Why Americans Keep Buying McMansions

For years following the Great Recession, “McMansion” were considered "ugly" or "bad investments," mainly because they were considered unnecessarily large, had way too many amenities and built often with cheap materials. But during the pandemic when Americans sought to move to larger homes in the suburbs, they had a resurgence. In 2025, tariffs and immigration crackdowns will cause an increase on the price of new construction, helping the already built McMansions. But not all of these home are created equal.

Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
1:22 Chapter 1. The rise of McMansions
3:34 Chapter 2. The Great Recession
4:55 Chapter 3. A bad investment?

Produced Shot and Edited by: Natalie Rice
Animation: Jason Reginato, Mallory Brangan
Senior Managing Producer: Tala Hadavi
Additional Camera: Erin Black
Additional Footage: Getty Images, AP Photos, NBC News
Additional Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Redfin

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Why Americans Keep Buying McMansions

[swoop_]

Can y'all do a video on the cheap construction of condos nowadays? They're building them like these pseudo "luxury" apartments and don't even bother to separate each unit with concrete anymore.

[mikeobryan]

When I was younger, I thought it'd be cool to have a larger house... now that I'm older, I cringe at the sight of these places. When you think about the total cost of ownership... the price of the house, the property taxes, the cost of utilities, the added cost of maintenance, the amount of time you spend on cleaning and maintaining all of that space (assuming you aren't paying someone else to do it)... is it really worth it? I have a greater peace of mind knowing that my money, and more importantly, my time, has been saved and can be spent on things I'm more passionate about. In my mind, bigger isn't better, it's more burden.

[jaker]

As a non-American kid this is what I imagined all American homes looked like. That's from watching shows and movies like the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Home Alone etc.

[Carmine]

I love how they are talking about McMansions and then start showing actual mansions and homes with amenities that are multi million dollar houses. McMansions are larger than normal cheaply mass produced houses. Most of the houses they showed were custom homes

[mel]

The thing that hit me hardest is that 1995 is old😢

[RKdaedric]

The maintenance on these places and remodeling will be KILLER on the budget!

[bobcortez]

Work from home and COVID was my family’s driver for a large house. When it’s your home, your work, and your entertainment space, all of a sudden size matters. We’ll downsize eventually, but for now, it’s useful.

[rethinkrich]

I’m just thankful to have a place to call home!😊

[WillieFungo]

If you want a lot of square footage, it's best to get a house with a basement. You can put the home gym, home theater, etc down there while keeping the upstairs cozy.

[WitchyWhale]

I would absolutely hate to keep up with the cost, cleaning, and maintenance of a McMansion.

[alphabeta]

1:20 Started in the 80s
3:00 2007 crisis
5:00 2025
6:30 McMansions near city worth more

[DaveJennings-xmkm]

Couldnt possibly imagine why people would want to live in a huge, beautiful house with tons of privacy.

[amtrakfan]

And I thought McDonald's starting selling mansions.

[Lovelysoulgirl]

4500 square foot McMansion owner here 🙋🏽‍♀️ and love it.

[DerraKormino]

I'm tired of hearing the constant "recession is coming!" warnings. Recessionary periods actually present valuable market opportunities if you're informed and prepared. I've seen people build wealth during economic downturns and thrive even in favorable conditions. Ultimately, every collapse seems to make someone rich somewhere.

[robertfunk]

Just another day. As a Millienial I was feeling good in my first bought, small home today and now I'm informed everyone around me is rich and buying McMansions.

[ka]

This is the only kind they build here now. If you want new construction, it's either a mcmansion or a condo. They need to sell smaller houses.

[silkcitysocialist]

Most people can't afford to funrish, heat & cool a home that large let alone the mortgage.

[Awesome_Aasim]

Come on CNBC. You completely missed that it is illegal to build anything other than a McMansion in most of America thanks to zoning and planning regulations.

[Joe.Riemam]

Unless you can afford housekeepers, I can't possibly see why anyone would want a mcmansion