house next door being built exactly the same as ours - advice please!

[airforcefamily]

I just need to get some quick advice and/or reassurance. Thanks in advance!

 

We have always lived in military housing. Every place has been neighborhoods where the same few floor plans repeat over and over. When we started looking to buy a house off base several months ago we focused our search to one particular neighborhood for no reason besides the fact that it is the only nearby area that is not just cookie cutter houses. We contracted for a house that was almost complete and we will be moving fairly soon.

 

I went to check on how things are going and when I drove up I realized the house next door had been framed with some of the walls and the shape of the roof in place. This house is exactly the same as ours! The bricks were there and they are a slightly different color but that looks like the only visible difference.

 

We're really disappointed. The house was just right for us and we really like the neighborhood but after years of living next door to houses that are the same as ours we really don't want to do it again. I feel like we paid a premium for this neighborhood with nothing to show for it (we could have bought a larger house in a cookie cutter neighborhood for significantly less). I'm trying to find the HOA paperwork to see if this should have been allowed since most HOAs prohibit it - not sure what, if anything, they could do; maybe require the builder to make a few superficial changes so the houses won't look so similar from the street?

 

I keep trying to tell myself it's ok and not a big deal but I can't get over how disappointing it is. We're only going to be living there for a few years but had planned to rent it out with the possibility of coming back to it in the future. The neighborhood is otherwise really nice. The lots are over an acre so the houses aren't overly close together (maybe 40' in-between). I'm disappointed in the otherwise really nice builder for not being upfront and letting us know they were planning on the house next door being the same (no one has bought the house yet so I know it's not that someone picked that floor plan).

 

My biggest concern is that this will decrease the value of our house. I can't imagine anyone paying extra to live in that neighborhood when the house they're looking at is the same as the one next door. The one next door is being listed for about 20% more than ours, someone might not want to live in the 'cheap' version of that house/floor plan.

[wapiti]

It's hard to say how much it will really look like your house until it's finished and you can actually see the different colors - does the builder have an office you can call and ask to see the plan for the "elevation" (exterior view)? Is there a real estate listing or website that might show a drawing of the planned exterior? We live in a nice neighborhood where the houses were built by the same "upscale" builder, and there were maybe 4-6 floor plans. The colors of the houses, and other little aspects of the exterior designs, are quite different. FWIW, our HOA has a committe that reviews and approves exterior designs and they are picky.

 

I highly doubt it will decrease the value of your house unless you are both selling around the same time and thus competing. If it sells for 20% more than you paid, that should be good for you, because the house is very comparable (though comps only matter if they're within so many months of the time yours is for sale).

 

It sounds like most of the other houses in the neighborhood look different. I really don't think it's a big deal to have one look the same.

[Farrar]

Usually the reasons houses in a neighborhood don't look just the same is that they were built over a period of time and by different builders. However, in neighborhoods like that, it's pretty common for there to be a few houses that are the same basic blueprint, so I don't think it radically alters the character of the neighborhood. Also, as the PP said, this one may have very different features on the same basic footprint - a different porch, different window shapes, different garage configuration, etc.

[elegantlion]

I would call and ask to see the elevation. If it's being built as a spec house perhaps you can ask them to change some feature so it's not so similar. Since you are an exiting client and there is no buyer on this house, I'd ask.

[airforcefamily]

Thanks for the quick replies! I keep switching from being ok with it to being really disappointed. The house is the same layout with the exception of one corner which has a slightly different shape. The porches, windows, fireplaces, roof shape/lines, garage style and placement, driveway, stairs, etc. are all exactly the same. The idea to ask if they can change a few things is a good one. I'm going to call the hoa to see if they will say anything to them about making a few changes so it's not quite so similar (it's a different construction company than ours). Hopefully they can get them to change a few things. If just a couple windows were moved, the brick colors were different, and the shape of the porches were changed it would make a big difference if coupled with very different colors.

 

The neighborhood has many different builders. There are a few houses that are very similar but they are on different streets and it's not noticeable. This was the big reason why we liked that neighborhood rather than one with one builder and houses that all have a similar look. The houses have been built gradually over the past 20-ish years. They don't release many lots at one time and each builder is limited to just a couple houses per year.

[Samiam]

Lots of time the actual floor plans are exactly the same, and only the exteriors are different. Ie, windows here, no window there, porch here, no porch there, this part juts out, this part doesn't jut out. Brick color, shutter color, shape of roof, etc. None of those things will be visible until you are past the framing stage.

[delaney]

I know how that feels. We walked away from a house deposit back in 2003 because I refused to live next to the same house. You can do a lot with landscaping though. Tall growing shrubs and trees like Crepe Myrtles will hide a lot. Perhaps the front walk could be changed? Or the steps covered in stone? What about a portico?

[briansmama]

I too know what you mean- we come from an area with lots and lots of cookie-cutter developments where you pay a premium to live in an older home and neighborhood with more character. We moved to an area where the houses in our neighborhood are all different, although some have been built by the same builder and look similar.

 

If that happened to us here, I would actually be ok with it. It's just one house, not an entire cookie-cutter neighborhood, KWIM? Plus, I have a friend who loved her home near us but the neighbors bought the lot next door and put up a ridiculous, out-of-place home and she couldn't stand it so they moved. Personally, an eye-sore next door would bother me a lot more.

 

 

[NotSoObvious]

That's disappointing. Our neighborhood didn't allow that. And, I agree with asking questions and asserting yourself. Our builder actually said out loud that he paid attention to the actual homeowners, and not the investors. So, if it's not already purchased, or if it's being built by an investor, you may have some luck.

[JennyD]

I have no particular advice, but for what it's worth, I recently watched two houses on neighboring lots being built, by the same developer. They looked all the world like perfectly identical houses to me until they were about 90% done, but that last 10% made all the difference. They look similar, but certainly not identical, and indeed not that much more similar to one another than to many other houses in the neighborhood (not built by that developer).

[Mom2OandE]

The house next door to ours is the exact floor plan reversed. We lived here a year before we found out. The outside is so different. We have stucco, an overhang with a front porch. They have stucco with siding and no verdant and front porch. We always thought it was a different floor plan. For what it's worth we live in a highly sought after neighborhood and houses are only on the market a few weeks at most.

[Candid]

Check your HOA. Follow up with whoever is building your house. Talk to an attorney to find out your legal standing if you think you want to ask for changes or get out of your contract.

 

On the other hand sometimes such a thing is an advantage. I live in an established neighborhood where one builder stands out over the others and to own an "Earl" house is a positive thing even though many share floor plans and features with each other.

[Tracy]

When we had our house built a few years ago, the village had an ordinance against building the same houses right next to each other. Unless your community has such an ordinance, I doubt there is anything you can do about it, particularly since the house is already in the process of being built.

[mathnerd]

In my city, the builder/house owner has to file the house plans and front elevation with the city, and then create a life size mockup with netting and wooden 2x4's on the property so that neighbors can figure out if their privacy is being invaded and they publish a notice on the property for 45 days with pictures of a mockup before beginning construction. We live in a suburb. So, if you live in an incorporated area, just stop by the city hall and ask for information filed with them about your neighbor's layout and mockup etc. That should give you an accurate idea of what is going on.