Meeting the Basic Needs of Your Family With Your House Plan

When choosing a house plan, it is important to meet the basic needs of your family.  Before you get all wrapped up in how the house is going to look from the outside, think about the layout of the floor plan.  Here are some basic questions:

1.) How many bedrooms do you need?  Do you have friends and family who want to stay at your house frequently?  Also, do you want to have all of your bedrooms on the second floor or the master down? Or, are you retired and want accessibility to everything on the first floor?

2.) Where are you going to hang out with your family?  What do you like to do?  Are you all big TV watchers or gamers?  Or, do you need quiet spaces to get away from each other and read?  This will determine how many recreational spaces you need and if you need a seperate space for your teenagers to hang out with their friends.  If you have the option of a basement, you can take advantage of creating a great space for entertainment.

3.  The kitchen and dining area is also something to think about.  If you are into cooking and baking or entertaining, you need to have a big enough space and the right flow to accommodate that.   Do you eat together as a family most of the time?  Or is everybody on their own schedule? This can help you decide between a formal dining area or if you want a combined kitchen and dining space with places to sit close to where the cooking area is.  Many times the kitchen is way overdone for the families actual needs and they dedicate too much space.  This "pinches" the other parts of the floor plan.

These three basic considerations will help you in meeting the needs of your family.  While it is important to have a good looking house from the outside, the functionality of your floor plan is important to get the most of out of your new home.  If you are like most people, you will probably buy a house plan that is different from what you first thought you wanted.

www.larrygarnett.com

Choosing a House Plan That Maximizes the Features of Your Building Lot.

Choose a House Plan That Maximizes the Features of Your Building Lot
 
If you have purchased a building lot or inherited one, it probably has some characteristics that will favor a specific design or floor plan lay-out.  Spend plenty of time walking around your lot and consider the trees, views and other features it might have.  Imagine looking out the window from your kitchen or living room.  Which way do you want it to face?  What do you want to look at?  Is there something unsightly?  It is important to choose a plan that fits the characteristics of your land. It can be costly to grade a lot to make it suitable for a plan. It's better to make the house plan fit the lot rather than try to make the lot fit the house. One thing that is kind of fun is to take the family or some friends out to your building lot and spread out a blanket or chairs on a nice day and have a picnic!  Sit there and talk about what you see and what everyone likes about the lot - and also what they don't like!  

Wayne Ramaker, Owner of www.larrygarnett.com.
Choosing a House Plan