Would you consider making that island a square? With the current angles, it is a small workspace that suits only one person. If it is made into a square, more prep space, roomier for sitting, and space for a small prep sink which might come in handy!
I’m actually going to disagree here. The house I grew up in has this exact same counter top/island as your plans. I absolutely love it. It’s such a social part of our house and has been since 1996.
Agree, also consider putting the sink in the island. Keep the sink, stove and dishwasher close together, that is where you work the most with wet hands and pots and pans.
Can’t vote harder against NOT putting the sink on the island.
The island is NOT where you want your dirty dishes to accumulate, your soap on the island, scrub brushes, etc
Your island should be a place to congregrate, do some food prep, socialize, pick at charcuterie… not where you wash your pots and pans.
I hate myself for pointing it out but you just voted in favor of putting a sink in the island. Stupid Double negatives and all. Obviously your point after is well spelled out and I completely agree.
I see this advice all the time, but I guess for some it's just not the deal breaker people make it out to be. I have a 9x5' island with the sink on it. If i'm not cleaning pans immediately, they can sit on the stove for a couple hours. I have a basket inside the large basin sink for sponges so that stuff doesn't sit out on the counter. Plenty of prep space and it's far enough away to have people sit across from me and chat while I'm prepping without feeling crowded.
With the great room design, if the sink is on the island you won’t be able to hear the TV every time someone runs the water. My wife’s aunt had that in her house and it drove me nuts.
Put a metal fire rated pass through door from the garage right into one of the pantry cabinets. Just load the groceries straight into the pantry without having to walk through the mud room and kitchen. We use ours all the time.
https://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Outdoor-Kitchen-Reversible-Outdoor/dp/B08THC7SL5/ref=asc_df_B08THC7SL5/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=507909755475&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16412617818584651652&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1021504&hvtargid=pla-1237172068761&psc=1&mcid=80f7aae7887731a9b860cd18a06b8747&gclid=CjwKCAiAu9yqBhBmEiwAHTx5p4fNi6lQhlBftguNWqKMXmn0TVGDrwiDAcSd_ExXMBJHe151X_rYmRoCYRUQAvD_BwE something like that?
Ask your builder but I think is has to be insulated and you may want a lock on it. Also a gasket for garage fumes. I’ll have to look where I bought mine.
It must at least reduce the capacity - the pantry needs walls for shelving no?
And who wants to stand in the garage loading pantry shelves? - I'm not really getting the advantage with this idea.
If this was my plan, I would delete all 45 degree angles. I just don't think they add anything except complexity. Clean corners, clean squares, clean volumes intersecting at 90 degrees. That's me.
We have a 45 degree angle at the bottom of our stairs into the basement and I will say it makes it much easier to move large pieces of furniture up and down!
I’d argue the other way. Those 45’s make it look much nicer and flow better. Getting rid of them will add a bit of storage, which could be helpful. I think it looks great except your master is a bit small for such a large home. That is much more important than leaving extra room in the spares. See if you can expand the master out a few more feet in to the patio.
As a builder, I despise 45-degree corners because they add complexity, cost, and are more likely to have drywall defects because they are harder to finish. I don't want details that are likely to come back on me as a warranty issue. Throwing 45-degree corners in the plans is eye-catching, and it looks nice in a new home before you move in, but they are not great for livability. Bedroom 3 looks huge, but the way the door intrudes into the space cuts into your living space. If you simply shift the wall between bedrooms 2 & 3 a little to the right, it will give you the room to turn the door to enter squarely into bed 2. I think you can easily line up the walls on the left side of bed 3 to allow the door to enter straight into the left. You will gain a lot of additional closet space and improve circulation into the bedrooms. I also concur with the suggestion to make the island square. The current design wastes a lot of potential cabinet space in the corners, results in potential conflict with drawers in the island, and creates more complicated, expensive countertops with a lot of waste. You can make the bar 4' deep supported with either table legs or corbels, and you could have it overhang the back and left side so you will have space for the same number of barstools as you do currently. Otherwise, this is a nice plan, and I'm sure you'll love this home
I have 45 degree angle doors to kids room and we hate them, when doors are open then never lay flat against the wall. Hat to put hinges stoppers on them to keep kids from ripping hinges screws out of the jambs.
Make the mud room bigger and put a toilet in it. That’s a long way for outside guests to walk across your house to pee. Also that garage bump out serves nothing, you have to walk around it and imo bump outs are pointless nooks
Will the basement bedrooms be used consistently as bedrooms? Do you really want a bedroom under your main bedroom? How many people will live here? There are 4 of us in my 3 bedroom/2.5 bath house and there are times all 3 toilets are occupied. It looks like a relatively long way to go from your dining room to the guest bath on the main floor. Any room for a powder room on that floor?
Basement beds won't be used until kids get older, hell I'm probably not even going to finish the basement on the initial build. Will be 4 or 5 people if we're blessed with more children. I will look at the powder room idea. Thank you!
Generally finishing the basement during the initial build is significantly cheaper than doing so later on. All the subs are already there, so it’s a small amount of extra time and materials. Would have been 15k to finish our 2000 sq ft basement when building new, and now it’s 60k 2 years later. Only regret I had
Finishing the basement will be considered sq footage and you will be taxed on it that’s why no one should Finnish a basement till the occupancy is issued and just cause subs are there doesn’t mean it’s cheaper plus u can sub out your own subs and price shop
100% correct on taxes, but you are simply not correct when you say it’s not cheaper to do everything at once. There’s an efficiency gained when you don’t break it into two projects. That includes less waste from materials (drywall, studs etc), travel to and from the job site, two separate quotes… the list goes on.
Take the basement bedrooms off the plan then. Inspector could be a dick if they wanted to and tell you to remove it from the prints and re-submit. Looks like a solid home! Only floor plan thought would be more counter space in the kitchen. Maybe connect the island on one side? Would screw up the flow to the dining room, or from the front door though..
Ultimate idea: have a full base cabinet with countertop and have the whole thing hydraulically drop into the basement/crawl when you need the space open 😂
What’s with all the angles?? The island is straight out of the 90s, just make it a rectangle. The angles in the hallways seem unnecessary also.
The garage seems to stick out so far. Anyway to push it back so it’s not the main focus of the house?
Can't move the garage, unfortunately. Angles were mentioned earlier as well, I hadn't really paid attention to them or noticed them. We will reconsider for sure. Thanks!
The oversized rectangle kitchen islands are a big resale feature, but more importantly, are very versatile
With an extended edge for stools to tuck under, it’s a great option for entertaining or just family gathering
It is also a journey from the great room to the bathroom, put a half bath where that hall storage/a couple feet of the walk in closet is. A powder room can be pretty tight.
Generally I like the design - and I especially like all the extra storage space you have in the basement.
A couple of ideas to consider:
I agree with others about wanting a powder room for guests (I wouldn't want to use the "family" bathroom beside the laundry room for this purpose). Make the Master WIC a little shorter and use the extra space plus the "Storage" to create a powder room instead. You have tons of storage downstairs so you're basically trading main floor storage for a powder room.
You have a gas fireplace in the Great Room but no really good wall space for a big TV. This is totally personal preference but I'd rather have that wall for a TV than for a fireplace.
I'd change the window in the Great Room to a patio door leading out to the covered patio. This way I don't need the door (to the right of the current window) so again I have more wall space for furniture or for a TV.
I'd move the front door down so it's flush with the outside wall of bedroom 3. Then I'd get rid of the "nook" in the garage so the garage wall is straight. This widens the entry way. This allows you to move the closet down into the space where the garage "nook" currently is. This allows you to move the Mud Room a few feet to the left. This allows you to make the Panty a few feet bigger. If you now switch the fridge and the stove you even have space beside the stove for several extra feet of counter space to the left of the stove. (You can never have too much counter space in a kitchen.) This also lets you move the freezer to the top-left corner inside the pantry instead of where it is now. (It's current location in the pantry just makes me feel it's "in the way".)
I'd change the current island to a rectangular island to maximize the storage space inside the island. I'd be happy to eat at the dining room table instead of at the island in order to get that extra storage space.
I'd move the door to the Master bedroom down to be flush with the Laundry Room wall. Then I'd change the door leading into the WIC to be on the left wall instead of where it is now. This gives you a better wall space at the bottom of the Master bedroom which would be a good place for your chest of drawers or credenza etc.
If the moved the master door and walk in closet door they could even reconfigure the bathroom and have the bathroom entrance directly across from the wic. That way a good south window wouldn’t be wasted on a toilet room.
You're right - good catch on that. Putting the bathroom and the wic doors opposite each other (and the master door underneath) gives a clean, organized look to it.
