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What polls would YOU like to see us ask the Houzz community?

Emily H
8 years ago

Is there something you are itching to ask the Houzz community on a larger scale? Something you are dying to know? What polls would you like to see us ask the community?

Tell us and we just might! :)

Gracious front porch · More Info


Comments (100)

  • houselady
    8 years ago
    I would like to see many more realist remodels. We're all dreamers, but sometimes we actually do want those dreams to come true. Would be great to have some help from Houzz with beautiful realistic ideas for the every day person.
  • makaloco
    8 years ago

    Kitchen islands. Why do people think they need them? Do they really help the workflow, or are they mostly in the way?

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  • hapagrrl
    8 years ago

    I agree with the others who have brought up the desire to see more realistic examples of renos, etc. Not all of us have $100k to throw at a kitchen or other kinds of remodel. Though those stories and photos are great and aspirational, they aren't always in the realm of possibility for most, unfortunately.

    Also - can we throw in some "instead of this $20k fridge, get this more reasonable one.."-type articles?

  • phoebe3
    8 years ago

    Was the last home that you bought: 1. staged, 2. empty, 3. lived in?

    Did the last home that you bought need: 1. major renovation, 2. One or two big-ticket repairs, 3. Updating for function, 4. Cosmetic updating, 5. Nothing, it was perfect as-is.

    Was the interior design in the last home you bought: 1. neutral/bland, 2. a little stylish, 3. clearly personal for the current owners.

  • marsia
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    I'd like polls on what other people's favorite pictures are on houzz, by project type, and why. I love articles that bring out everyone's expertise in design and construction, as I learn a lot.

    I'd also like to see a poll on financing, how people are coming up with the money to do remodels. It used to be so much easier - there used to be a lot more money leant for remodels.

    I also agree with everyone that articles on how to stay on a tight budget in a remodel would be really appreciated. Are budget-friendly materials just cheap and will fall apart soon, or are they a good alternative to the more expensive materials?

  • phoebe3
    8 years ago

    What is your favorite room in your house: 1. Kitchen, 2. Dining room, 3. Living room, 4. Den, 5. Bedroom, 6. Family Room, 7. Attic, 8. Basement, 9. Patio/Porch.

    Do you prefer: 1. Open-concept, 2. Separate kitchen.

    When was your kitchen last updated: 1. Pre-1960, 2. 1960-1979, 3. 1980-1999, 4. 2000-2009, 5. 2010-2015.

  • Stacy Mikes
    8 years ago

    White cabinets or stained wood in kitchen?

  • lazidazi
    8 years ago

    I "liked" any of these answers that addressed "the rest of us". Mssadie summed it up with, "Not everyone has a ton of money to put out to make over the home." Find out who your audience is comprised of, Houzz.
    Poll income. Poll project budget.
    We all enjoy the pictures and ideas of the "dream" [mega-money] house/bath/kitchen/landscape. Statistically [in US], the mean household income is $50k-$55k. We enjoy the pics and ideas of the mega-trend homes, but would appreciate a balance of down-to-earth doable projects that we can actually afford.

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago

    Do you keep your butcher block on the counter? Does it bother you if it is stained with colored food?

  • PRO
    River Valley Cabinet Works
    8 years ago

    @feddup-Only if we get one on why customers have so much contempt for contractors....

    @helsharmar-Y'all already have a place like that....what do you think happens on Houzz?

  • evehope
    8 years ago

    Am I the only person who is puzzled by manufacturers' labels on towels, facecloths and bathmats?

    By the thoroughness with which they are sewn on, it would seem they are meant to stay - yet, the labels are annoying to take into account when towels are being hung - or even folded for storage.

    So, I want to know - should the labels be left on (everyone can admire our brand-name towels), or taken off (less unsightly and quality can speak for itself). And, if they should be taken off (my personal opinion) why are they sewn on with more stick-to-it-iveness than buttons are on clothing?

    Just wondering................


  • hapagrrl
    8 years ago

    @eve - haha! You said it, sister!

  • sacapuntaslapioz
    8 years ago

    makaloco, I LOOOOOVE my island. the kitchen is so much better with it.

  • sacapuntaslapioz
    8 years ago

    about contractors and clients: there are contractors from hell and clients from hell. And great people on both sides as well. Some of my contractors are great people and have become friends. some I would cross the street not to say hello.

  • sacapuntaslapioz
    8 years ago

    iowavette, yes there is a limit to surfaces.

  • bjens
    8 years ago

    How about cozy vs spacious? Where does your family gather? Are two story ceilings working for anyone? Or does cozy get on your nerves?

    Also, how to have a stylish office with more than just a laptop and expensive lamp on the desk. Am I the only one with a stapler? In those beautiful zen office spaces is there a huge closet just out of view in the photograph where the copier, and stapler live along with other ugly office supplies?

