For information on Chilmark's big house bylaw click the button below.

For information on the approaches other communities have used to limit house size click the button below.

TRENDING SMALLER

• Los Angeles, California: LA council approves limos on 'McMansions'
• Aspen, Colorado: New house-size caps for Aspen
• Boulder, Colorado: Boulder compatible development rules take effect for houses Monday
• Chilmark, Massachusetts: Chilmark overwhelmingly passes bylaw to limit home size
• Truro, Massachusetts: Truro planning board votes to limit Seashore house size
• East Hampton, New York: East Hampton Village house size limits adopted
• South Hampton, New York: Southampton Village proposes new limits on house height
• The Hamptons, New York: Hamptons mansions pile up while buyers battle over smaller homes
• The Hamptons, New York: Rich Hamptons buyers don't want mega mansions
• Mercer Island, Washington: Mercer Island limits size of single family homes
• The next little thing?
• Small is Beautiful: U.S. house size, resource use, and the environment

THE GROWING NATIONAL CONVERSATION

• Honolulu, Hawaii: Mayor signs bill temporarily banning permits for new 'monster houses'
• Honolulu, Hawaii: Kaimuki resident documents 'monster' houses
• Honolulu, Hawaii: Honolulu City Council Committee advances "monster homes" bill
• Honolulu, Hawaii: Monster homes are gobbling up Oahu neighborhoods – and it's all legal
• Los Angeles, California: L.A. backs measures to roll back 'mansionization' in single-family neighborhoods
• Los Angeles, California: Celebrity developer pleads no contest to Bel-Air mega-mansion charges. But what happens to the 30,000-square foot estate?
• Los Angeles, California: L.A. lawmakers finalize new measures to curb 'mansionization'
• Los Angeles, California: Could the anti-development Measure S tank L.A.'s economy?
• Los Angeles, California: L.A. city council votes to limit size of 'mcmansions'
• Los Angeles, California: L.A. takes a step toward tighter rules to curb mansionization
• Los Angeles, California: Lessons from Beverly Grove's successful fight against McMansions
• Los Angeles, California: Record $500 million mega-mansion being built in Los Angeles
• Los Angeles, California: Op-ed, L.A. has a growing mansionization problem
• Los Angeles, California: No more ‘McMansions’ in Los Angeles for two years, says council
• Los Angeles, California: Attempt to tighten 'McMansion' law spurs outcry
• Montecito, California: 'She's created an uproar': Gwyneth Paltrow enrages neighbors with plans to demolish $5million mansion to build 'too big, too tall and incompatible California home'
• Aspen, Colorado: Super size my house: County's homes twice average size; development rush causes big impact
• Boulder, Colorado: As monster homes rise should Boulder trade size for density?
• Rehoboth, Delaware: Rehoboth cinches large homes with tightened zoning law
• St. Petersburg, Florida: In fight against McMansions, Snell Island residents get a victory- for now
• Hinsdale, Illinois: The McMansion's day has come and gone
• Bethesda, Maryland: These neighbors spent $2 million to block a McMansion. Will their bet pay off?
• Frederick, Maryland: Neighbors rallying against 'McMansion' on Magnolia Avenue in Frederick
• Belmont, Massachusetts: Neighbors support for permit for home in Kendall Gardens
• Edgartown, Massachusetts: Edgartown planning board faces dilemma on size of mansions 
• Nantucket Massachusetts: Judge upholds approval of Hither Creek home
• Sharon, Massachusetts: Balancing act- Sharon considers giving residents of older neighborhoods a say when McMansions replace more modest houses
• Truro, Massachusetts: Truro town meeting approves restriction on house sizes in Seashore
• Truro, Masachusetts: Cape Cod town rebels against "starter castles"
• Truro, Masachusetts: Truro opens a debate on limiting the size of houses
• Truro, Massachusetts: Truro orders demolition of sprawling mansion situated on landscape painted by artist Edward Hopper
• Minneapolis, Minnesota: Tighter limits on new home sizes clear initial hurdle
• San Juan County, New Mexico: County poised to ban trophy homes
• East Hampton, New York: East Hampton Village house size limits adopted
• Sag Harbor, New York: Investors move next door, unsettling a black beachside enclave
• Sag Harbor, New York: Historically black beach enclaves are fighting to save their history and identity
• Sag Harbor, New York: The battle of Sag Harbor: historic homes, pricey penthouses, and scores of subpoenas
• Sag Harbor, New York: New house a 'poster child' for problems cited in Sag Harbor petition
• Sag Harbor, New York: Call for Sag Harbor moratorium as neighbors cry foul over reconstruction of Main Street house
• The Hamptons, New York: Razing the Hamptons
• The Hamptons, New York: Oversized mansions targeted in new laws restricting home size in Hamptons villages
• The Hamptons, New York: Hamptons McMansions herald a return of excess
• Southampton, New York: Hamptons largest home hits the market for $35M
• Outer Banks, North Carolina: Southern shores will look at changes to address mega-houses
• Portland, Oregon: Density vs livability: public comments on portland infill
• Portland, Oregon: Plan aims to blow new McMansions in Portland
• Portland, Oregon: Portland considers anti-McMansion measures
• Portland, Oregon: Down with McMansions, up with abundant housing options
• Wallowa County, Oregon: Battle brewing over ridge top 'trophy homes'
• Middletown, Rhode Island: Middletown Town Council scraps house height limit
• Middletown, Rhode Island: House size limits now up to Middletown Council
• Middletown, Rhode Island: Proposed change would place limits on size of houses in Middletown
• Newport, Rhode Island: Newport house is a pariah before it's built
• Newport, Rhode Island: Newport, a city that loves its mansions, shudder at its newest one
• Austin, Texas: McMansions, Development rules for Austin
• Spring, Texas: In The Woodlands a four year renovation has created a 'monster' house, neighbors say
• Mercer Island, Washington: Mercer Island, land of the luxury home, cracks down on building mansions