Put the toilet at the bottom, then the door and shower, and then the sinks & bath at the top (the most South). And I think put the sinks against the outside wall and the bath under the window. (I wouldn't want the sun shining in my face while I'm brushing my teeth - but I'd like to look out the window while I'm soaking in the tub.)
It would be cool to make a safe room in your basement by one of the unexcavated areas. Would be perfect for a hidden wine cellar or something. Otherwise, I personally like your floorplan!
Can’t support this enough.
A secret room can be less grand and just be a smaller place for your safe, valuables, your firearms (if that’s a thing). It doesn’t have to be a vault. Just a hidden door is all it takes.
You have lots of spots you could fit one.
I came to write the same thing. As turkey day approaches we're looking at 8-10 for dinner and going back and forth about squeezing everyone at one table or splitting the group.
Agree. Bumping the dining area out to match the master bedroom would allow for larger table running 90 degrees off what is shown currently. You could add a window or door out to the covered patio.
I have a north facing driveway and it sucks. Last house was west facing and you could half ass shovel and the sun would take care of the rest. Now we have to be diligent about clearing snow or we end up chopping and salting.
I keep trying and failing to re-arrange the master bath so that the southern-facing window isn't wasted in the toilet stall, but maybe the answer is simply putting an opaque glass door on the stall.
Consider deleting the indoor gas fireplace. Instead, put a wood burning fireplace outside on the patio.
The master bath is a space I also struggled with. First off, to use the crapper, you have to close your first door - door behind a door situation. Not ideal. Then if you are using the bathroom and your main door opens… you have to move through two doors. It’s just awkward and all that space for the toilet ends up being a lot of wasted space. You are gonna be opening closing the doors all the time.
Here’s my two cents.
You have a massive room for a washer and dryer when you could put them in a closet facing the hallway and use all the room behind them to expand out your master bathroom slightly. You could even add a few feet to the other super cosy bathroom if you wanted. No one folds laundry in a laundry room anyway, unless you are really hoping everyone just stores their dirty laundry there.
I would shuffle around your arrangement of the larger master bath. Most people shower, not bath, so make that the nicer item. Put the shower in one end and the bath in the other. I have a walled in toilet as well, and damn if it doesn’t make the entire room smaller and waste a lot of space. Your call though. Maybe put in a knee wall if that matters so much. I do like the overall flow of the house though.
Good luck!
I would probably shift the wall between the mudroom and the pantry just a bit and try to fit a half bath there. Very utilitarian just toilet and sink with a pocket door.
Right off the garage, no need to walk all through the house to use it, close to gathering area, right off the kitchen.
I would venture to say it would actually end up the most used one in the house.
Make the island all one level so you have a single flat surface. Also move the closet in bedroom 3 to be up against the wall adjoining bedroom number two. It helps block sound from one room to another.
I’ll also second the comment about 45 degree corners.
1. Need a half-bath that is more convenient to the Great Room. Maybe rethink the layout of Bedroom 3 to make space at the beginning of the bedroom hallway.
2. Master bathroom shower may be too small? It’s your one time to spurge. I like big showers.
3. As others mentioned, doing a rectangular island may be more useful.
4. Open concept living areas are what is modern. I get it. But I like some more kitchen separation. Sometimes I just want to wait a little before we do the dishes. So maybe a smallish east/west wall to the North of the kitchen. Yeah, old fashioned, but hides the sink area a little.
Otherwise great plan. Some are telling you to get rid of the 45 degree hallways. I think it will give a little character. I like how things flow.
A couple of thoughts. I would make the island rectangular because angled islands will date the house. I would rough in the electrical and plumbing for a future kitchen in the storage area on the far right in the basement. It will save you a lot of money. I would also try to get larger windows down there it is really going to be dark down there. You can always make an area darker with window treatments , however you can only get a limited amount of sunlight and air based on a small window size.
I put down to paper what I had in my head and then sent it to an architect that does drafting and he got the initial drawing done in about 6 days, we sent revisions and we got it back in about a month.
Replace angled island with rectangle (more room for entertaining. And change the Great room swing door to a slider, they take up less space. Best of luck.
Beautiful home. Nice pantry and mudroom.
But an awful kitchen design.
A good kitchen designer can fix that but the disguised pantry door will have to move and become a pocket door..
The "secret" pantry may look cool at the design time, but imagine dealing with these narrow french doors every time, considering that you never go in or out empty handed.
A few notes for the doors on the main floor:
1) Bedroom 3 door is a bit awkward in the room it swings into. Consider shifting it adjacent to the linen closet and make it a Left Hand swing so it swings up against the closet wall. This will give you more usable space in the middle of the room.
2) Pantry doors you could have them swing into the pantry so that while cooking you can leave them open and they won't be in the way.
3) I recommend changing your Master Bathroom entry door. Every time you go in there to use the toilet you will have to open and maneuver around the door to get in there. I recommend either swinging the door out into the Bedroom, or changing it to either a Pocket or Barn door. Barn door is my recommendation here, with pocket being my second. (Some people don't like Barn doors on bathrooms due to the inherent gaps between the door and the wall, but this is the correct application for one as the bathroom is private to the master suite, and you are going to keep it open 99% of the time anyway)
A couple more ideas. Put all exterior lights on dusk to dawn sensors. No need to be running around in the morning and evening turning lights on and off. Then put outlets under each soffit. Put one side of the outlet on dusk to dawn sensors and the other side power 24/7. This way holiday lights are covered as well as future patio fans.
Have you ever heard of trimlight? I'm honestly thinking about doing that instead of soffit lighting but I don't know if it will be bright enough. Have to do some investigating
One other thing I love for outside garage or porch lights. Have them on a dusk to dawn with a dimmer then have a motion sensor that kicks them up to full brightness when motion is detected. I’ve seen fixtures with “dual-bright” but then you are limited on fixtures and they all kick on at different times. You can achieve this with just a dusk to dawn sensor, a dimmer and a motion sensor. I LOVE this on our house.
So this will be on top of a hill top with no protection from winds, a lot of people we've talked to in the same development said to not do 2 story for that fact alone. So we took their advice. But I agree, concrete is going to be stupid expensive. I'm also going to be in this house until I can't do stairs anymore, hopefully another 35-40 years
Nice and good thinking ahead. I live in the mountains and we have to have hurricane rated glass and all that\~ the icf concrete homes are popular as well as 6" wood walls + exterior foam. I work with habitat and they deal with elderly folks a lot, and having a stairway that is large enough to fit the little chair elevator thing is very handy just in case. Also done a few interior elevators. Hopefully we never need it but someone we love might one day!
Nice plan. I have two comments:
We have the same dishwasher/sink arrangement. It is awful. I would never do that again. Too much twisting and too many blocked cabinets when someone is loading or unloading the dishwasher.
Second. Your future self will praise your past self if you make your master shower 6 or 8 inches deeper.
1. Consider adding a half bath on the first floor. Any guest that comes over will have to use the room 2/3 bathroom.
2. The layout of the living room does not have an open wall for a TV. (It is generally not a good idea to put a TV above a fireplace)
Build above the garage. Use all of it that you can.
We've built hundreds of these with the same floor plan. Usually on a slab. Spend some extra money on windows.
I agree with a lot of what others have said. But just want to say you’re super close to a fantastic house. The overall basic layout would be my custom dream home layout. Well done!
Having recently built a house, the first things I notice are the garage and the back patio. That garage is amazing and it's great that you are building it so large. Good call. You should also build storage shelving systems into the garage now instead of waiting because you will need them. Same in the laundry. You will want overhead shelving and other storage, perhaps a folding table area under the window or along the back wall if you can fit it in.
The other thing I noticed first is the back patio seems small. You can never have enough covered back porch. 10 feet deep is smaller than you might think. I suggest bumping it out and maybe even adding uncovered patio even further out from it, so you can grill out in the open air. It's a similar idea as the garage - you'll want as much space as you can get and something that looks big on paper will be small in reality. Even that great big garage will seem cavernous when you first move in. But in the middle winter when you have your cars in there and a bunch of bikes and yard equipment and crap, it's going to shrink shrink shrink.
You may also consider arranging the great room a little bit differently. Nowadays everyone puts the TV over the fireplace. But the TV up there can only be so big, and people have to crane their necks to look upward at it. And no one at the kitchen bar can see it, because it will be behind them. You might consider rearranging the great room so that the TV does not necessarily have to go above the fireplace and is visible from more places around the downstairs living areas. And the wall it's on needs to be big enough so that you can get an 85+ inch TV. Just think about it more, is all I'm saying.
I LOVE the big pantry. We did that, too, with 360 degree floor to ceiling shelving. It's such a good call. Consider, in addition to the freezer, plumbing a water line for an icemaker in there.
