crawling through complicated roofs was not fun. But sometimes it was easier just because you could easily fit several bedrooms up there.

[@jakekorkala1615]

As a builder and remodeler, I feel the best practical design is a single story house around 1600 square/ft on a slab. A pitched roof around 4/12 without any valleys and eves between 18" and 24". A house that is easy to maintain, repair, keeps water out, and is cheap to own.

[@WarriorOfWriters]

I would probably build upwards in the suburbs, but not outwards. Depending on the climate, appropriate insulation. I would probably build a traditional home, but I would build an actual period home, eg timber or brick cladding instead of vinyl.

[@CGZ26]

When my friend was moving to the U.S for 18 months, we were looking a house for rent and we were both amazed at how little bricks and actual foundation is used there. Most of the houses for rent looked like a playhouse for a kid. I always wonder why people move so much there, here if you build a home it's usually because you know you're going to be settled for a long time.

[@ishanharshvardhan6687]

Well housing industry is really good business especially for real estate investors who buy a house and then flip it in less then a mnth,so they have only 30 days to renovate the house which is not enough to time to think about foundation and everything

[@TalesOfWar]

Americans move house a LOT more than others, especially Europeans. They'll move every 5-6 years or so on average apparently (often for work), so a lot of houses there are built to be disposable and last maybe 2 or 3 owners. It's extremely wasteful.

[@ElectricBuckeye]

​@ishanharshvardhan6687 the foundation is the most important part of the structure, hence the name. Much more important than new paint, flooring, appliances, etc. that brings in a potential buyer.

[@hannahbonanza1075]

OMG THERES AN ENTIRE TED TALK!?!?! lmao I got here from the Washington Post.

[@sarahclark9043]

What’s that? A ted talk that doesn’t sound overly scripted and rehearsed? Incredible

[@barbbower5981]

This woman is SO charming. Funny and brilliant and performing an important service.

[@galexeqe]

I'll take a McMansion but I want a supersized side order of back, front and side yard to go with it I find nothing worse than those houses that are right on top of each other and a "yard" is a potted plant on the porch

[@jameson32]

You will find Kate Wagner's picture under "Adorkable" in the dictionary.

[@KrosanBeast315]

This is part of why I am having a Japanese House with modern and traditional touches built. It is designed to LAST, it will be passed on in my family long after I am gone, it is functional, versatile, everything is useful, it is extremely durable, and beautiful. Also, it is designed to be a fun space from its inception. It is 1,484 sq ft. (basement makes it double but basements aren't included in sq. ft.)

[@ericspencer8093]

I think she said it up best with a couple of phrases. "Most space for lowest cost," and "Designed from the inside out." This says it all about what's wrong with McMansions.

[@reich6936]

To the people who think it's the companies' fault, not the home buyers fault, that's incorrect. The company may be partially at fault but the home buyers willingly bought the house and fueled the market for McMansions.

[@dremid4456]

The one and only time a TedX talk featured a legitimate expert/intellectual, as opposed to propping up pseudointellectual BS speakers for the intellectual-wannabe audience. I love Kate!

[@MrTiiiman]

”The basic rules of architecture” - She’s awesome

[@SD-pi9co]

Great talk. The discussion goes far beyond style.

[@xiocarranza2873]

People gonna hate me for this but tbh I would love to live in a McMansion. It is really my dream home, growing up in Mexico city where everything is so crowded and your homes are right next to your neighbors, like you can climb over and youre in their house, I would like to live in a place where it is spaced out. Theres a small community of McMansions in front of where I live and we drive by every once in a while and I always think of how pretty they look because really to me they do. Just my opinion though 🤷🏼‍♀️

[@morganseppy5180]

Xio, there are large houses that are not McMansions. Most modern US homes have a lot of space, so that is not the chief complaint. McMansions are slapped together, don't have a cohesive design, very inefficient spaces (so they cost much more to cool/heat), and often don't have much outdoor areas because they want more house than yard or patio. Btw, I've seen pictures of Mexico City, and I don't know how you do it. Buena suerte y ojalá puedes escapar!

