If you have built a house lately

[Scarlett]

Or have a house you love or hate…..,well basically if you have any opinion on a house plan…..tell me

 

how is your house layed out directionally? Where is your garage? Where is your natural light?what are your regrets or what are you proud of?

In my old age I have discovered natural light is highly important to me.  We are trying to design a house for a lot that faces south……with  a lovely meadow to the west and a lovely pond to the north but a neighbor house built right on top of us to the east.  
 

I need ideas.  I do not like garages in the front.  So we were planning a driveway along the east property line and going into a garage in the back of our property.  Today I realized how foolish it is to block off the north pond view.  So now I am thinking the garage on the east side next to the Illegal neighbors  garage makes more sense.  

 

Edited September 30, 2023 by Scarlett

[Forget-Me-Not]

We live on a hill, so the garage is to the side of the house at the highest part of the lot. I like it. It gives a buffer between us and the neighbors on that side. 
 

LOVE LOVE LOVE that our driveway faces south. That is gold, especially when it snows  

I wish we had more front facing windows. Most of our big windows are to the back. We have lots of natural light, but I can’t see what’s going on in the front/street very well.

We have a large open great/room kitchen combo and the dining area is at the center. I wish we’d gone for a floor plan that at least had a nook for the table instead. 

I have a walk-in pantry and a large basement storage room and I love all the storage space. 
 

Adore my covered deck. We paid extra money to extend it and roof it and it was worth every cent. 

[Scarlett]

Help me picture this…when you say you wish you had more front facing windows…You mean to the south?

[Forget-Me-Not]

17 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

Help me picture this…when you say you wish you had more front facing windows…You mean to the south?

No I just mean more visibility at the front of the house. Two of the upstairs bedrooms are along the front of the house, so I can’t really see out to the street unless I go into a bedroom and open the blinds. We have windows at the top of the front door but I’m too short to see out unless I stand on my toes lol. If I had it to do over, I would pick a floorplan that has more visibility out to the street, that’s all.

[Carrie12345]

Driveway/garage placement has frustrated me, but it really was the best option. The driveway doesn’t have enough sun exposure, so lots of ice, and I can only see it from the primary bedroom or the powder room. (Or security camera, so that helps.

The layout apparently also confuses people. It’s a side loading garage, but the driveway comes in straight from the street. Some people mistake the back yard for the front. I still don’t know how to fix that.

My house faces south, but my kitchen is in the back, with the staircase separating it from the front. Despite the open floor plan with large windows and recessed lighting, the kitchen always feels dark to me.

Love/hate having extra tall windows. They’re gorgeous. But even at 5’8, I can’t reach to open or clean the tops in the 9’ rooms, only in the 8’ rooms. I hate dragging a step stool around.

One big thing I wish I could change is attic access. I didn’t think to ask where that would be. I assumed designers know what they’re doing. So why, with so many options, would anyone place an attic panel at the very top of a staircase instead of in a hallway or loft room?!?!

Also, “2 car garage” doesn’t mean 2 cars will fit. Know the dimensions you want/need.

 

[Ottakee]

I am not sure what climate you are in but consider the intensity and angle of the sun through various seasons.   Sometimes south or west facing windows can make a room heat up like an oven.   Same for any deck/patios.

One of my big suggestions to anyone building is to consider handicapped features….wider doorways and hallways, one main floor bedroom and bath.    Start out with a large shower stall or think ahead for easy conversion.  Put up plywood behind drywall/shower walls for ease of adding grab bars later.  Think of where you could put in a wheelchair ramp if needed later.

These things don’t cost much more when building but could save thousands upon thousands in the future.

36 inch doorways on all entry doors in the house make it wheelchair accessible but also a huge blessing to anyone moving in furniture or appliances.  Same for at least one main floor bedroom and bath.

[Katy]

In your area I'd put a lot of windows to the North AND the South. Why? because in the summer the Southern windows will create a greenhouse effect and be super hot. But you can get plenty of bright, indirect light from the North even when It's hot.

Pay the extra money for double-hung windows that every panel swings in, which is better both for cleaning and safety (both for children and escape).

Consider ICF building. It's better for insulation, tornadoes, and it's literally bullet proof. At least small caliber.

Consider wide front & back porches. The shade to the South will allow more light in without the heat. And if/when there's a power failure the porches allow you to open windows in all but the worst weather to get fresh air into the house.

I agree with wide hallways and doors to allow aging in place and ease of movement.