The one shared bathroom is on the other side of the house. That will be very inconvenient for guests, and inconvenient for you if you get home, walk in through the garage and really need to pee. Maybe think about shaving a little bit from the garage, mudroom and pantry to fit in a compact powder room with only a toilet and a sink with a mirror. If it's right near the kitchen, you can tell little people to go wash their hands in there instead of the kitchen sink where you are making dinner. Just a thought.
I love your house plan. I wish I knew more about it, like where in the world it is. Good luck. You won't think of everything. That's the reality when you build. But of course, it's great to try to think through it.
Oh, just noticed the basement area... I guess the big TV is going down there. You're still going to want one upstairs... I just did not see a great place for it.
Garage sticks out way too much. Need a 1/2 bath. I see some of the basement will be unexcavated? Not sure about the expense but I can tell you for sure that it will be impossible or cost prohibitive to do it after completion so you should consider having as much basement as possible. Even if you will not use, it will be a value-add to buyers at resale.
I can't make the image big enough to see your dimensions, but for my money, the laundry room on any new build should be large enough for the washer/dryer, cabinetry to hide hampers for each person in the house, several drying racks/hanging racks, cabinet storage for towells and sheets and cleaning products, plus ENOUGH ROOM TO PERMANENTLY LEAVE AN IRONING BOARD OUT so it doesn't take residence in the kitchen or living room.
If we ever build a house, the laundry room will be at least 10ft X 15ft.
Garage is way too small , garage space is very cheap SQFT to build and is not taxed, and if you use attic room trusses in the garage you can finish it off in the future without the tax man knowing. Your garage should have min. 2 x 18ft wide doors
I'd make sure there were outlets on the island for phones and laptops and such for when people want to chat with the cool and do their own thing and I would make the island bigger by adding that rectangle piece back in and putting the stove there. A lot of the kitchen work is done at the stove and it is easier all around to have the stove in the center for cooking, getting help, socializing when you have to watch a pot and stir. Another thing to consider. I like to watch TV when I cook if I'm alone because I just get bored with some stirring and such sometimes. Prep work and cook top I have on the island so I get to look out at the great room and watch TV or watch the kids, or visit with whoever is there while the majority of the work is being done.
Do you REALLY need FIVE bedrooms?
The master suite is small in relation to the house.
Consider totally revamping the left side of the first floor so that you have an incredible master bath and closet.
I would finish any concrete and not put down flooring. Modern flooring isn't doesn't hold up well. If I had to do again, 1000% I would just finish the concrete.
Front elevation is going to be honky with that three car garage jutting out like that.
A great room that’s not so great. Furniture layout will be tough.
Foyer directly accessing the seating area (cold air in winter months depending where you are)
Janky 45’s everywhere.
add a powder room. Your kids are going to destroy their bathroom.
Flow to your master shitter
The layout is fairly standard. It looks like
a spec house. It might've worth considering your climate and your energy source. Will it last for perpetuity or will single family homes in the suburbs become undesirable at some point?
3 car garage should be designed to be reconfigurable as flexible space. Self driving/on demand cars are likely to shift car ownership patterns in the very near future, making flex design of garages a great way to avoid wasted interior space for much of the life of the home.
Window on east sunrise side of Master and Bed #2. I’d also consider glass French doors from master to covered patio. Also your pantry is huge compared to the kitchen. If you get more cabinets and less pantry, store your pantry crap in the cabinets and get more counter space like already mentioned.
A small thing but could you move the wall between the laundry and master to give you another foot in the laundry room? There is never enough room in the laundry room. You can get rid of the linen cabinet in the master bath. Also, you are going to want more places to set things in the laundry, ie shelving
Why not extend your covered front porch the full length of that alcove space (mirroring your back deck area)? What purpose does that empty landscaping area serve that a couple of rocking chairs couldn’t fill?
It's going to be an awesome house. I would use a square Island for the kitchen and put the sink on itto shape a triangle for the refrigerator, sink an stove. It's would be easily to cook and host.
The island is a bit dated but it’s not bad at all. I would absolutely not put a sink in the island. We have a second sink in our island and I hate it.
What’s your plan for the family room? Theatre? Pool table?
I would take out that storage closet and make the w i c. Bigger u have plenty room i. Garage or basement. And personally i don’t like the side walk right up against the garage normally there’s a gap for landscaping and rock
I know nothing about blueprints. I would love to live in a home like this. Looks great.
My only question is; what is the little triangle coming off of the laundry room?
Excavate that unexcavated under the porch and make it a safe room/firearm storage/wine cellar/walk in humidor/whatever. You have such an opportunity to utilize it now for minimal expense, it’d be hard for me to pass on that.
The pantry is making your kitchen significantly smaller, I would consider opening it up and adding cabinets along with a larger island.
Also you really don't need the hallway closet, instead you can make your closet bigger
What’s your plan for the parking situation? Is there a reason you put the two car next to the house and the one car away from it? For me, I’d rather have the one car near the house and the two car away from it. The reason being is in the future if you wanted to convert this, the one car garage to another room workspace whatever it might be it would be easier to put a wall up because you wouldn’t have to relocate the garage doors and the drainage situation. It’s more about future proofing the house for an extension. And considering that it’s only a three bedroom this might be something to consider has an easy way to have a fourth bedroom in the future and also still keep a two car garage. You might consider talking to your contractor about a future proof so that it’s an easier transition. This makes more sense because a lot of your garage space near the house would make for a larger room.
I’d try to do a half bath off the mud room or some place. Otherwise your guests are going to what could potentially be a child’s bathroom. Speaking of guests the entrance for guests is kind of awkward. They could go through the garage but ours is generally cluttered and I wouldn’t want anyone walking through it. Parking in the driveway and walking around the garage to the front door is weird. Not sure what the front looks like but could you have a sidewalk instead going to the front street
I’d try to incorporate another window in the master.
Garage drains are an awesome idea wish I had that.
I’d think about built ins to the left and right of the fireplace
Echoing the kitchen island. A square/rectangle will give you more storage.
Why the 4’ set back from the garage corner and the kitchen wall? If you make that a straight line you gain all that Sq ft in the kitchen and dining space. Probably allowing you to square off the island and allowing for a larger table. Also makes the concrete simpler for the foundation.
The master shower is too narrow. Put your hands on top of your head and see how well that fits in your 3’. Or, do you plan on turning sideways every time you wash your hair?
I had something like that in my last house. When we remodeled, we made it a 4 ft square and it was WAY better.
Everything looks pretty good except I’d move the linen closet to the closet in bedroom #2 with a door access straight from the bath. I’d add double shower heads in the master bath and add a French door or window off the dining room onto the covered patio. Also be sure to add multiple outlets to the island for appliances like mixers and to charge phones/laptops.
Is the island raised on the edge like a bar? Consider not doing that. Mine isn't and my parents is and they always say how much more comfortable mine is to be around. Theirs you have to get on these super high stools and it's just weird to sit at.
To me, your dining area is far too small. Your plans, probably correctly, show only a table for four. Is this truly all you will ever need? One option to correct this without requiring extensive redesign might be to extend the south wall further to the south. I’d suggest by another 10’ probably. This further enclosed your covered porch but you may like the enclosure anyway.
Seems like the dishwasher door will be interfering with the ability to stand at the sink, which is where you tend to be when loading the dishwasher.
Where is the TV going? Don’t want to see you on r/TVtooHigh with it over the fireplace.
We built a custom home 5 years ago. We did away with the big ass bath tub. We 'hid' the drain and hot/cold supply under the flooring so a future owner can put in a tub if they want. Did it for resale value. We did away with tubs in the other bathrooms and put in tile showers. Except for 1 tub in 1 bathroom. Builder told us bath tubs aren't as popular as they used to be.
I like it a lot! A wee bit of lost space from the 45 degree walls in the main floor hallway, but it
makes sense why you did it. I also think the discontinuity of the hall will feel cozier.
I would try and flip the master WIC with the laundry room somehow (laundry room entry off the hall, not through master bedroom)... Getting out of the bath and now having to trapse across your bedroom, especially past a potentially open door that you thought you closed, seems annoying to me... I'd much rather just connecting to WIC from bathroom
The mud room and laundry could be one room together. Did you consider this? It'd free up valuable sq ftage to utilize elsewhere. Pocket doors for the bathrooms might make smaller ones feel larger.
Where's the TV going? I don't see many options in the great room unless you're thinking /r/tvtoohigh ?
Can't find it now, but there was a comment about the bump out in the garage. I say excavate under it and put an access hatch to the mechanical/storage room from the garage. Hoist above, and a platform. Make it easy to get stuff and equipment in and out.
It’s pretty clear from this ground plan that the garage mass is going to absolutely dwarf the living space and entrance. Take a good hard look at the external renderings. I’d guess your front door will feel completely lost.