[@vlastikb]

Thank you for explaining to us the important "why". I love your blog. Keep up the great work, please.

[@andginisin]

All these salty people. You don’t have to agree, but why the personal attacks??? Rude imo.

[@LucasFernandez-fk8se]

BaigL because she is so rude and won't let people like what they like also she has to slander the good name of the McMansion by only showing the ugliest she can find to whine about. It's easy to get people on your side when you show the worst examples you can to complain about

[@andginisin]

Alexander Manz hahaha what are you on? It’s a discussion of aesthetic and taste, not dictating how people should live. And if words are powerless as you are suggesting, why do hers make you so angry? Chill dude

[@D8099.]

Lucas Fernandez omg I love you. Mind reader.

[@D8099.]

Alexander Manz she wants more government vs less. Typical democrat. Like giving all control of the world over to the government will fix everything. Does she know who her president is? He can’t tie his shoe laces. I hate Democrats and Republicans. We are all gonna burn together when someone finally pushes the button

[@bredbandtva7177]

''It’s a discussion of aesthetic and taste,'' then she shouldn't mind people pointing out she looks like a hipster elf.

[@Vir9il]

Don't know why there are so many downvotes. I thought this was an edifying and funny talk.

[@halcyonherascarter7018]

4 McMansions disliked this video.

[@aaron___6014]

B'Dazzled The Rainwing 105 now

[@heidielliott4396]

It's 437 now but they could all comfortably live in 20 McMansions

[@mxtpo]

1100 sigh

[@chili_boi2537]

make that 1.1k

[@Silkendrum]

I married my second husband in 1980, back when women were expected to handle all the housework. When we were looking for a house, he kept urging McMansions, for pride, he wanted to demonstrate he had "arrived", whoop whoop.. There was just the two of us and a cat, and we both worked full time plus mandated overtime. In frustration I finally told him there was no way I was going to clean that house, period. He finally got my point.

[@Mingliki]

Bravo! I teach a MS project based learning class and one of our projects is to build a tiny house whilst researching its sustainability to our communities, economy, wellbeing, and most importantly our environment. I am always looking for reference material, and this made the top of the list.

[@fmc6338]

who cleans these things. Unethical use of space. She is great!!!

[@wuestion9473]

frank doster Maids; I spent a hellish few days working at a horrible company who did these.

[@eddielopez2373]

Unethical use of space...on private property...to which no one else has any right to use of space apart from the owner?

[@stagpie6449]

They said unethical, not unlawful, Eddie...

[@GigawingsVideo]

How about efficiency? Sure it's private property but there's so many waste of space. Some of them going to fall into disuse or even empty for years. Living in an ivory tower is not as fun as people think.

[@Lincolntowncoupe]

Generally, they aren't clean

[@maxdeleon]

She needs to seriously consider being a voice actor for animated shows. She has a great voice. I can easily see her on Bob’s Burger.

[@jerrymacaluso9625]

Its so hard to find anything but a McMansion in Las Vegas. All they have built in the past 40 years are these hideous cheap structures.

[@WarriorOfWriters]

jerry macaluso Vegas is a McCity

[@c.m.b.7567]

yep and thats why i am moving to vegad bc i love them

[@redditstop1653]

@@c.m.b.7567 he can still state his opinion.

[@jamessullivan9992]

She is brilliant.

[@ReeseEifler]

This girls is hilarious. I am from Fairfield County, CT, so I feel this pain.

[@junek9913]

omg kate wagner is awesome and adorable she is my fave

[@Zania16ify]

She's hilarious! And what she says is so true too. I've definitely noticed that with the McMansions around the suburbs. Very sad & not authentically made at all. Fortunately for me though, I'm way more attracted to the old historic homes & mansions that were built around the early to mid late 1800s.

[@johnleebass]

love how passionate & smart she is about this

[@habeebaelwalily3081]

This is off topic, but I absolutely love her shoes and want to find out where she got them.

[@johnshrader1655]

Thanks for giving us the words to talk about what we instinctively know about these funny houses. I like her good taste in shoes.

