mcmansionhell

Good House of The Week: Oakland County, Michigan

Added 2017-06-15 21:22:10 +0000 UTC

Here on McMansion Hell, it is often forgotten that a house can still be large without being, well, horrible. A lot of the houses featured demonstrate classic ills of residential architecture: illogical massing, low quality materials, and bizarre design choices, especially regarding windows.

This week's GHOTW, built in 2004, demonstrates that a house can be large and operate within more opulent styles and still be architecturally refined. This house is in a style that so few really get right: French Eclectic. The swooping hipped roofline, wrought iron roof crestings, segmental (arched/curved) elements (dormers, windows, roofline, etc.), and frontal balcony place it within the style, though in a more sparse, modern tone. The meticulous garden in the back is a particularly authentic touch, reminiscent of the gardens from the 18th Century, though the style of the architecture is from the 19th Century.

The materials are of high quality - the shutters shut, the walls are genuine stucco. The stonework is not overdone, and the house is not overly busy. The attached garage is well integrated with the primary mass, carrying over important elements like the roof pitch and crestings, as well as dormer and window styles. While it is a little goofy to see shutters surrounding the door, that's a small price to pay for an otherwise well-put-together home, especially compared to the one featured in today's main post.

Link to Listing: https://www.redfin.com/MI/Oakland-charter-Township/3185-Saint-James-Ct-48306/home/99289981