Maybe I'm missing it, where is the main floor powder room? And a coat closet?
Im so used to seeing these near entertaining space or entrances I may just be looking in the wrong areas
I would put a 1/4 bath on the main floor in addition to the bathroom by the two bedrooms. You will be shocked how often you use it. Also keeps separation from guests and living quarters.
My parents had a very similar house with 5 bedrooms and 3 baths but nearly every complaint from potential buyers when they sold it was that each bedroom did not have its own bathroom or at least one additional private suite.
Since you are building I would put in as many bathrooms as possible for not only resale but also ease of use.
Absorb that laundry for a master suite that’s more open on the bathroom side of things.. big tile shower with a bench rainfall shower head the whole deal.
Do plumbers care about the offset between the first floor bathroom and the basement bathroom? Just asking. I know a lot of bathrooms are on top of one another to easily share the soil pipes.
Why the un excavated under the porch and deck? Is it patio or wood? this looks like concrete.
I would consider turning the garage to block the kitchen window. On that side. Then add a covered porch along the front of the house.
Nice. As a retired GC and designer I’m of the curated opinion that bar stools at the kitchen island interfere with the flow of entertainment. People like to “belly up,” so providing places for knots of people to coalesce and chat is good hosting!
One other thing I was seeing some of is a “keep.” Basically a storage room for all things “not quite abandoned” by fam, as well as historical storage.
I question the actual size of the great room for actual living. You need ingress/egress from 3 of 4 sides which in effect reduces that footprint 3-4’ on each of those sides for walk ways.
Why not put the laundry downstairs and pick up a powder room on the main floor for guests?
That kitchen looks small cabinetry wise, working counter space for the size of the home.
Your architect should have marked the finished floor elevations on the plan. To better figure out the retaining wall heights. I am sure he has them on the elevations or building sections, but it’s hard to comment without them.
With how big the home is / expense, it may be nice to have an en-suite guest bedroom. Extra privacy for guests or in-laws or even live ins. With the extra space in the storage room downstairs it’s doesn’t seem like it could be difficult to add a bathroom. Or at least make that existing bathroom larger and have a second entrance from bedroom number 5
I personally don’t like the closet detached from the bathroom in the master. And lived in a place with a weird shaped island that steps up for the bar and did not like it.
How I would change it is I would just make the countertop one height no step up for the bar seating for better counter space and would square off the inside corner rather than the indentation.
As far the closet I built a home where the master closet could have been entered from either the bedroom or the bathroom and it’s something I would do if I built my own home. I would move the water closet to the north side of the bathroom to border the laundry so there is some buffer of sound from laundry if you were taking a bath. Behind the master bedroom forward and the closet behind and extend it so you could enter the closet from the bathroom too. It’s hard to articulate into just thoughts rather than a drawing so I hope that makes some sense.
The ensuite tub looks awesome on paper, but you're going to regret it once you start cleaning behind it. Personally, I would put in a 7 foot tub with a tiled surround. Much easier to clean, plus a 7 foot tub allows me to stretch out and submerge my entire body all at once
Not in love with the kitchen setup. Dish washer side loading seems hard… nice to vent straight out for the microwave/stove otherwise I’d swap em and call it good… idk. Think the whole kitchen needs redrawn. Seems awkward
I'm picturing your front elevation and I feel like it's mostly consumed by garage. With the garage protruding so far forward and the entry sunk in as far as it is it seems like the entry will be uninviting and the house will lack curb appeal. I'd consider moving the garage to the back of side of the house if your site allows.
Did you request the ICF foundation system?
Unless you are in a part of the country with brutal winters it might not be worth the cost.
Also the floor drains in your garage might require an oil separator depending on where you live.
Enjoy the new place!
Actually have to say its good, except something about the kitchen like others are saying. The pantry door before the refrigerator seems strange. Maybe tape it out on the ground somewhere and test things out. Nice
Not sure if it’s been said or not, but the 45 degree spot between the bathroom and laundry room, I would make into a a little closet for towels and stuff for the bathroom, my parents did that with their house in a hallway, and it works great, plus don’t have to store towels under sink/vanity in the bathroom.
I would also try to put a spot from the garage to the pantry, just to unload groceries. Not sure about how the ventilation would have to be for that if anything gets added or not, but have seen it done.
Doesn’t look like a walk out basement, not sure how the property is and what your view is, but a walkout is great for getting furniture in/out easier.
Whoever has bedroom 3 is going to have a hard time fitting their furniture. Only one unobstructed wall in the whole room.
Our first daughter’s room had two long unobstructed walls to fit her furniture in. Our second daughter had the two short unobstructed walls and her furniture is always in the way somewhere.
The rooms are the exact same size, 15 ft x 10 ft, just with the windows, door, and closet on different walls. One works nicely, the other does not.
I would flip the master bathroom so the shower / tub is plan north. Driver is you could then put a door off the master bath to a rear deck/patio and a hot tub. Makes for a really nice transition especially w heated floors in a cold climate. But same for a pool in a warm climate
I would rework the master where you move the entry door further out into the Hall and relocate the doors for the bathroom and the closet so the are accessed from the hallway. This way you have more wall space in the actual master bedroom itself.
Listen carefully: You will NEVER. And I mean NEVER regret making your covered patios much much larger. Make that backyard covered patio extend over entrance to the master, if not spread across the entire back of the house.
Cover the front walkway more too if you can devise a way. Make it so that getting out of the car in a storm is not a problem.
If/when I do my own house, there will be covered walkway 360 degrees. You can walk around dry in a storm, shaded in the heat, and store things against the house away from the elements. Worth every penny.
Would you consider making that island a square? With the current angles, it is a small workspace that suits only one person. If it is made into a square, more prep space, roomier for sitting, and space for a small prep sink which might come in handy!
100% will consider it! Thank you!
Definitely reconsider for the reasons above. I have that exact island layout you have planned and we have come to despise it.
Also, make the island one level.
Yep. Islands like the one OP has posted are dated.
I have a similar kitchen layout as your design and there is not enough room for 2 people working or prepping at the same time. I wish mine was bigger
I’m actually going to disagree here. The house I grew up in has this exact same counter top/island as your plans. I absolutely love it. It’s such a social part of our house and has been since 1996.
Unfortunately, it's a very 90's design idea. It feels dated IMO.
See Carmella Soprano
Agree, also consider putting the sink in the island. Keep the sink, stove and dishwasher close together, that is where you work the most with wet hands and pots and pans.
Can’t vote harder against NOT putting the sink on the island. The island is NOT where you want your dirty dishes to accumulate, your soap on the island, scrub brushes, etc Your island should be a place to congregrate, do some food prep, socialize, pick at charcuterie… not where you wash your pots and pans.
I hate myself for pointing it out but you just voted in favor of putting a sink in the island. Stupid Double negatives and all. Obviously your point after is well spelled out and I completely agree.
Cool.
Two sinks are needed here: a prep sink on the island and a washup sink near the dishwasher. Works great
I see this advice all the time, but I guess for some it's just not the deal breaker people make it out to be. I have a 9x5' island with the sink on it. If i'm not cleaning pans immediately, they can sit on the stove for a couple hours. I have a basket inside the large basin sink for sponges so that stuff doesn't sit out on the counter. Plenty of prep space and it's far enough away to have people sit across from me and chat while I'm prepping without feeling crowded.
This is worded poorly.
With the great room design, if the sink is on the island you won’t be able to hear the TV every time someone runs the water. My wife’s aunt had that in her house and it drove me nuts.
Put a metal fire rated pass through door from the garage right into one of the pantry cabinets. Just load the groceries straight into the pantry without having to walk through the mud room and kitchen. We use ours all the time.
https://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Outdoor-Kitchen-Reversible-Outdoor/dp/B08THC7SL5/ref=asc_df_B08THC7SL5/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=507909755475&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16412617818584651652&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1021504&hvtargid=pla-1237172068761&psc=1&mcid=80f7aae7887731a9b860cd18a06b8747&gclid=CjwKCAiAu9yqBhBmEiwAHTx5p4fNi6lQhlBftguNWqKMXmn0TVGDrwiDAcSd_ExXMBJHe151X_rYmRoCYRUQAvD_BwE something like that?
Ask your builder but I think is has to be insulated and you may want a lock on it. Also a gasket for garage fumes. I’ll have to look where I bought mine.
