I'm playing a new game with version 1.6, and I bought the house in Riften without becoming a Thane and getting stuck with the annoying house carl. I turned in the quest to wipe out the skooma dealers then talked to the steward and the house was available.

Is this new or has it always been thus? Because the last time I played I got the house carl, which I hated, because I thought you had to do that before you could get the house. I just wondered if I could have done it this way before.

It's so much more peaceful at home now without the constant "Honor to you my thane." driving me frikken batty.

It's not a new feature for Riften, Solitude, Markarth, and possibly Windhelm. It's actually the reverse. You need to own the home in order to become Thane in the first place for these cities. Technically, you can even get the home in Whiterun before Thanedom, but it's unlikely due to cost and quest progression.