We’re back with Nicola McDougall and Kevin Turner as they discuss interesting stories in the real estate industry this week.
For our first story, we have a high tech home from a residence that instantly says upper class. Haute Residence is featuring a property so filled to the brim with technology, it’s feels like a sci-fi movie set.
This story shows how technology is permeating through all of our lives in so many ways, in fact, this house even has a touchscreen coffee table with a fully functioning version of Windows 8. We’re… just not sure what its purpose is though. If you’re going to use a coffee table as a hybrid computer, well, where are you going to put your coffee mugs? It’s definitely not going to be on top.
There’s also a hi-tech luxury bed that comes with a state-of-the-art sound system, reading lights, and a built-in PC so you can easily surf the net from the comforts of your own bed. It even has game and entertainment consoles that connect to a projector, so you can watch HD films and play games on a big screen.
And for the lazy bed heads out there, there’s also a complete home automation system where you can manage the lights, blinds, screen, and other entertainment hardware without getting out of bed.
We only wonder if all that tech within the reach of your fingertips is good for you, though, given all the research that recommends avoiding gadgets before bed time.
The item that we’re mixed on is the Smart Vanity Mirror. Kevin thinks that the mirror has the potential to detect signs of diseases or ailments like skin cancer. It may eventually be able to read the user’s face to tell how well they are and send it straight to their doctor. On the other hand, Nicola didn’t like the vanity mirror’s focus on telling women how to apply makeup as we’re already spending a lot of time taking selfies and looking at ourselves a lot in modern society.
How about you? Does a high-tech home sound like something you’d live in?
For our second story, we have an article from New York times about building inspectors as action heroes. Driven by the danger of falling debris from buildings higher than six stories, there has been a rise in building facade inspectors – and most of them are women.
Watching these brave inspectors rappel down the side of a building is like seeing something out of an action movie. The only thing that’s missing is brass instrument-filled soundtrack.
And the parallels don’t end there. Although inspector April Turner says it’s great way to really see the Big Apple, the inspectors aren’t not doing it just for fun. Aside from their regular rappelling down of buildings, inspectors are literally saving people from falling debris. Keep in mind that some of New York’s tallest buildings are over 150 years old, so there’s a high risk of old masonry falling and injuring people.
So, kudos to these modern-day action stars.
Our third story is about what happens when the in-laws move in? Younger generations are finding housing costs too high for them to comfortably afford, so they’re moving in with their in-laws or going back to the family home. Varieties of multigenerational families are becoming more common in the UK and we believe, in the biggest cities in the world. Obviously with both rent and land at a premium in large cities, living together with family is an option that definitely worth thinking about.
There was an issue in the story, however, that discussed potential issues when the family members don’t get along. A woman’s husband invited his mother to move in with them in a granny annexe. They weren’t on good terms. So, when the man died, he left his wife with a clause in his will saying that she couldn’t dismantle his mother’s living arrangements. So, there’s still a risk there.
For our fourth story, the Church of Scotland is offering properties for sale. There are around 40 properties for sale including churches and other land masses.
Our fifth story is not actually a story, but a collection of funny and mind-boggling pictures of real estate fails. We’re not exactly sure what the builders were thinking when they made these homes.
There’s even a digitally added pool that’s really obvious. In most countries, this could be considered fake advertising especially if they post it for sale… or at the very least a joke. In any case, adding something like this to a real estate photo leads to nothing good.
Check it out for yourselves and have a laugh.
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