[@dantan1249]

i always felt that houses shoudlnt have fake or faux peices on them. they cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. i expect everything to work

[@MargaretQ]

Loved this and love her blog.

[@thereisnocarolinHR]

I remember when someone built on an empty lot in my neighborhood and I was completely flabbergasted when it was done. I screamed about it every time I drove by for weeks probably. The windows were especially bad like in this video, every set was completely different! And cement with cut outs, red brick with red clay roof, huge front windows, like you could see everything they did, and a big opaque black screened porch in the back/side. Oh and of course its taller and fatter than all the one story 70s homes around it. Zero yard also. McMansion 3000.

[@nathaliealeman3568]

I just came here from another video where she was discussing her hatred for McMansions. I love that she's making it her personal mission to destroy the McMansion one video at a time.

[@cookiemonster6963]

In my opinion, McMansions are truly wonderful pieces of art. They encourage creativity. However after listening to her speech I do agree that if such houses are built in huge scales with poor construction techniques, it would be a shame that they’d eventually abrade in a few years time. I guess we could think of a way to perpetuate these buildings while saving construction materials in order to diminish environmental problems.

[@highlandhousestudio6638]

Kate.. You're my hero!

[@califdad4]

in the beginning she shows pictures of huge houses on huge lots, those don't bother me , its the 3200 sq ft home built on a 65x125 lot with mostly 1200 to 1500 Sq ft homes around it.

[@steveeuphrates-river7342]

I subscribed to her newsletter back when she was still in college. Hilarious, cheeky girl!

[@jimterryh1983]

Kate Wagner thank you for pointing out "spite archecture". I hate McMansions!

[@lowyieldforeffort6996]

You certainly hit the nail on the head with this talk! I was fortunate to have an excellent show-and-tell architectural education from a young age. I grew up in a neighborhood of older, architect-designed homes, most of which weren't huge. My Dad, a one-time architecture student, taught me how to appreciate the pros and cons of all these designs from an early age. What use does such an education have in the real world? A lot, actually. I've never had enough money for a newer, high-rent place, so when I went looking for an apartment, I carefully considered the design of each building. Finally, a vacancy came up in a brick complex that was built in the 50s, but in the style of the teens and 20s. One look and I was begging to sign the lease. Turns out, it's one of the oldest and best-built apartments in the city. Now, if only the current landlord would realize that and do a little more maintenance.

[@ZomBeeNature]

I used to know a psychopath who bought a McMansion. He and his wife had one son. It was an enormous house, the living room was as big as your house. Two full floors plus a full basement. He was shocked when I told him I didn't know how he could stand living there, it was too big. His wife worked all the time making the money. He apparently watched tv alone in the living room when he wasn't trying to kill someone. And the son played video games alone on the second floor with people online. And dead silence in the house. And the "yard" was about ten feet of grass.

[@c.m.b.7567]

Shut up, your just jealous that you can't afford one. There is nothing wrong with big houses. I just don't like when they are made from poor materials.

[@donttalktomeyoureannoying8736]

C. M. B. No one is jealous of large houses if they have no use for them. I would rather take that money and travel 🤷🏽‍♀️

[@ZomBeeNature]

I'm not jealous of their life, it would be misery for me. Having the money would be nice, but spending it on a huge house where you are alone all the time would be sad. She was gone all the time, and the father and son did nothing together. No pets. No nature. No human contact. Misery.

[@SuperKing604]

@@donttalktomeyoureannoying8736 do both? have a nice home and travel? like i know someone who finds joy in having a lot of extra space and decorating her home, she entertains a lot and has a multi-generational family, her home wil be able to accommodate her, her husband, her son, daughter-in-law and future grandchildren.

[@UnorthodoxlyEsthetic]

that sounds like a problem literally every modern family with a tv and game controllers has. stop trying to make someone else feel bad about their buying decisions just because you're secretly jealous or something. i grew up in a 2br apartment and still slept on the living room couch rather than sleep on the same bed as my mom. it doesnt matter, if someone needs privacy theyll find a way to get it even in a 1 bedroom apartment

[@PaulineRJ]

I wish she gave more examples of what she deems as good then, I was ready for a second part here

[@baumwollaugenjohannes6770]

Love your site and how serious you take this. Those houses look like the stuff i built in "the sims", honestly. Thanks for the education, for formulating the feeling one might get when seeing such houses. And btw excellent talk, also very funny!