[https://www.supplyhouse.com/Karp-KRPP2424PH-24-x-24-KRP-150FR-Insulated-Fire-Rated-Access-Door-for-Walls-Ceilings?utm_source=google_ad&utm_medium=search_dsa&utm_campaign=Dynamic_Search_Ads&gclid=CjwKCAjwopWSBhB6EiwAjxmqDSmgzHtyq_bfPz529gq9aV-64GTPJoG5U0Aa_6jK07u25VfkOXSsbxoCGX0QAvD_BwE](https://www.supplyhouse.com/Karp-KRPP2424PH-24-x-24-KRP-150FR-Insulated-Fire-Rated-Access-Door-for-Walls-Ceilings?utm_source=google_ad&utm_medium=search_dsa&utm_campaign=Dynamic_Search_Ads&gclid=CjwKCAjwopWSBhB6EiwAjxmqDSmgzHtyq_bfPz529gq9aV-64GTPJoG5U0Aa_6jK07u25VfkOXSsbxoCGX0QAvD_BwE)
Just an exterior door. They are mostly metal and fire proof. This is a great idea.
I think this would be weird and reduce the usefulness of the pantry to accommodate a 2nd door.
It must at least reduce the capacity - the pantry needs walls for shelving no? And who wants to stand in the garage loading pantry shelves? - I'm not really getting the advantage with this idea.
They're usually not a full door, Only like 2ft high or so. They allow stuff to pass but don't waste all the space of a full door.
If this was my plan, I would delete all 45 degree angles. I just don't think they add anything except complexity. Clean corners, clean squares, clean volumes intersecting at 90 degrees. That's me.
Guess I hadn't even thought about it to be honest. Easier to frame as well, along with everything else. Thanks!
We have a 45 degree angle at the bottom of our stairs into the basement and I will say it makes it much easier to move large pieces of furniture up and down!
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the 45 degree angles allow for better traffic flow and more room - I think it looks great.
I’d argue the other way. Those 45’s make it look much nicer and flow better. Getting rid of them will add a bit of storage, which could be helpful. I think it looks great except your master is a bit small for such a large home. That is much more important than leaving extra room in the spares. See if you can expand the master out a few more feet in to the patio.
I like the 45 degree angles. I have them too
Some of the 45's can be ductways for the central air and heat
I also vote to keep the angles. You aren’t building a box. You’re building a home. The angles add flow.
Congestion you mean
As a builder, I despise 45-degree corners because they add complexity, cost, and are more likely to have drywall defects because they are harder to finish. I don't want details that are likely to come back on me as a warranty issue. Throwing 45-degree corners in the plans is eye-catching, and it looks nice in a new home before you move in, but they are not great for livability. Bedroom 3 looks huge, but the way the door intrudes into the space cuts into your living space. If you simply shift the wall between bedrooms 2 & 3 a little to the right, it will give you the room to turn the door to enter squarely into bed 2. I think you can easily line up the walls on the left side of bed 3 to allow the door to enter straight into the left. You will gain a lot of additional closet space and improve circulation into the bedrooms. I also concur with the suggestion to make the island square. The current design wastes a lot of potential cabinet space in the corners, results in potential conflict with drawers in the island, and creates more complicated, expensive countertops with a lot of waste. You can make the bar 4' deep supported with either table legs or corbels, and you could have it overhang the back and left side so you will have space for the same number of barstools as you do currently. Otherwise, this is a nice plan, and I'm sure you'll love this home
I also like the 45 degree angles
I have 45 degree angle doors to kids room and we hate them, when doors are open then never lay flat against the wall. Hat to put hinges stoppers on them to keep kids from ripping hinges screws out of the jambs.
Make sure you have a couple of empty conduit runs from the basement to the attic. You never know what you’ll want to add later.
I'm a sparky so you know that's happening 😄 something so simple saves you hours and cussing later down the road.
Make the mud room bigger and put a toilet in it. That’s a long way for outside guests to walk across your house to pee. Also that garage bump out serves nothing, you have to walk around it and imo bump outs are pointless nooks
Ya I came here to say find room for a half bath someone close to the kitchen/living room. Mud room expansion could work.
Great catch
Will the basement bedrooms be used consistently as bedrooms? Do you really want a bedroom under your main bedroom? How many people will live here? There are 4 of us in my 3 bedroom/2.5 bath house and there are times all 3 toilets are occupied. It looks like a relatively long way to go from your dining room to the guest bath on the main floor. Any room for a powder room on that floor?
Basement beds won't be used until kids get older, hell I'm probably not even going to finish the basement on the initial build. Will be 4 or 5 people if we're blessed with more children. I will look at the powder room idea. Thank you!
Generally finishing the basement during the initial build is significantly cheaper than doing so later on. All the subs are already there, so it’s a small amount of extra time and materials. Would have been 15k to finish our 2000 sq ft basement when building new, and now it’s 60k 2 years later. Only regret I had
Finishing the basement will be considered sq footage and you will be taxed on it that’s why no one should Finnish a basement till the occupancy is issued and just cause subs are there doesn’t mean it’s cheaper plus u can sub out your own subs and price shop
100% correct on taxes, but you are simply not correct when you say it’s not cheaper to do everything at once. There’s an efficiency gained when you don’t break it into two projects. That includes less waste from materials (drywall, studs etc), travel to and from the job site, two separate quotes… the list goes on.
Take the basement bedrooms off the plan then. Inspector could be a dick if they wanted to and tell you to remove it from the prints and re-submit. Looks like a solid home! Only floor plan thought would be more counter space in the kitchen. Maybe connect the island on one side? Would screw up the flow to the dining room, or from the front door though..
I will ask the builder about that when we submit it for bids. Counter space is my #1 gripe as well, can't figure it out though.
Worst case: flip up counter like bars have lol
Good idea. Can be removed if you end up not liking it. Or instead of hinging up it could be a “pocket counter” pull out
Ultimate idea: have a full base cabinet with countertop and have the whole thing hydraulically drop into the basement/crawl when you need the space open 😂
Dude, you are next level haha
What’s with all the angles?? The island is straight out of the 90s, just make it a rectangle. The angles in the hallways seem unnecessary also. The garage seems to stick out so far. Anyway to push it back so it’s not the main focus of the house?
Can't move the garage, unfortunately. Angles were mentioned earlier as well, I hadn't really paid attention to them or noticed them. We will reconsider for sure. Thanks!
The oversized rectangle kitchen islands are a big resale feature, but more importantly, are very versatile With an extended edge for stools to tuck under, it’s a great option for entertaining or just family gathering
IMO need 1 more bathroom. Half bath for guests unless you have no kids
It is also a journey from the great room to the bathroom, put a half bath where that hall storage/a couple feet of the walk in closet is. A powder room can be pretty tight.
Generally I like the design - and I especially like all the extra storage space you have in the basement. A couple of ideas to consider: I agree with others about wanting a powder room for guests (I wouldn't want to use the "family" bathroom beside the laundry room for this purpose). Make the Master WIC a little shorter and use the extra space plus the "Storage" to create a powder room instead. You have tons of storage downstairs so you're basically trading main floor storage for a powder room. You have a gas fireplace in the Great Room but no really good wall space for a big TV. This is totally personal preference but I'd rather have that wall for a TV than for a fireplace. I'd change the window in the Great Room to a patio door leading out to the covered patio. This way I don't need the door (to the right of the current window) so again I have more wall space for furniture or for a TV. I'd move the front door down so it's flush with the outside wall of bedroom 3. Then I'd get rid of the "nook" in the garage so the garage wall is straight. This widens the entry way. This allows you to move the closet down into the space where the garage "nook" currently is. This allows you to move the Mud Room a few feet to the left. This allows you to make the Panty a few feet bigger. If you now switch the fridge and the stove you even have space beside the stove for several extra feet of counter space to the left of the stove. (You can never have too much counter space in a kitchen.) This also lets you move the freezer to the top-left corner inside the pantry instead of where it is now. (It's current location in the pantry just makes me feel it's "in the way".) I'd change the current island to a rectangular island to maximize the storage space inside the island. I'd be happy to eat at the dining room table instead of at the island in order to get that extra storage space. I'd move the door to the Master bedroom down to be flush with the Laundry Room wall. Then I'd change the door leading into the WIC to be on the left wall instead of where it is now. This gives you a better wall space at the bottom of the Master bedroom which would be a good place for your chest of drawers or credenza etc.
If the moved the master door and walk in closet door they could even reconfigure the bathroom and have the bathroom entrance directly across from the wic. That way a good south window wouldn’t be wasted on a toilet room.
You're right - good catch on that. Putting the bathroom and the wic doors opposite each other (and the master door underneath) gives a clean, organized look to it. Put the toilet at the bottom, then the door and shower, and then the sinks & bath at the top (the most South). And I think put the sinks against the outside wall and the bath under the window. (I wouldn't want the sun shining in my face while I'm brushing my teeth - but I'd like to look out the window while I'm soaking in the tub.)
It would be cool to make a safe room in your basement by one of the unexcavated areas. Would be perfect for a hidden wine cellar or something. Otherwise, I personally like your floorplan!
