Viral Photo of New House in North Carolina Has a Massive Design Flaw. Can You Spot It?

(Illustration - Shutterstock)

From the archives: This story was last updated in August 2019.

“I would tear it down,” said real estate agent Josh Flagg from Million Dollar Listing, with a smile on his face.

He’s not wrong; this house is a mess! “Nobody would ever build a home that way,” Flagg continued, speaking to Inside Edition. “I mean, it makes no sense; there’s got to be a reason.”

A photo of the home, which was eventually identified as having been built in the small town of Clemmons, North Carolina, went viral when a passerby realized it had a massive design flaw. See for yourself; can you spot the problem?

The driveway can clearly be seen leading ... where? That’s correct—right up to the window! The garage, which is where the driveway should lead, is located on the other side of the house.

Illustration - Pixabay | 3844328

If anybody ever wanted to park their vehicle in the garage, they'd be forced to drive over the curb and over the lawn, destroying plants, flowers, and garden paraphernalia in the process.

The photo was first posted on Reddit with the hilarious caption, “They had one job,” and was shared thousands of times. Audacious Reddit users were not shy in coming forward with their critiques and condemnations.

Illustration - Pixabay | jarmoluk

“Just right click, rotate 90 degrees. Easy peasy,” wrote one comedian.

“Probably the show house for a new neighborhood,” came another user’s suggestion. “They use the garage for office space/storage. When the neighborhood is near full,” they speculated, “they will pour a driveway and sell the house to people who will live in it.”

Illustration - Pixabay | jarmoluk

While some argued that this reasoning was just a coverup for a messy construction job, others thought there could be something in the idea of a show home, after all.

Another user, possibly in construction themselves, was finally able to shed further light on the perceived design flaw. “It’s not a problem,” they placated readers, “it’s almost assuredly a model home in a new neighborhood. The driveway as shown in this picture acts as a parking lot for patrons and sales employees,” they explained, “and the garage acts as the sales office.”

Illustration - Pixabay | jarmoluk

“Once the neighborhood is sold out, they will sell the model and reconfigure the house to the ‘correct’ way.” So, there you have it!

“Why not just do it right the first time?” asked one incredulous user, speaking for thousands who were dumbfounded by the idea of making more work for the construction team than was needed.

Illustration - Shutterstock | zoff

“It took me an embarrassing amount of time to see the problem,” another Reddit user chimed in humbly, totally changing the tone of the thread and reminding us why we were all there in the first place. To join in the fun, of course!

While there are sadly no prizes for speed, spotting the “flaw” in this image has kept the internet entertained since the new build went up. It’s the gift that keeps on giving.

So, where are you placing your bets; did the builders ever change the driveway? Did the shockingly planned home ever sell?

While the home’s viral infamy could easily become a selling point, its longstanding reputation as “the most poorly designed house in America” will surely be hard to shift!