The house in the May 19, 2008 Forbes article is estimated to cost two billion dollars, has 400,000 square feet and a separate gym for each family member. It is in India and owned by Mukesh Ambani, the fifth richest man in the world.
Obviously money is not the issue. The question is how much house is too much. Yes some people can afford this but how do you rationalize wasting the energy required to heat or air condition 400,000 square feet for one family?
What about Marin County, do families need 20,000 square feet homes? If they can afford it why can’t they have it? No one needs that much space, that’s why. We don’t have the energy to indulge egos. Regardless of construction or energy efficiency no large McMansion is Green and none of them add any value to Marin. I would argue, in the aggregate, they reduce the real value of Marin and the charm that has taken decades to develop.
Too many cute homes in Marin have been torn down to make room for the latest, greatest McMansion. Unincorporated Marin and some Marin cities have enacted a maximum size for new home construction. This is the result of some common sense and a combination of “not in my backyard” or “we don’t need any homes larger than MY McMansion”.
Is there really anything wrong with a family of four living with less than 5,000 square feet? I don’t want to take away from anyone’s success or living standard I am just saying at some point the extra space is more about ego than requirements. Sure, some may realistically use the space, large family, in-laws, home office, etc., and those don’t bother me I just don’t want Marin to be only for the wealthy.
Warren Carreiro, Broker Warren@RealtyOfMarin.com www.RealtyOfMarin.com
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