House Purchase Advice

[Steve85]

the WFH thing is badass but really hard to find that situation

A little OT...I'm curious, in an industry where the vast majority of work seems to be done on a laptop/PC and stored/deployed via a server on a network, what is the biggest obstacle you guys encounter? Managers that won't allow it? Collaboration logistics? Security? there's a million things I left out in the first sentence?

I wonder if we'll ever figure out the stupidity of all living in a big circle around a central hub we all drive into at the same time using five roads that were too small 20 years ago to sit down and log into a server for 8 hours.

[Apoc]

The largest barrier to WFH is corporate culture or a need for "hands on" collaboration (client meetings, white boarding, etc.) My company flies my boss in for 2-3 days every other week, which is expensive, but supposedly cost effective. I could WFH 3-4 days/week, if I wanted, but I haven't really pursued the matter. My commute is fine and it gets me showered, so I go to the office.

I don't think WFH 5 days/week is a magic bullet. It's really easy to settle into a sedentary lifestyle and it does get lonely at times. For me, it would be a way to live wherever I wanted and not have to work for Walmart.

[.RJ]

what is the biggest obstacle you guys encounter?

Most company cultures cant get their head around the idea that most work can be done remotely.

I'm in a situation where everyone is WFH, and communication/collaboration can be extremely difficult. What should be a walk down the hall for a quick question can turn into a day or two wait. There's probably a balance there - I'd love to split time 50/50 between an office and home.

[Evan]

the WFH thing is badass but really hard to find that situation

A little OT...I'm curious, in an industry where the vast majority of work seems to be done on a laptop/PC and stored/deployed via a server on a network, what is the biggest obstacle you guys encounter? Managers that won't allow it? Collaboration logistics? Security? there's a million things I left out in the first sentence?

I wonder if we'll ever figure out the stupidity of all living in a big circle around a central hub we all drive into at the same time using five roads that were too small 20 years ago to sit down and log into a server for 8 hours.

I work on classified and closed govt networks so wfh is rarely an option. Sometimes we can write code on the low side with dummy data then push it up when its time to deploy, but thats really at best a 2 or 3 day a week wfh.
and on top of that, clients generally like to see your face and see that youre working when you bill them.

To build good software efficiently and productively, you really do need face to face collaboration and easy open communication.

[Apoc]

To build good software efficiently and productively, you really do need face to face collaboration and easy open communication.

The amusing thing about that is most companies that have f-2-f still don't build good software efficiently.

[Mike]

my biggest obstacle is a [new] ceo who doesn't believe in it. sucks, because we've historically been all about it so there are a handful of folks who WFH (locally) 100%, but anyone new who wants to kind of has to keep it from him... i work at least a single day from home per week. i could see doing 2-3, but would not want to do 100%. at that point your work and home lives seem to converge.

[ScottyB]

i could see doing 2-3, but would not want to do 100%. at that point your work and home lives seem to converge.

it can definitely be a slippery slope. i've been working from home entirely since last june (started a business) and can confirm that it can be really tempting to just say F-it if you're having a bad day and walk into the living room and watch a movie. or surf the internet endlessly. or snack on everything. sometimes you can't escape the stress either, because you sleep 20 feet from your office.

if i've learned 2 things, it's to take structured breaks to prevent boredom or stagnant thought (leads to doing the above and blowing hours before you know it) and to make a hard cutoff on when to stop working...otherwise i keep coming back to the computer to tinker with business stuff and don't make time for the wife and I.

i also tried to pull the WFH thing by proposing it to my old boss when i left my last job. he tried to make it work but the company didn't want any of it. My position would have been perfect for it, but they didn't like the precedent it would create. they don't use a WFH system and I would have been the first full timer using it. they pictured all the sudden everyone with a position with any remote possibility of fitting the WFH model suddenly petitioning that they wanted to be at home too, and HR didn't want any part of that. Basically lots of resentment and politics.

[REED]

i work at least a single day from home per week. i could see doing 2-3, but would not want to do 100%. at that point your work and home lives seem to converge.

+1

as much as I love the freedom of teleworking, I don't know that I could do it all the time. One thing that really irks me about the whole idea is that it completely shifts the burden of a quality work environment on me and off of my agency, yet I get no additional compensation for it.

When I first agreed to telework, it was my choice to and I knew that I would be sacrificing some comforts for the convenience of working where ever I wanted. I'm ok working from my kitchen/couch/public place, etc. for a day or two, but 3-4 days and it gets old real quick.