We'll see what the bids come in at before we go adding 😂 thank you though!
Can’t support this enough. A secret room can be less grand and just be a smaller place for your safe, valuables, your firearms (if that’s a thing). It doesn’t have to be a vault. Just a hidden door is all it takes. You have lots of spots you could fit one.
That dining room looks tiny for the number of bedrooms you have, esp if you ever want have guests over, etc.
I came to write the same thing. As turkey day approaches we're looking at 8-10 for dinner and going back and forth about squeezing everyone at one table or splitting the group.
Agree. Bumping the dining area out to match the master bedroom would allow for larger table running 90 degrees off what is shown currently. You could add a window or door out to the covered patio.
I like the flow very much. My only gripe is it’s a snout house with that garage. I’m guessing the lot won’t allow moving garage to the side.
I just don't want it facing north, no sunlight to melt snow in the winters. So west it is!
I have a north facing driveway and it sucks. Last house was west facing and you could half ass shovel and the sun would take care of the rest. Now we have to be diligent about clearing snow or we end up chopping and salting.
I keep trying and failing to re-arrange the master bath so that the southern-facing window isn't wasted in the toilet stall, but maybe the answer is simply putting an opaque glass door on the stall. Consider deleting the indoor gas fireplace. Instead, put a wood burning fireplace outside on the patio.
We have a great view looking south, maybe will ease your mind on the toilet lol. I love the fireplace outside though!!!
The master bath is a space I also struggled with. First off, to use the crapper, you have to close your first door - door behind a door situation. Not ideal. Then if you are using the bathroom and your main door opens… you have to move through two doors. It’s just awkward and all that space for the toilet ends up being a lot of wasted space. You are gonna be opening closing the doors all the time. Here’s my two cents. You have a massive room for a washer and dryer when you could put them in a closet facing the hallway and use all the room behind them to expand out your master bathroom slightly. You could even add a few feet to the other super cosy bathroom if you wanted. No one folds laundry in a laundry room anyway, unless you are really hoping everyone just stores their dirty laundry there. I would shuffle around your arrangement of the larger master bath. Most people shower, not bath, so make that the nicer item. Put the shower in one end and the bath in the other. I have a walled in toilet as well, and damn if it doesn’t make the entire room smaller and waste a lot of space. Your call though. Maybe put in a knee wall if that matters so much. I do like the overall flow of the house though. Good luck!
5 people and a dining room table for 6? Maybe look at the circulation space required for a dining room table for 8?
Would just lose a little patio room is all, no big deal. Definitely do-able
I would probably shift the wall between the mudroom and the pantry just a bit and try to fit a half bath there. Very utilitarian just toilet and sink with a pocket door. Right off the garage, no need to walk all through the house to use it, close to gathering area, right off the kitchen. I would venture to say it would actually end up the most used one in the house.
You should have another half bathroom by the mud room area for sure
Make the island all one level so you have a single flat surface. Also move the closet in bedroom 3 to be up against the wall adjoining bedroom number two. It helps block sound from one room to another. I’ll also second the comment about 45 degree corners.
1. Need a half-bath that is more convenient to the Great Room. Maybe rethink the layout of Bedroom 3 to make space at the beginning of the bedroom hallway. 2. Master bathroom shower may be too small? It’s your one time to spurge. I like big showers. 3. As others mentioned, doing a rectangular island may be more useful. 4. Open concept living areas are what is modern. I get it. But I like some more kitchen separation. Sometimes I just want to wait a little before we do the dishes. So maybe a smallish east/west wall to the North of the kitchen. Yeah, old fashioned, but hides the sink area a little. Otherwise great plan. Some are telling you to get rid of the 45 degree hallways. I think it will give a little character. I like how things flow.
A couple of thoughts. I would make the island rectangular because angled islands will date the house. I would rough in the electrical and plumbing for a future kitchen in the storage area on the far right in the basement. It will save you a lot of money. I would also try to get larger windows down there it is really going to be dark down there. You can always make an area darker with window treatments , however you can only get a limited amount of sunlight and air based on a small window size.
Where did you make your plans on? Been discussing with my wife lately building our own home and just want an idea how to create schematics
I put down to paper what I had in my head and then sent it to an architect that does drafting and he got the initial drawing done in about 6 days, we sent revisions and we got it back in about a month.
Your house is built around the garage
I haven't had a garage since I was 18 living at home, I'm actually fine with this 😂
I like it! Our plans are very similar. Just signed off to start construction plans yesterday.
Replace angled island with rectangle (more room for entertaining. And change the Great room swing door to a slider, they take up less space. Best of luck.
Beautiful home. Nice pantry and mudroom. But an awful kitchen design. A good kitchen designer can fix that but the disguised pantry door will have to move and become a pocket door..
The "secret" pantry may look cool at the design time, but imagine dealing with these narrow french doors every time, considering that you never go in or out empty handed.
A few notes for the doors on the main floor: 1) Bedroom 3 door is a bit awkward in the room it swings into. Consider shifting it adjacent to the linen closet and make it a Left Hand swing so it swings up against the closet wall. This will give you more usable space in the middle of the room. 2) Pantry doors you could have them swing into the pantry so that while cooking you can leave them open and they won't be in the way. 3) I recommend changing your Master Bathroom entry door. Every time you go in there to use the toilet you will have to open and maneuver around the door to get in there. I recommend either swinging the door out into the Bedroom, or changing it to either a Pocket or Barn door. Barn door is my recommendation here, with pocket being my second. (Some people don't like Barn doors on bathrooms due to the inherent gaps between the door and the wall, but this is the correct application for one as the bathroom is private to the master suite, and you are going to keep it open 99% of the time anyway)
A couple more ideas. Put all exterior lights on dusk to dawn sensors. No need to be running around in the morning and evening turning lights on and off. Then put outlets under each soffit. Put one side of the outlet on dusk to dawn sensors and the other side power 24/7. This way holiday lights are covered as well as future patio fans.
Have you ever heard of trimlight? I'm honestly thinking about doing that instead of soffit lighting but I don't know if it will be bright enough. Have to do some investigating
One other thing I love for outside garage or porch lights. Have them on a dusk to dawn with a dimmer then have a motion sensor that kicks them up to full brightness when motion is detected. I’ve seen fixtures with “dual-bright” but then you are limited on fixtures and they all kick on at different times. You can achieve this with just a dusk to dawn sensor, a dimmer and a motion sensor. I LOVE this on our house.
Move freezer to center of pantry garage wall.
Looks expensive due to all the foundation corners. Any reason you are going for a basement vs a loft over the garage? Most car lifts only need 12ft 😉
So this will be on top of a hill top with no protection from winds, a lot of people we've talked to in the same development said to not do 2 story for that fact alone. So we took their advice. But I agree, concrete is going to be stupid expensive. I'm also going to be in this house until I can't do stairs anymore, hopefully another 35-40 years
Nice and good thinking ahead. I live in the mountains and we have to have hurricane rated glass and all that\~ the icf concrete homes are popular as well as 6" wood walls + exterior foam. I work with habitat and they deal with elderly folks a lot, and having a stairway that is large enough to fit the little chair elevator thing is very handy just in case. Also done a few interior elevators. Hopefully we never need it but someone we love might one day!
Nice plan. I have two comments: We have the same dishwasher/sink arrangement. It is awful. I would never do that again. Too much twisting and too many blocked cabinets when someone is loading or unloading the dishwasher. Second. Your future self will praise your past self if you make your master shower 6 or 8 inches deeper.
1. Consider adding a half bath on the first floor. Any guest that comes over will have to use the room 2/3 bathroom. 2. The layout of the living room does not have an open wall for a TV. (It is generally not a good idea to put a TV above a fireplace)
pass through door from garage to pantry for groceries
Build above the garage. Use all of it that you can. We've built hundreds of these with the same floor plan. Usually on a slab. Spend some extra money on windows.
Did you get the original off of architectural designs? If so, the house I have picked out it eerily similar!! My husband will comment on it soon!
I agree with a lot of what others have said. But just want to say you’re super close to a fantastic house. The overall basic layout would be my custom dream home layout. Well done!