 

 

[mmasc]

👂

[Scarlett]

9 hours ago, Forget-Me-Not said:

We live on a hill, so the garage is to the side of the house at the highest part of the lot. I like it. It gives a buffer between us and the neighbors on that side. 
 

LOVE LOVE LOVE that our driveway faces south. That is gold, especially when it snows  

I wish we had more front facing windows. Most of our big windows are to the back. We have lots of natural light, but I can’t see what’s going on in the front/street very well.

We have a large open great/room kitchen combo and the dining area is at the center. I wish we’d gone for a floor plan that at least had a nook for the table instead. 

I have a walk-in pantry and a large basement storage room and I love all the storage space. 
 

Adore my covered deck. We paid extra money to extend it and roof it and it was worth every cent. 

This is how my current house is too.  I really do not like it.  The only windows facing the front are in the two guest bedrooms. And the only window in the living area is small, is off to the side, looking out to the back yard 

The kitchen windows are over the sink which is fine except it faces a small section of the pool and that is all. 
 

It is a 1970s ranch, with a long hallways of 6 doors to bedrooms, bathroom and two linen closets.  There is a fair amount I dislike about this house but it is in a very very nice neighbor for this small OK town and we got an incredible deal on it.  
 

 

[EKS]

10 hours ago, Scarlett said:

In my old age I have discovered natural light is highly important to me.  We are trying to design a house for a lot that faces south……with  a lovely meadow to the west and a lovely pond to the north but a neighbor house built right on top of us to the east.  

We did this.  Be sure that your eaves block out direct sunlight in the warmer months.  Also be sure to get the glass that filters out UV.  It will help save your carpets/furnishings/stuff on the walls/etc.

[KungFuPanda]

We’ve never built, but our back patio is nicely situated for morning sunrise and evening shade. We really like that. My back yard gets evening shade too which makes gardening much nicer. The front yard hats the sunsets so I don’t like working out there past noon. 

[mmasc]

I always thought I wanted a south facing home bc it’s best for flower gardening. But dh *almost* has me convinced to do the opposite—front north facing, back south facing. I would still need tons of windows on both sides. His thoughts—much easier to cool in the summer and if we have a pool, south would be nice for the evening sun back there. I appreciate @Carrie12345 thoughts on her kitchen bc I NEED to have kitchen light and it never occurred to me that the kitchen would be at the back of the house (and therefore in the above layout would get plenty of south sun). I have a hard time visualizing things!

[Scarlett]

4 hours ago, Carrie12345 said:

Driveway/garage placement has frustrated me, but it really was the best option. The driveway doesn’t have enough sun exposure, so lots of ice, and I can only see it from the primary bedroom or the powder room. (Or security camera, so that helps.

The layout apparently also confuses people. It’s a side loading garage, but the driveway comes in straight from the street. Some people mistake the back yard for the front. I still don’t know how to fix that.

My house faces south, but my kitchen is in the back, with the staircase separating it from the front. Despite the open floor plan with large windows and recessed lighting, the kitchen always feels dark to me.

Love/hate having extra tall windows. They’re gorgeous. But even at 5’8, I can’t reach to open or clean the tops in the 9’ rooms, only in the 8’ rooms. I hate dragging a step stool around.

One big thing I wish I could change is attic access. I didn’t think to ask where that would be. I assumed designers know what they’re doing. So why, with so many options, would anyone place an attic panel at the very top of a staircase instead of in a hallway or loft room?!?!

Also, “2 car garage” doesn’t mean 2 cars will fit. Know the dimensions you want/need.

 

Do you have a sidewalk to your front door? I would get a decorative sign that says welcome with an arrow pointing the direction of the front door. 

[Ting Tang]

We live in a ranch style home built in the early 2000s.  The other windows we have facing the front are the kids' bedrooms, and I do not like that.  We also have a useless door in our living room to the backyard; we typically just use the one in our kitchen to the backyard.  I hate that our mudroom is off the garage but that we must still walk through our living room to the kitchen to put away groceries.  There is no pantry, so we use a piece of furniture. I do not like that.  I'm not smart enough to get too deep into directionals, lol.

[Scarlett]

https://www.houseplans.net/floorplans/04100198/craftsman-plan-2358-square-feet-3-bedrooms-2.5-bathrooms
 

This plan has a lot I like but it is quite a bit bigger than what we were thinking. We would definitely have the dining room at the front of the house and do away with that gigantic pantry. This would give me views of the pond to the north from the kitchen and be able to see out front from the dining room.

[Carrie12345]

13 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

Do you have a sidewalk to your front door? I would get a decorative sign that says welcome with an arrow pointing the direction of the front door. 