DISCUSSION OF MANSIONIZATION

• The Atlantic: American Homes Are Bigger and Less Energy Efficient
• The Bellingham Herald: Why we love to hate McMansions, but still buy them
• Fast Comapny: The hidden cost of our obsession with luxury living
• The Incredible Shrinking Yard!: The size of new homes has been growing for decades now, but it’s coming at the expense of yard space
• McMansions and the Geometry of Zoning: Planning law primer discusses some legal tools for regulating house size
• McMansions or Bash-and-Builds, Some Towns Have Had Enough: An overview of efforts across the country to regulate McMansions
• Spacious Vulgarity: The aesthetics and morals of McMansions
• The Atlantic: The next slum?
• NPR: A legal backlash against 'McMansions'
• The Literal Hell of McMansions: The suburban monstrosities fit in a long American tradition of unnatural, ill-constructed, haunted houses.
• The Washington Post: The ultimate symbol of the pre-recession boom is back
• The Atlantic: Will the McMansion ever die?
• The Wall Street Journal: Living very large
• The Washington Post: An online housing giant picked a fight with a one-woman blog. And lost.
• McMansionHell.com: A blog about McMansions
• CBS News: 10 "McModerns" that are taking over from McMansions
• Realtor.com: Bigger isn't better: How a large home could ruin your life
• Behind the ever-expanding American Dream House

IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT HOUSE SIZE: PRESERVING A SENSE OF PLACE

• Sag Harbor, New York: East end effort pops up to counter "Not in my backyard" mindset
• Bar Harbor, Maine: Cruise ships have made Bar Harbor popular. But have they ruined It?
• Beacon, New York: Development in Beacon: What next?
• Beacon, New York: Brief moratorium makes sense for Beacon
• Barcelona, Spain: Why Barcelona locals really hate tourists
• Hamptons, New York: Trophy lawns destroyed this Hamptons pond with poison
• Cohasset, Massachusetts: Smith place condo proposal is too much
• Concord, Massachusetts: Concord, Ma to be first U.S. town to ban bottled water
• Woodstock, Vermont: Vermont town in Budweiser Clydesdale ad fights to save its charm
• 'There isn't a just housing choice': How we've enabled the pains of gentrification

AFFORDABLE HOUSING CRISIS