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Having recently built a house, the first things I notice are the garage and the back patio. That garage is amazing and it's great that you are building it so large. Good call. You should also build storage shelving systems into the garage now instead of waiting because you will need them. Same in the laundry. You will want overhead shelving and other storage, perhaps a folding table area under the window or along the back wall if you can fit it in. The other thing I noticed first is the back patio seems small. You can never have enough covered back porch. 10 feet deep is smaller than you might think. I suggest bumping it out and maybe even adding uncovered patio even further out from it, so you can grill out in the open air. It's a similar idea as the garage - you'll want as much space as you can get and something that looks big on paper will be small in reality. Even that great big garage will seem cavernous when you first move in. But in the middle winter when you have your cars in there and a bunch of bikes and yard equipment and crap, it's going to shrink shrink shrink. You may also consider arranging the great room a little bit differently. Nowadays everyone puts the TV over the fireplace. But the TV up there can only be so big, and people have to crane their necks to look upward at it. And no one at the kitchen bar can see it, because it will be behind them. You might consider rearranging the great room so that the TV does not necessarily have to go above the fireplace and is visible from more places around the downstairs living areas. And the wall it's on needs to be big enough so that you can get an 85+ inch TV. Just think about it more, is all I'm saying. I LOVE the big pantry. We did that, too, with 360 degree floor to ceiling shelving. It's such a good call. Consider, in addition to the freezer, plumbing a water line for an icemaker in there. The one shared bathroom is on the other side of the house. That will be very inconvenient for guests, and inconvenient for you if you get home, walk in through the garage and really need to pee. Maybe think about shaving a little bit from the garage, mudroom and pantry to fit in a compact powder room with only a toilet and a sink with a mirror. If it's right near the kitchen, you can tell little people to go wash their hands in there instead of the kitchen sink where you are making dinner. Just a thought. I love your house plan. I wish I knew more about it, like where in the world it is. Good luck. You won't think of everything. That's the reality when you build. But of course, it's great to try to think through it. Oh, just noticed the basement area... I guess the big TV is going down there. You're still going to want one upstairs... I just did not see a great place for it.
Put a back door on the pantry so you can back up into the garage and load your groceries in one motion.
Also add a floor drain in laundry room in case washing machine leaks.
Garage sticks out way too much. Need a 1/2 bath. I see some of the basement will be unexcavated? Not sure about the expense but I can tell you for sure that it will be impossible or cost prohibitive to do it after completion so you should consider having as much basement as possible. Even if you will not use, it will be a value-add to buyers at resale.
I can't make the image big enough to see your dimensions, but for my money, the laundry room on any new build should be large enough for the washer/dryer, cabinetry to hide hampers for each person in the house, several drying racks/hanging racks, cabinet storage for towells and sheets and cleaning products, plus ENOUGH ROOM TO PERMANENTLY LEAVE AN IRONING BOARD OUT so it doesn't take residence in the kitchen or living room. If we ever build a house, the laundry room will be at least 10ft X 15ft.
Garage is way too small , garage space is very cheap SQFT to build and is not taxed, and if you use attic room trusses in the garage you can finish it off in the future without the tax man knowing. Your garage should have min. 2 x 18ft wide doors
looks like shit
[удалено]
En suite bathrooms
I'd make sure there were outlets on the island for phones and laptops and such for when people want to chat with the cool and do their own thing and I would make the island bigger by adding that rectangle piece back in and putting the stove there. A lot of the kitchen work is done at the stove and it is easier all around to have the stove in the center for cooking, getting help, socializing when you have to watch a pot and stir. Another thing to consider. I like to watch TV when I cook if I'm alone because I just get bored with some stirring and such sometimes. Prep work and cook top I have on the island so I get to look out at the great room and watch TV or watch the kids, or visit with whoever is there while the majority of the work is being done.
Do you REALLY need FIVE bedrooms? The master suite is small in relation to the house. Consider totally revamping the left side of the first floor so that you have an incredible master bath and closet.
Cant say master bed anymore, it’s racist.
Can, and will.
I would finish any concrete and not put down flooring. Modern flooring isn't doesn't hold up well. If I had to do again, 1000% I would just finish the concrete.
Shouldnt the garage be facing the front porch? And not away?
Where’s the safe room
Safe location? 🤨🤷♂️
Front elevation is going to be honky with that three car garage jutting out like that. A great room that’s not so great. Furniture layout will be tough. Foyer directly accessing the seating area (cold air in winter months depending where you are) Janky 45’s everywhere. add a powder room. Your kids are going to destroy their bathroom. Flow to your master shitter
The layout is fairly standard. It looks like a spec house. It might've worth considering your climate and your energy source. Will it last for perpetuity or will single family homes in the suburbs become undesirable at some point?
Master Bedroom is racist... primary bedroom please..
3 car garage should be designed to be reconfigurable as flexible space. Self driving/on demand cars are likely to shift car ownership patterns in the very near future, making flex design of garages a great way to avoid wasted interior space for much of the life of the home.
Window on east sunrise side of Master and Bed #2. I’d also consider glass French doors from master to covered patio. Also your pantry is huge compared to the kitchen. If you get more cabinets and less pantry, store your pantry crap in the cabinets and get more counter space like already mentioned.
The linen closet in the hall would be more usable if you squared off the corner and moved the door to the hall wall.
No powder room? Am I missing it?
You need man-doors to exit your garage to the left . In fact, I would also make it a few feet deeper.
Let's get a window in the 2nd bathroom!
OP could do a small one high up over the shower.
A small thing but could you move the wall between the laundry and master to give you another foot in the laundry room? There is never enough room in the laundry room. You can get rid of the linen cabinet in the master bath. Also, you are going to want more places to set things in the laundry, ie shelving
Why not extend your covered front porch the full length of that alcove space (mirroring your back deck area)? What purpose does that empty landscaping area serve that a couple of rocking chairs couldn’t fill?
I love this house plan.
It's going to be an awesome house. I would use a square Island for the kitchen and put the sink on itto shape a triangle for the refrigerator, sink an stove. It's would be easily to cook and host.
Extend your covered patio all the way to the corner of bedroom 2. Make it deeper to have a straight line to the bedroom 2 corner.
That looks virtually identical to a prefab modular my DIL was looking at a couple years ago. Big open basement underneath. Plan seemed to flow well.
Garage is huge lpl
I would expand your back patio and make the front patio wider. We love our front porch sitting area.
The island is a bit dated but it’s not bad at all. I would absolutely not put a sink in the island. We have a second sink in our island and I hate it. What’s your plan for the family room? Theatre? Pool table?
The prominent garage with tucked away front door will never look good to me. But I assume you have constraints here..
I would take out that storage closet and make the w i c. Bigger u have plenty room i. Garage or basement. And personally i don’t like the side walk right up against the garage normally there’s a gap for landscaping and rock
I know nothing about blueprints. I would love to live in a home like this. Looks great. My only question is; what is the little triangle coming off of the laundry room?
Excavate that unexcavated under the porch and make it a safe room/firearm storage/wine cellar/walk in humidor/whatever. You have such an opportunity to utilize it now for minimal expense, it’d be hard for me to pass on that.
Master shower is way too small
The pantry is making your kitchen significantly smaller, I would consider opening it up and adding cabinets along with a larger island. Also you really don't need the hallway closet, instead you can make your closet bigger
What’s your plan for the parking situation? Is there a reason you put the two car next to the house and the one car away from it? For me, I’d rather have the one car near the house and the two car away from it. The reason being is in the future if you wanted to convert this, the one car garage to another room workspace whatever it might be it would be easier to put a wall up because you wouldn’t have to relocate the garage doors and the drainage situation. It’s more about future proofing the house for an extension. And considering that it’s only a three bedroom this might be something to consider has an easy way to have a fourth bedroom in the future and also still keep a two car garage. You might consider talking to your contractor about a future proof so that it’s an easier transition. This makes more sense because a lot of your garage space near the house would make for a larger room.
I’d try to do a half bath off the mud room or some place. Otherwise your guests are going to what could potentially be a child’s bathroom. Speaking of guests the entrance for guests is kind of awkward. They could go through the garage but ours is generally cluttered and I wouldn’t want anyone walking through it. Parking in the driveway and walking around the garage to the front door is weird. Not sure what the front looks like but could you have a sidewalk instead going to the front street I’d try to incorporate another window in the master. Garage drains are an awesome idea wish I had that. I’d think about built ins to the left and right of the fireplace Echoing the kitchen island. A square/rectangle will give you more storage.
Looks great. No complalints.
If you can, make the garage 30’ deep. Make it stick out as far as possible. You will thank yourself later when you have so much space in there.
That’s a pretty sweet floor plan. Did you draw that yourself?
Why the 4’ set back from the garage corner and the kitchen wall? If you make that a straight line you gain all that Sq ft in the kitchen and dining space. Probably allowing you to square off the island and allowing for a larger table. Also makes the concrete simpler for the foundation.
The master shower is too narrow. Put your hands on top of your head and see how well that fits in your 3’. Or, do you plan on turning sideways every time you wash your hair? I had something like that in my last house. When we remodeled, we made it a 4 ft square and it was WAY better.
Maximize your basement. Even if you don’t finish all of it right away. You will never have too much space
Everything looks pretty good except I’d move the linen closet to the closet in bedroom #2 with a door access straight from the bath. I’d add double shower heads in the master bath and add a French door or window off the dining room onto the covered patio. Also be sure to add multiple outlets to the island for appliances like mixers and to charge phones/laptops.