Kind of, yeah. But the garage bumps out slightly on the front, so I guess it’s hard to see, especially if cars are parked in the driveway.

[Carrie12345]

[mmasc]

@Carrie12345 Is the front of your house to the left? But people pull in and park there at the garage? Is that where they’re supposed to park? If so, I’d put a pretty potted plant there at the left corner of the garage with a welcome sign. That might point them on where to go. 
 

Your house is lovely, btw. 

[Ali in OR]

We have a single-level ~1800 square foot house built from one of the plans available for this neighborhood with a few modifications for our then 6yo in a wheelchair. So instead of steps up to the front door we have a lovely ramp that doesn't scream ramp--just a stretch of sidewalk with planting strips on either side that goes across the front of the house then turns toward the front door, all held up with yard brick. And the entry from the garage at the back of the house is stepless as is the exit out back to the patio. The doors off the hall are all wider 36". The house faces roughly east (a little north east) and has few windows on the south side (which is the master suite side), but we get good light because it's small enough that if you're in the main area as I am now, you get light from both the front windows facing east and the sliding glass door to the patio.

After our first experience with our not-wheelchair-friendly previous house, I insisted on both of the skylights in the plan in the kitchen and hall bath (builder was thinking of omitting the kitchen one). Our previous house had a hall bath with no window so you had to turn on the light to use it. In this house there is no window but with the skylight you don't need to turn on a light--it's nice. And after living with a garage entry at basement level with no light, I added one more skylight at the back entry from the garage so again you don't need to turn on a light when you come in with bags of groceries. I think in some parts of the country where it gets super hot you maybe wouldn't do skylights, but they're a big help here where you have many darker months. And we've never had any leaking or other problems with them.

Last bit of advice for kitchen light--get under-cabinet lighting to light your countertops. I remember this added $168 to our build--so incredibly cheap for such useful lighting. Ours is just florescent tubes hidden by wood strips that match our cabinets.

Edited September 30, 2023 by Ali in OR

[mmasc]

24 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

https://www.houseplans.net/floorplans/04100198/craftsman-plan-2358-square-feet-3-bedrooms-2.5-bathrooms
 

This plan has a lot I like but it is quite a bit bigger than what we were thinking. We would definitely have the dining room at the front of the house and do away with that gigantic pantry. This would give me views of the pond to the north from the kitchen and be able to see out front from the dining room.

That’s a lovely house plan! The one consideration I’d have is to think about if you want the laundry right off your master. I think you’re empty-nesters, so likely wouldn’t have my concern—my kids do laundry after I go to bed!

[Bambam]

I prefer a detached garage - but covered walkway between house/garage. Garage to the side of the house, if possible, so open garage door not visible to street. 

I agree with considering climate/sun exposure. We live in TX, and a south facing side with lots of windows - unless you had shade trees - would probably not be great. Our house faces east - which is nice in many ways, but the sun does a number on our wooden front door so that we have to refinish/re-stain it every other year or sooner.  Our breakfast/typical dining area (we don't use our dining room for eating!) is on the west side of the house, so during some times of the year, we have to close the blinds due to the sun coming in as we are eating. Not a big issues, but it does cut down on natural light. 

I do agree with having lots of windows for natural lighting! Also consider skylights - but also factor in they tend to be noisy if you often have thunderstorms/hail, so maybe put them in a section that you could close off (like taking a patio and converting it to part of the main living area/but put doorways with double doors so you could shut that off - skylights in previous patio/now living room extension). 

As we get older, I see the big advantage in having wider doorways, a walk-in shower with a wide opening/seat/grab bars, and no tight corners anywhere (thinking potential issues with walkers should we have that in our future).  In your house plan, I might be tempted to lose the jetted tub and make a little more space for the commode room - again thinking walkers/wheelchair/etc.  I'd also extend that shower to make it a little longer too - possibly considering putting showers on both sides? 
 

[Scarlett]

2 hours ago, Bambam said:

I prefer a detached garage - but covered walkway between house/garage. Garage to the side of the house, if possible, so open garage door not visible to street. 

I agree with considering climate/sun exposure. We live in TX, and a south facing side with lots of windows - unless you had shade trees - would probably not be great. Our house faces east - which is nice in many ways, but the sun does a number on our wooden front door so that we have to refinish/re-stain it every other year or sooner.  Our breakfast/typical dining area (we don't use our dining room for eating!) is on the west side of the house, so during some times of the year, we have to close the blinds due to the sun coming in as we are eating. Not a big issues, but it does cut down on natural light. 

