"A rich narrative that blends social commentary with incisive reporting, House Lust offers an astute, funny, and sometimes disturbing portrait of the behaviors that drove the greatest real estate boom in history—and its eventual bust."
This is an interesting book. It's part analysis, part memoir and part cautionary tale. McGinn explores the root of how many people have transformed houses and house-renovating and house-buying into an all-consuming passion. He notes that even as the real estate boom was bursting, Americans continue to trade up, add on, add properties, etc. Of course, some of this has resulted in soaring foreclosure rates and people who have ruined their credit as they realize they have stretched themselves too far in the pursuit of the perfect house.
McGinn writes about attending open houses, taking real estate courses, and more and he went across the United States, so you get a "big picture" feel here. While I admit that I enjoy watching "House Hunters" and especially "House Hunters International," I get impatient with people who say they need a stainless steel kitchen with granite and then admit they don't cook. It's obvious that white kitchens are in style (also apparently with people who do not cook). I do like looking at different styles of houses online, and when we looked for a house when we moved to St. Louis, we went through a few dozen to find one that would work best for us. I've also grown up with parents who flipped houses (although back in the 1970s and 1980s, it was just called "working on a house and selling or renting it,").
McGinn's book is an interesting exploration. I am glad that while I enjoy the voyeuristic opportunities granted by HGTV, that I don't obsess about my own house or insist that we constantly do improvements. I lived through one kitchen renovation (a needed renovation as the kitchen was mostly original to 1961, complete with spangly formica counters and brown appliances) and would prefer not to do that again.
No comments:
Post a Comment