What kind of houses in your neigborhood?

Not my home area but this house is near a place I frequent. Allegedly built around 1882 but a flood took away a lot of original town records in the 50’s. Either way I always liked it.

Tanglehood*



*Technically Tanglewood, but I like Tanglehood better.
Also, you can see my house...I think...
I also worked at that golf course through high school and also part of college.

These homes were all built at the same time, in the late 1920s, as faculty housing at the boarding school where I teach. The campus layout and buildings were designed by the Finnish architect Eliel Saarinen, and the houses were designed by him as well.

My neighborhood backyard. Goes on for several miles. I wouldn’t put it past them to figure out how to stick a development right up my kazoo but having explored deliverance land it would be a impressive undertaking. I hate to think of all the wildlife that would be displaced

I live in a relatively small, over-55 yo, gated community, just 185 homes, all about 2,400 sq ft. We have a pretty sane HOA that doesn't cause too much trouble, they just want to approve any crazy things like painting your trim flourescent orange. They don't allow any RV or boat parking longer than 24 hours which is fine. And a few years ago we passed an amendment to the covenants that do not allow any STRs (short term rentals) so no one can use their home as a B&B. In the main town that has been a problem with investors buying homes and turning them into STRs which makes attracting teachers, municipal workers and others very difficult because of the high prices. Affordable housing is a continuing problem in many places.

… My neighborhood

Checking in from Portland, Oregon.

Portland has its nice houses, but it's not a great city for architecture quite frankly.

In brief, there is a lot of variety. The small city is made up of clusters of neighborhoods, each with their own vibe. What makes the city most remarkable are the trees and gardens. While an exaggeration, it feels as if every piece of ground is planted with something. Looking at our next door neighbors house.


The city was slow to grow until the 1905 Lewis and Clark Centennial. The fair attracked many visitors, which caused Portland to grow from 161,000 to 270,000 residents between 1905 and 1910, (according to a Wiki post.)

A four square is a typical house of that era. Many are in the central area near downtown and the river.



The river divides the city between East and West. In its early years, there were wharfs and buildings all along the banks. The term Shanghaied originated here, as drunks were kidnapped and woke up on sailing ships headed across the ocean. The river now has parks and cement banks. It's a bit underutilized. But there are many bridges, including a pedestrian and bike only, making it still picturesque.

During WWII, ship building was big here, as we had inexpensive hydro power to feed aluminum smelters. Small houses grew, such that they now occupy large portions of the city. (What were once small, affordable homes are sadly no longer cheap.)



Tudors were built, and 1950's ranches popped up.



Perhaps the slow economy preserved a lot of the homes. There simply wasn't the economic growth that often rips down the old and builds new. Subsequently there are a lot of original homes that survived. The 90's brought gentrification and influxes of people, such that housing is considered unaffordable for most.

Besides the trees, what makes the city are the many different shopping and eating districts. It's a very walkable city with lots of non-chain restaurants and food carts. It's the people who make it beautiful.




Mt. Hood also watches over us




And of course, the dogs

Brooklyn, NY. Park Slope, most houses (including mine) are adjacent row houses, 16-25 feet wide, 3 or 4 stories tall, built out of brick, maybe clad in brownstone or limestone, all about 125 years old, plus or minus a decade. Walkability score is 99/100 and my subway stop is just a couple of minutes from my front door.

(Not my photo, not my block, but similar.)

Olmsted Bros. Designed, built in sections from 1929-1940


The houses are actually like an architectural petting zoo, colonial, cape cod, Tudor, Mediterranean- but all using similar materials and massing. No strait streets or grid line, all meandering paths as Olmsted was known for. Old growth trees were saplings when the community was developed, I still have 5 on my property whereas many people took them down in the 50’s for cute picket fences and shrubs (not what Olmsted had envisioned).
Several natural lakes that were fed by springs (now plumbed as the springs dried up about 30 years ago) are the center of the community. It was designed as a street car suburb of the city (now within the city limits) and the fairly strict HOA is what keeps it looking like it did in the 30’s.

Reminds of the Cotswold area in England.



I'm sure some forum member lives there but doesn't want to attract attention or an influx of people.