I do agree with having lots of windows for natural lighting! Also consider skylights - but also factor in they tend to be noisy if you often have thunderstorms/hail, so maybe put them in a section that you could close off (like taking a patio and converting it to part of the main living area/but put doorways with double doors so you could shut that off - skylights in previous patio/now living room extension). 

As we get older, I see the big advantage in having wider doorways, a walk-in shower with a wide opening/seat/grab bars, and no tight corners anywhere (thinking potential issues with walkers should we have that in our future).  In your house plan, I might be tempted to lose the jetted tub and make a little more space for the commode room - again thinking walkers/wheelchair/etc.  I'd also extend that shower to make it a little longer too - possibly considering putting showers on both sides? 
 

I definitely like the garage side entry and/or the back of the house.  This particular lot is not going to allow that easily.  We could put the driveway down the east side of the property and garage in back but that will block the view of the pond. With this plan that I linked at least the garage is not blocking the living area like my current house.  

[Scarlett]

7 hours ago, mmasc said:

That’s a lovely house plan! The one consideration I’d have is to think about if you want the laundry right off your master. I think you’re empty-nesters, so likely wouldn’t have my concern—my kids do laundry after I go to bed!

Yes we are empty nesters and I do all the laundry so I think I will like it being close to master and kitchen.  

[Scarlett]

Dh and I have been looking at this plan and we think we can push the master back and put another bedroom and bath behind the garage and in front of master. Then we can cut the two other bedrooms and bath off of the west side.That helps keep the size down and it gives me views of the meadow to the west.

[Bambam]

1 minute ago, Scarlett said:

Dh and I have been looking at this plan and we think we can push the master back and put another bedroom and bath behind the garage and in front of master. Then we can cut the two other bedrooms and bath off of the west side.That helps keep the size down and it gives me views of the meadow to the west.

So, you will end up with a one bedroom house? Or am I misunderstanding? I've never seen a 1 bedroom house for sale. 

[Scarlett]

6 minutes ago, Bambam said:

So, you will end up with a one bedroom house? Or am I misunderstanding? I've never seen a 1 bedroom house for sale. 

No it will two bedroom with an office. We will just be adding a bedroom/ bath in the area of where the powder room and stairs to bonus room ( which we don’t need) are.  We will keep the flex room for an office. 

[Murphy101]

Solar tube light is awesome for natural lighting. I do not like where the previous owners put them in this house - but I do love them and they bring in a LOT of natural light. BUT if you place them above a ceiling fan in a living room - you too can have a seizure inducing disco ball affect every afternoon from 2-4:30 ish pending the season.  Why they didn’t put these in the very dark and treacherous stairway or bathrooms is beyond me. 

[Elizabeth86]

12 hours ago, Ottakee said:

I am not sure what climate you are in but consider the intensity and angle of the sun through various seasons.   Sometimes south or west facing windows can make a room heat up like an oven.   Same for any deck/patios.

One of my big suggestions to anyone building is to consider handicapped features….wider doorways and hallways, one main floor bedroom and bath.    Start out with a large shower stall or think ahead for easy conversion.  Put up plywood behind drywall/shower walls for ease of adding grab bars later.  Think of where you could put in a wheelchair ramp if needed later.

These things don’t cost much more when building but could save thousands upon thousands in the future.

36 inch doorways on all entry doors in the house make it wheelchair accessible but also a huge blessing to anyone moving in furniture or appliances.  Same for at least one main floor bedroom and bath.

This for sure! My mom’s kitchen gets a ton of sun and it is miserable.

[Ottakee]

46 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

Dh and I have been looking at this plan and we think we can push the master back and put another bedroom and bath behind the garage and in front of master. Then we can cut the two other bedrooms and bath off of the west side.That helps keep the size down and it gives me views of the meadow to the west.

Could you pull the garage forward a bit and make the entry in to the house into the area where the pantry is since you mentioned you don’t need a huge pantry.  That would make a mud room/pantry area.

Personally I could shrink the master bath and closet some as well.

[Scarlett]

1 hour ago, Ottakee said:

Could you pull the garage forward a bit and make the entry in to the house into the area where the pantry is since you mentioned you don’t need a huge pantry.  That would make a mud room/pantry area.

Personally I could shrink the master bath and closet some as well.

I think I would prefer to have the dining room where the pantry is. And I agree that master wing is much more size wise than what I need. 

[Pippen]

Our house doesn't have a lot of natural lighting, but we have sky lights in a bathroom and the kitchen. I love having them in both rooms.