[@ps3master72]

I think it's great that you are educating people on the principles of design, they are important to know! Whoever built these houses wasn't paying attention in middle/high school art class when the teacher goes over these very principles. I wouldn't be surprised if some art/design teachers are using McMansions as teaching tools showing what happens when you fail to regard the principles of design. Haha, if I were a design teacher, my final exam would have a picture of a terrible McMansion, with the instructions "Circle where there is a failure to regard the basic principles of design and state which principle was ignored."

[@YallternativeFilms]

OMG! I LOVE THAT BLOG!

[@newfablesam]

I love this girl's blog. She is amazing

[@annadaae26]

I love McMansions. I know, it shows poor taste but I can't help looking at them in awe. My house is 1960's Brady Bunch, so maybe that is why.

[@c.m.b.7567]

I love McMansions too!! People are just jealous because they cannot afford them.

[@SuperKing604]

@tsahnaf23 small homes can be poor built to its not the size itself.

[@vaderladyl]

@@c.m.b.7567 Ok *roll eyes*

[@siri3441]

C. M. B. I mean, if you can afford them, you’re just wasting money on bad architecture and cheap materials...

[@souvikrc4499]

@@melikopi7586 Sadly, from what I heard, yes.

[@elisabethdorrer4831]

My gransma's timber-framed German house is over 400 years old and although not ultra comfortable it is beautiful and sturdy....warm too!❤

[@makingfiendsfan1177]

Great talk! Really helped narrow down all the points you make on your blog! Good job

[@camillebinford]

This literally changed my life

[@user-vacgod2739]

I’d rather live in a modernized, old Tuscan home from Italy than any of these hideous McMansions any day.

[@irllcd13]

I live on Cape Cod and McMansions are a cancer. A friend of mine bought a house around 30 years ago and made a killing when he sold it because it was the plot that was valuable. It was a nice little cottage, nothing wrong with it, but it was torn down and some hideous, enormous monstrosity that gets used like one week a year was built on the site.

[@delvinj]

Loved it!

[@ibuprofenPill]

She puts it perfectly, for so many years I hated these things but didn't know enough about architecture to accurately express myself. One criticism I did have is the sizes of those things. Why do we build these houses so damn big? They have zero lot lines and they reach into the sky. A block full of these things and not an average size backyard between them! When I was a kid, we had plenty of space to run around and play in our neighborhood. Well not anymore. Combine that with video game consoles and digital pacifiers and it's no wonder kids in the suburbs don't play outside anymore. I live in Plano, TX and they keep building more of these things everywhere. I also always suspected they were built rather cheaply. I grew up in an older part of the city where lots of houses are quickly approaching 100 years old, and it's obvious how well constructed and built to last they are. Then I look around up here and can't figure out why people are paying a half million dollars for oversized doll houses? McMansions are a perfect example of market failure.

[@EllysaE]

I never knew why my friends loved these kinds of houses and I just ugh no. I can’t. This puts it perfectly! And I never get why have shutters if they do nothing 😝

[@axnyslie]

I always called them "Kindergarten Houses" because they look like a typical house a kindergartner would draw with a happy stick family and a big smiley sun at the top.

[@alexmolina225]

I’d rather live in a McMansion than a mcstudio with 3 mcroomates

[@ass4sale2]

alex molina that cracked me up very funny

[@kevinmathewson4272]

...are those...our only two options?

[@Patchuchan]

Same here even a mobile home would be a better option than one of those tiny apartments.

[@michellemarie1197]

alex molina same here

[@christophersmith5304]

LMAOOO

[@Bertuzz84]

Now i understand why people in the US always talk about high maintenance cost when owning a home. Long term thinking seems to not be a thing for a lot of people.