Find Your Perfect Floor Plan and Home Design in Four Easy Steps!Although no new home building plan, floor plan, or home style may be truly perfect, you can defy the odds and achieve near perfection when you plan and then build your home wisely.
A great starting point for discovering your entire home design is to choose your home's style. And an easy way to do that is to think of a favorite vacation spot, then...
Bring your Favorite Vacation Spot Home! Our philosophy is quite simple: "Live where you love it best!" It is vital to your health, happiness, and well-being that the home you choose to build is one you can relax in, sleep in, have fun in with your family, and above all, enjoy life.
"The home should be the treasure chest of living." - Le Corbusier
Most of us don't have the luxury of living in the geographical region of our dreams. But, what's stopping us from bringing our favorite region to us? Our homes should be a living paradise - no matter where the location may be.
Perhaps, your family prefers the French Mediterranean, Bahamas, or Nantucket Bay. Although, the aforementioned regions are all located on the waterfront, each exhibit a different home style, interior décor, and atmosphere. Click Here for Books on Home Styles
A Treasure Chest of Your Dreams!
When you research your options well, you are more likely to discover exactly what particular attributes fulfill your "treasure chest of living". And it doesn't matter what budget you have for building your home...
... keep in mind that there are many ways to create the home of your dreams by using a little imagination, a bit of architectural style, and some paint!
Faux painting, stenciling and other interior design techniques are great for creating that desired look, but at a fraction of the cost. There are many beautifully written and illustrated Home & Garden books available to help you achieve the perfect home style for your family.
How do I know if a floor plan is really right for me? After you have chosen your home's style, there are just four steps to finding a floor plan to go with it. And to do that you must: Step 1: Establish Your Priorities
Step 2: Find that Perfect Floor Plan
Step 3: Determine if the House Plan is Suitable for the Building Site.
Step 4: Make a scale drawing of each room of your favorite floor plan. By performing the above four steps you will discover whether or not a house plan is right for you. Most house plans are quickly ruled out within Step 2. However, in some cases, it may take going all the way through step #4 to be certain. Keep in mind that you may be able to make simple changes to the floor plan and home style to fit your desires. As always, it is a good idea to consult with the home desiger and/or a qualified professional before making changes to any plan. I'm not going to say that the above four steps can be accomplished in a few days. In fact, it could take several weeks or even months to figure out if a floor plan is actually perfect for you. The home plan you choose affects both your home's budget and, most importantly how well your family will be able live together among other factors. Therefore, a house plan should never be chosen quickly.
Step 1: Establish Your Priorities Are you the type of person who has a difficult time deciding what it is you like? Or perhaps, you happen to like just about everything you see? Establishing a few priorities can help you stay focused on important home features and not get side-tracked into forgetting what you've set out to accomplish. In order to easily create this priority list, keep it organized into individual rooms or by subject, such as: home style, floor plan layout, kitchen, dining room, bedroom, and bathroom number, size, and features, storage areas, and so on and forth. Click Here for ideas that will get you brainstorming!
Step 2: Find that Perfect Floor Plan
Achieve ultimate satisfaction and at the same time optimize your floor plan search by using your priority list to quickly rule out whether or not a floor plan is workable for you.
Prevent hours upon hours of wasted time searching through house plans by establishing specific search criteria, such as:
If a floor plan doesn't offer at least your desired criteria, it can quickly be overlooked. However, when you see a plan that offers at least your basic search criteria and more, then you may want to keep it in mind for Step 3.
BuildWisely's House Plan Criteria
Ultimately, it is up to you, and your family, to decide what truly makes your home a perfect home. However, we have put together a list of criteria we feel a great floor plan should exhibit:
The above guidelines were also used to critique the home designs and floor plans chosen for BuildWisely's Favorite Home Plans. You may find that each guideline is a great asset by helping you establish whether or not a floor plan is perfect for your home.
Click Here to see our review of Archway Press House Plans! The first area we critique in a home design, is each individual room. We believe each room and space, for that matter, should first and foremost serve its purpose - and serve it well.
Second, we look at how each individual room fits within the entire floor plan layout.
"Each room of a home, and its space,
should fit perfectly together...
like a piece in a puzzle."
Third, we look at how one room flows into the other - making sure there is ample clearance for moving large objects throughout the home. Another important issue to consider is wasted spaces.
Wasted spaces = wasted dollars - it's that simple.
Fourth, we consider the home's style and character. When a home is plain you can always add architectural embellishments - to a point. When there is simply no character to start with, then it can be difficult, but not impossible, to turn nothing into something magnificent.
Fifth and final, we determine the floor plan's "expandability" factor. For growing families, or when building a starter home, you may want to make sure there will be room for growth.
Bonus Rooms above a garage, an unfinished attic space, or even a basement can offer growing room.
If none of those spaces are an option, we then look at the possibility for a room addition - which, should be joined to the home and look as if it was an original part of the home's design.
Step 3: Determine if the House Plan is Suitable for the Building Site.
Both your building site and your house plan should compliment one another and exhibit all the character and features that make your home truly perfect. The neighborhood, terrain, and climate conditions may effect the home style, floor plan, design layout, or even story structure of your home.
BuildWisely's Home Planning Guide offers many tips on selecting a building site that is perfect for your new home. This guide also includes a unique organizing system that will keep your house plan search productive and successful, plus much more! Get our guide!
Step 4: Make a scale drawing of each room.
When you discover a floor plan that offers many of your priorities you may want to spend a little more time getting to know if it could be a sure fit.
A accurate way to find out if a floor plan is perfect for your home is to draw out each room to scale and then plan its furniture layout. But, before you can get started you'll need the following drawing supplies:
Click Here for FREE Room Drawing Instructions!
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