    Or maybe, does anyone watch the tv in groups anymore? Are we all just looking at small screens so we don't have to come to a consensus on what to watch? Or do we make a night of it for the sake of getting together? Is game night replacing movie-on-the-sectional night? Do some lucky families do both?


  • feddup
    8 years ago

    River Valley Cabinet Works

    "Only if we get one on why customers have so much contempt for contractors...."

    You'll have to wait for the book or blog, but just a few real-life examples of why many customers have so much contempt for some contractors:

    -Balking at a request to move the light switch to the room entry, not the middle of the hall, telling homeowners "You'll get used to it" (and no, there was no reason it couldn't move).

    -Asking customer how deep to make drawer interior, not remember answer, then giving her a drawer half that depth (and yes, everyone understood that this was "interior").

    - Putting vertical siding on one side of addition, while the rest was horizontal, and either not noticing or hoping customer wouldn't notice (no, it wasn't a design feature).

    -Scratching a brand new floor because you didn't protect it right after installing it.

    - And the delays. Always the delays. Not the uncontrollable delays. The inexplicable, unapologized-for delays that, at best, inconvenience the customer. And not a few days, or even a few weeks. It's a common joke, a complaint even among multi-millionaire talk show guests. And yet it seems to be understood on both sides: no project will even come close to the promised finish date. When George Clooney can't get his kitchen redone on time, something is wrong.


  • janroze
    8 years ago

    I TOO WANT TO LEARN ideas to ease the life of seniors or challenged, live with large pianos, mantels and too small individual rooms - including baths, favorite room in your home and why, was it staged, empty, bland, neutral, colorful, stylish or personal?

    I would like to know what you want to CHANGE in your home and why. Living with mantels and seasonal, style, etc. changes for their décor. Living with too large: pianos, wall units, chairs, sofas, beds, dining tables, entry furniture, etc.

    Please subjects including FLORAL AND PLAID fabrics, COLORS and different MORE TRADITIONAL STYLES: especially country, ethnic, eclectic, romantic, etc.

    More about Houzzer's homes FEELINGS that express warmth, welcome, peace, fun, comfort, fun and joy.

    Would you get away from your NEUTRAL white, beige and gray INTERIORS if you knew how to deal with gorgeous colors, why?

    What pretty color would you paint your EXTERIOR, if you only had the nerve and didn't wonder, "What will the neighbors think?

    Something for those of us who like a huge surprising DIFFERENCE in each room: paint, flooring, trim - it's like a trip around the world and visiting different cultures, I like to see different colors, textures and styles when I pass through a door. My favorite love in my home is new daily - it never gets boring.

    Favorite ROOMS in Houzzer's home and why? Favorite FURNITURE, accessories, etc. in Houzzer's homes and why? Favorite OUTDOOR things at your home and why?

    WEALTHY VS AVERAGE JOE or JANE. Something similar to a wonderful article in BHG, I think, because it was decades before all the current magazines. I was very young then and am very old now and it would still interest me. On one page they had an exquisite room, seemingly without budget, pictured. On the next page a similar room done, with a reasonable budget, to replicate the first room as closely as possible. Furniture brands and major accessories and costs of bother were LISTED together and then totaled - the difference was always shocking.

  • janroze
    8 years ago

    Oh yeah, favorite photos on Houzz, Gardenweb or elsewhere.

  • PRO
    River Valley Cabinet Works
    8 years ago

    @feddup- Fair enough....you don't see the designer's and contractor's stories of "problem customers" here on Houzz because we have to work for a living and this is hostile territory. How many people would hire a contractor/designer after seeing the post "speaking truth to power" about particularly bad customers?

    Contracting is a low-threshold business; any foo' can get a pickup truck and belt full of tools from the local Big Box store. That doesn't make a contractor. Some of us are poor time managers or over-extended.

    I have a little light switch story I can tell. Fortunately, this job was done for a doctor's wife, who had the quid to pay for it. Her house is a story-and-a-half, with the master bedroom downstairs and her daughter's bedroom directly about. She wanted a ceiling fan/light installed in the middle of the MB ceiling. Another electrician told her it couldn't be done; the truth is it couldn't EASILY. It took a joint effort between me and my electrician and some very creative solutions to get what she wanted. Sometimes moving a switch where you want it isn't easy and would cost more than the customer wants to pay.

  • PRO
    Drawer Essentials
    8 years ago

    A lot of great ideas! I too like the idea of the poll of incomes for Houzzers To add to that, what are people able to spend on a kitchen update, living room update, bedroom update, etc. We can save the photos of the multi million dollar homes in out ideabooks, but at the end of the day we only have so much money in our budgets.