[Apoc]

One thing that really irks me about the whole idea is that it completely shifts the burden of a quality work environment on me and off of my agency, yet I get no additional compensation for it.

So you're saying you WFH and are upset because they don't pay you extra for it?

[Ryan T]

I could work from home 2 or 3 days a week but there is no way the department would let that fly. I can (and almost always do) set most all my office appointments on the same day and reserve the rest of the week for either working in the field or doing paperwork/computer entry. There is only one day a week that I have to be in the office all day and that's when I'm on intake. Otherwise I could just show up when I have court or an appointment. In a way though I'm sorta glad we don't get to work from home because I would have the same problem Scotty mentioned. I'd be really bad at putting things off and letting my work pile up.

[Evan]

One thing that really irks me about the whole idea is that it completely shifts the burden of a quality work environment on me and off of my agency, yet I get no additional compensation for it.

So you're saying you WFH and are upset because they don't pay you extra for it?

Wow.Cant you tell Reed is a govie :wink:

is it not optional?

(ive actually come to work on days I could have teleworked because the dev workstation I have here kicks ass)

[Jake]

I technically WFH with AOL right now since the office is in Dulles and I'm doing work from school. My Monday/Wednesday/Friday are dedicated primarily to them, but it's still tough to just go downstairs, open up my laptop and legitimately do work for solid chunks of time. I do better going to the library where everyone else is (theoretically) doing work too.

Minus commuting (which can be pleasant enough, depending) I don't mind the office environment a few days per week. I think it's easier to focus and the quick face-to-face for random questions and collaboration is just easier.

[REED]

One thing that really irks me about the whole idea is that it completely shifts the burden of a quality work environment on me and off of my agency, yet I get no additional compensation for it.

So you're saying you WFH and are upset because they don't pay you extra for it?

Wow.Cant you tell Reed is a govie :wink:

is it not optional?

(ive actually come to work on days I could have teleworked because the dev workstation I have here kicks ass)

haha damnit - that's not what I meant

I meant to say that the additional costs of exclusively (or nearly) teleworking would most likely outpace the additional benefit to me. I'll now have to pay to heat/light my apmt, furnish at least some sort of basic "office", etc. all so the government can save a few bucks, of which I'll see no benefit from whatsoever. It's just kind of a hard sell I guess.

Right now it is "optional", but we are quickly moving to where that is not the case

[Apoc]

I'll now have to pay to heat/light my apmt, furnish at least some sort of basic "office", etc. all so the government can save a few bucks, of which I'll see no benefit from whatsoever.

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[REED]

I'll now have to pay to heat/light my apmt, furnish at least some sort of basic "office", etc. all so the government can save a few bucks, of which I'll see no benefit from whatsoever.

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ha touche

[G.Irish]

I meant to say that the additional costs of exclusively (or nearly) teleworking would most likely outpace the additional benefit to me. I'll now have to pay to heat/light my apmt, furnish at least some sort of basic "office", etc. all so the government can save a few bucks, of which I'll see no benefit from whatsoever. It's just kind of a hard sell I guess.

Right now it is "optional", but we are quickly moving to where that is not the case

Yeah but you don't have to spend time and money commuting every day. Even if you have a short 30 minute commute you would save somewhere around 250 hours a year on commuting, which amounts to 10 days of your life. And that's not even counting the time you take every morning to get dressed for work, iron your clothes, etc.

[.RJ]

Ok, need opinion here.

Looking at a few places in Reston in my price range, and I'm running across a fairly common layout for houses - 3 story, 2 BR's on the upper level, with a master bath on the upper level and full bath on the lower level along with an office/living/rec room that could be used as a 3rd BR, and no garage.

Now, if I buy a place I'm probably going to want a roommate to defer costs initially. I'm also going to want to not share a bathroom and use the lower level space as a bike/rec room. Is it a deal breaker for a tennant to rent an upstairs bedroom and shower downstairs?

[Apoc]

Ain't a deal breaker, but it'll cost you a good amount of cash in rent.

[.RJ]

The other option I guess is to share the bathroom. Fuck.

InBeforeMoveToLoco

[Apoc]

The other option I guess is to share the bathroom. Fuck.

I'd rather sell a kidney than share the master bath. Chances are they'd choose to go downstairs instead of have to go into your room...

Like I said, -$ and there isn't really any way around it (IMO).