Is a nice big house like Kevin's family has in Home Alone typical in the US?

I work as a software engineer here in the UK, if I were to move to the US, would I ever be able to afford a house like that (or like the one Robert De Niro has in 'Meet the Parents') just working as a salaried employee? Or could only successful business owners, politicians, or movie stars afford such places?
Could I even hope for a 'Desperate Housewives' level house?
Here in the UK we have to pay through the nose to live in a shoe box.

Having lived in both the US and UK, and having owned homes in both countries, I'm quite familiar with both.

Very generally you'll probably be able to buy more house for the $ or Â£ in most parts of the US as compared to the UK. But please keep in mind that what you see on movies and television shows are usually theatrical sets. Even when the outside of a real home is shown, the "insides" may be on a sound stage thousands of miles from the street where the exterior shots were made. And others are pure sound stage all the way, no different from EastEnders or Coronation Street.

Also keep in mind that housing prices vary widely in the US, just as they do in the UK. The big-city coastal areas tend to be the most expensive; Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, New York are some of the most expensive parts of the US. Other major cities such as Atlanta or Denver are pretty expensive though not as bad as the first ones I mentioned. Not at all unlike comparing London to Northern England.

Smaller more rural areas tend to be much less expensive. I live in the SW corner of Missouri and home prices are down-right cheap compared to the rest of the country. However, wages are much lower here than the national average so that needs to be taken into account. But for salaried professionals, wages here are more than adequate to support a comfortable lifestyle. I'm a network engineer and I've got a 3,000 square foot (280 sq meter) detached home on a third of an acre. My monthly mortgage repayments are about 20% of my take-home pay. If I lived in Boston, my wages would be about double what I earn here, but I'd pay 3 -4 times as much (or more) for housing similar to what I have here.

Probably the biggest advantage to owning a home in the US vs the UK is our mortgage system. Fixed rate mortgages are the norm so you go in to the purchase knowing what your repayments will be for the life of the loan. Adjustable rate mortgages are available but you have the risk of future rate rises; the norm in the UK.

The other major difference between US and UK mortgages is our age discrimmination laws. If you're in your 20s or 30s it won't make a difference in either country but if I were to move back to the UK I'd be hard-pressed to get a mortgage much longer than 15 years now that I'm 54 years old. I could get a 30 year mortgage here in the US easily even well into my 70s as long as my credit score was high enough and I had the means to make the repayments.

Houses in SA are quite large compared to houses in SA. We lived in a large 4 bedroomed house, large kitchen , large dining - room large everything, huge veranda outside with a fantastic view of the ocean. Huge flat outside , two garages on roundabout 6 acres of ground. Now we live in an ex-council house but i find it comfortable only problem is neighbours looking down on us from the backyard but front is lovely with forest. Nobody needs a large large house to be comfortable you only need love and your house will be your home forever. Most people in large houses don't even use the space. I am sure you will be able to afford a large house in the USA one-day. Good luck:)

Not that big, maybe half the size if you stay in the suburbs. You might get a nice, large house for around $250k.

Besides, you wouldn't want Marv and Harry breaking in.

More or less homes in our area are 2500 to 4000 square feet. Most garages are two car garages some are 3 or 4 though.

It truly depends on your skills, profession, and earning power as to what size home you own ... and WHERE in the USA.

Actually a house like that can be affordable for the average salaried employee. There are a few questions that have to be asked. Where do you plan to live? Will this house be a new construction home or an exisiting home? Is size the main objective or quality. I live in Texas and you can definitely get a large house for a reasonable amount. Of course when you are adding the granite countertops, wood floors and 4 car garage...things get more expensive. But there are several home builders that specialize in more house for the money. One home builder is Fox and Jacobs. You can check out their site @ www.foxandjacobs.com

No not typical especially if you choose to live in california you can get an old crappy house for 500,000 think 1story 3 bed two bath

Take a look at one of my websites for homes:
http://www.homes.la
Keep in mind these are homes in the Los Angeles County area.

A lot depends on where your going to live. Choose an area, then you can visit a site like http://www.realtor.com and see what home prices are like there.

Your financing is also very important. Are you going to be paying it all in cash or taking out a loan. Maybe its best you find a location first, rent for a year, then search for a home to buy.

Good Luck!

Sincerely,

Richard M. Johnston, GRI, ABR, e-Pro
RE/MAX OTB ESTATES
President's Advisory Council Member

If you live in the midwest you can afford a house like that. On either coast prices are ridiculous.

No definitely not, its all little 2 bed places mainly...

They do have some beautiful houses but joe bloggs does not own them

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