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    fire1965, I just saw that you liked my suggestion about the fences. You can see the poll on this link: [https://www.houzz.com/discussions/poll-do-you-share-fence-costs-with-neighbors-dsvw-vd~3033887[(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/poll-do-you-share-fence-costs-with-neighbors-dsvw-vd~3033887) ... maybe you have already voted ...

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago

    Do you let your children choose the paint color for their bedroom no matter if it works or not with the rest of the house?

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago

    Are you a good gardener?

  • PRO
    Digital art on glass.
    8 years ago

    Would you prefer tiles to Glass Splashback in your kitchen or bathrooms?Art on splashbacks

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    Do you have or would you like to have garage doors for your upper kitchen cabinets?

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago

    In design, do you prefer symmetry or asymmetry?

  • a2zee
    8 years ago

    How about an honest article on downsizing. Many of us can't afford to purchase new furnishings, nor would we want to do so.

  • tfswest
    8 years ago

    Worst guest bedrooms/bathroom you've ever stayed in, and what features make a good guest bedroom/bathroom. I'm thinking practical, not decorative.


  • hayleydaniels
    8 years ago

    Do some polls on problems and incidents in your neighborhood as we all have had encounters with strange neighbors. Our latest is a convicted child molester who live a few blocks over is stalking our neighbors' 5th grade daughter!

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    I am so sorry hayeydaniels. Is he reported to the police? I think any convicted child molester has a restrict order of not being close to any child.

    I was driving the other in a neighborhood and saw a house spray painted with the word pedophile. It is vandalism but I think he deserved it. I hope the person you wrote it did not get caught. He made a favor to the population.

  • helsharmar
    8 years ago

    tfswest,
    I'll take your poll right now: Stayed with a good friend a few years ago who is a dog lover. I think she had 3 at the time. Everything in her house was covered with dog hair, including the towels! I found that out when I dried my face and it was covered with dog hair. Eeew! Now I find an excuse not to stay with her every time she invites me. I'd love to tell her, but I don't know how without making her mad.

  • hayleydaniels
    8 years ago

    suzanne_m, the neighbors went to court to get a restraining order but I haven't heard how it went. I think most of the parents seem to know the guy is very strange as he trolls the school bus stops, but has focused on this one child. Her stepfather was going around to all the parents letting them know what is going on.

    My husband had mentioned how we could stand out in front of his house with a sign saying 'pedophile.' I hope someone does.

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago

    I really hope the court will do something about that and fast. They can't wait until something bad happen to that girl.

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    I wonder if you (.i.e. anyone in the neighborhood) could place a sheet written 'pedophile' with the address of the guy on the windshield of the cars parked in a shopping center nearby. If anyone knows a lawyer, he/she could ask him if it is legal.

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    Do people prefer laundry room on the first or on the second floor?

  • a2zee
    8 years ago

    How about a spread on patio homes? It might be included with stories on downsizing.

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago

    Do all your kitchen appliances match?

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago

    Do you conceal your fence?

  • suzanne_m
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    - Do you have a rug in your dining room?

    - Do you have or would you like a bathroom in each bedroom?

    - Do you prefer a vanity bowl sink or an under mount sink?

    - What is your favorite seating in your backward: swing? glider? swivel? rocking chair? hammock? stationary chair? lounge chair? other?

  • PRO
    Mark Bischak, Architect
    8 years ago

    What is your experience with working with an architect?

    [He fearfully asks]


  • albert_135   39.17°N 119.76°W 4695ft.
    6 years ago

    Would you like a simple, obvious, quick and easy link to the Gardenweb forums [yes]/[no] ?᠎

  • lazidazi
    6 years ago

    Poll idea: What is your price range for buying a home.

    Of course, you'd also have to let people say where they live, as prices vary widely from say, San Francisco to the deep south.

    Also like the other suggestion of polling about downsizing, versus seeing all the 4-5000 sq ft homes some are building.


  • pennydesign
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Yes.

    Please ask the Houzz community if they would come over and fix my house...

    I promise coffee and sandwiches.

  • helsharmar
    6 years ago

    Poll: Do you think anyone looks at these responses from users? Yes/no.

  • albert_135   39.17°N 119.76°W 4695ft.
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    helsharmar

    Poll: Do you think anyone looks at these responses from users? Yes/no.


    No.

  • pennydesign
    6 years ago

    Darn...

  • wildcatblue
    6 years ago
    I would like to see more articles about:

    A. Contemporary/Modern design and decorating
    B. Condominium life
    C. Decorating a small balcony
  • delanedavid
    6 years ago

    Do you have a fence around your property? (No fence, 4' fence, 6' fence, other)

  • cpartist
    5 years ago

    Should houzz ask its members before making changes to its website that make using the website worse!