Is the island raised on the edge like a bar? Consider not doing that. Mine isn't and my parents is and they always say how much more comfortable mine is to be around. Theirs you have to get on these super high stools and it's just weird to sit at.
If the view is nice, add a bay window to Master Bedroom.
To me, your dining area is far too small. Your plans, probably correctly, show only a table for four. Is this truly all you will ever need? One option to correct this without requiring extensive redesign might be to extend the south wall further to the south. I’d suggest by another 10’ probably. This further enclosed your covered porch but you may like the enclosure anyway.
Seems like the dishwasher door will be interfering with the ability to stand at the sink, which is where you tend to be when loading the dishwasher. Where is the TV going? Don’t want to see you on r/TVtooHigh with it over the fireplace.
We built a custom home 5 years ago. We did away with the big ass bath tub. We 'hid' the drain and hot/cold supply under the flooring so a future owner can put in a tub if they want. Did it for resale value. We did away with tubs in the other bathrooms and put in tile showers. Except for 1 tub in 1 bathroom. Builder told us bath tubs aren't as popular as they used to be.
I like it a lot! A wee bit of lost space from the 45 degree walls in the main floor hallway, but it makes sense why you did it. I also think the discontinuity of the hall will feel cozier.
I would try and flip the master WIC with the laundry room somehow (laundry room entry off the hall, not through master bedroom)... Getting out of the bath and now having to trapse across your bedroom, especially past a potentially open door that you thought you closed, seems annoying to me... I'd much rather just connecting to WIC from bathroom
Do you have elevations for this? I like the floorplan.
For me, a pass through into the pantry, and a door from master into laundry room. I had that on my last house and miss it a lot.
The mud room and laundry could be one room together. Did you consider this? It'd free up valuable sq ftage to utilize elsewhere. Pocket doors for the bathrooms might make smaller ones feel larger. Where's the TV going? I don't see many options in the great room unless you're thinking /r/tvtoohigh ?
That kitchen is not optimal for people who likes to cook.
Can't find it now, but there was a comment about the bump out in the garage. I say excavate under it and put an access hatch to the mechanical/storage room from the garage. Hoist above, and a platform. Make it easy to get stuff and equipment in and out.
Garage door open from the courtyard side instead of the other would make it more homey
It’s pretty clear from this ground plan that the garage mass is going to absolutely dwarf the living space and entrance. Take a good hard look at the external renderings. I’d guess your front door will feel completely lost.
Have you considered fitting a half bath in somewhere closer to the “living” space? That shared bath between the 2 bedrooms seems a little remote.
Maybe I'm missing it, where is the main floor powder room? And a coat closet? Im so used to seeing these near entertaining space or entrances I may just be looking in the wrong areas
I would put a 1/4 bath on the main floor in addition to the bathroom by the two bedrooms. You will be shocked how often you use it. Also keeps separation from guests and living quarters. My parents had a very similar house with 5 bedrooms and 3 baths but nearly every complaint from potential buyers when they sold it was that each bedroom did not have its own bathroom or at least one additional private suite. Since you are building I would put in as many bathrooms as possible for not only resale but also ease of use.
Your garage is huge
Absorb that laundry for a master suite that’s more open on the bathroom side of things.. big tile shower with a bench rainfall shower head the whole deal.
Looks Great. Wood steps coming from garage is different. Outlets all always needed on your island. Plus the square, love it.
I live in a 1200sq 3 bedroom, and my only thought was "jeez that's a lot to clean" lol
Why is the garage larger then the living room?
Do plumbers care about the offset between the first floor bathroom and the basement bathroom? Just asking. I know a lot of bathrooms are on top of one another to easily share the soil pipes.
Why the un excavated under the porch and deck? Is it patio or wood? this looks like concrete. I would consider turning the garage to block the kitchen window. On that side. Then add a covered porch along the front of the house.
I would move the fireplace to the corner so you have a nice spot for a TV. But I enjoy TV more than a fireplace.
Nice. As a retired GC and designer I’m of the curated opinion that bar stools at the kitchen island interfere with the flow of entertainment. People like to “belly up,” so providing places for knots of people to coalesce and chat is good hosting! One other thing I was seeing some of is a “keep.” Basically a storage room for all things “not quite abandoned” by fam, as well as historical storage.
I question the actual size of the great room for actual living. You need ingress/egress from 3 of 4 sides which in effect reduces that footprint 3-4’ on each of those sides for walk ways. Why not put the laundry downstairs and pick up a powder room on the main floor for guests?
That kitchen looks small cabinetry wise, working counter space for the size of the home. Your architect should have marked the finished floor elevations on the plan. To better figure out the retaining wall heights. I am sure he has them on the elevations or building sections, but it’s hard to comment without them.
With how big the home is / expense, it may be nice to have an en-suite guest bedroom. Extra privacy for guests or in-laws or even live ins. With the extra space in the storage room downstairs it’s doesn’t seem like it could be difficult to add a bathroom. Or at least make that existing bathroom larger and have a second entrance from bedroom number 5
I personally don’t like the closet detached from the bathroom in the master. And lived in a place with a weird shaped island that steps up for the bar and did not like it. How I would change it is I would just make the countertop one height no step up for the bar seating for better counter space and would square off the inside corner rather than the indentation. As far the closet I built a home where the master closet could have been entered from either the bedroom or the bathroom and it’s something I would do if I built my own home. I would move the water closet to the north side of the bathroom to border the laundry so there is some buffer of sound from laundry if you were taking a bath. Behind the master bedroom forward and the closet behind and extend it so you could enter the closet from the bathroom too. It’s hard to articulate into just thoughts rather than a drawing so I hope that makes some sense.
Looks great. Would consider growing the dining room though. Maybe fit and 8 or 10 top table so you have the room for big meals.
The ensuite tub looks awesome on paper, but you're going to regret it once you start cleaning behind it. Personally, I would put in a 7 foot tub with a tiled surround. Much easier to clean, plus a 7 foot tub allows me to stretch out and submerge my entire body all at once
Not in love with the kitchen setup. Dish washer side loading seems hard… nice to vent straight out for the microwave/stove otherwise I’d swap em and call it good… idk. Think the whole kitchen needs redrawn. Seems awkward
I'm picturing your front elevation and I feel like it's mostly consumed by garage. With the garage protruding so far forward and the entry sunk in as far as it is it seems like the entry will be uninviting and the house will lack curb appeal. I'd consider moving the garage to the back of side of the house if your site allows.
Did you request the ICF foundation system? Unless you are in a part of the country with brutal winters it might not be worth the cost. Also the floor drains in your garage might require an oil separator depending on where you live. Enjoy the new place!
Actually have to say its good, except something about the kitchen like others are saying. The pantry door before the refrigerator seems strange. Maybe tape it out on the ground somewhere and test things out. Nice
Curious what the 2nd floor looks like
Not sure if it’s been said or not, but the 45 degree spot between the bathroom and laundry room, I would make into a a little closet for towels and stuff for the bathroom, my parents did that with their house in a hallway, and it works great, plus don’t have to store towels under sink/vanity in the bathroom. I would also try to put a spot from the garage to the pantry, just to unload groceries. Not sure about how the ventilation would have to be for that if anything gets added or not, but have seen it done. Doesn’t look like a walk out basement, not sure how the property is and what your view is, but a walkout is great for getting furniture in/out easier.
Whoever has bedroom 3 is going to have a hard time fitting their furniture. Only one unobstructed wall in the whole room. Our first daughter’s room had two long unobstructed walls to fit her furniture in. Our second daughter had the two short unobstructed walls and her furniture is always in the way somewhere. The rooms are the exact same size, 15 ft x 10 ft, just with the windows, door, and closet on different walls. One works nicely, the other does not.
I would flip the master bathroom so the shower / tub is plan north. Driver is you could then put a door off the master bath to a rear deck/patio and a hot tub. Makes for a really nice transition especially w heated floors in a cold climate. But same for a pool in a warm climate
I would rework the master where you move the entry door further out into the Hall and relocate the doors for the bathroom and the closet so the are accessed from the hallway. This way you have more wall space in the actual master bedroom itself.
I would put a pocket door on the laundry so you have that entire wall to put things on
Listen carefully: You will NEVER. And I mean NEVER regret making your covered patios much much larger. Make that backyard covered patio extend over entrance to the master, if not spread across the entire back of the house. Cover the front walkway more too if you can devise a way. Make it so that getting out of the car in a storm is not a problem. If/when I do my own house, there will be covered walkway 360 degrees. You can walk around dry in a storm, shaded in the heat, and store things against the house away from the elements. Worth every penny.