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| How to Choose the Best Floor Plan for Your Needs? |
Floor plan should be designed to meet your needs as well as
those of your family. First of all it should have an adequate
square footage - not too much, so that you don't have too much
unused space and increased costs of maintenance, and not too
small, so that you have privacy, and room for all family
activities as well as entertainment.
Here are things to look for while designing your floor plan:
* Garage should be close to the kitchen, preferably next to it,
so that you have an easy access to the refrigerator or pantry
while carrying your groceries to the house. It makes your job
much easier for garbage removal as well.
* Two-story house usually costs less to build than
one-story.
* When you decide to build a bedroom above garage, be
ready to live with the noise caused by the opening and closing
of garage doors.
* You need enough room for storage. Most builders don't
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significant amount of attention to this point, yet most
homeowners complain about not having enough storage. You should
make sure there is plenty of closets in the bedrooms, large
enough pantry closet and closets for towels as well for the
coats, by the main entrance door.
* Plan your traffic patterns ahead of time. Observe where
you spend most of your time and plan accordingly. Try to avoid
putting any obstacles or doors in the way of major traffic paths.
* Consider proper room layout for noise. You do not want
to have a library or bedroom next to a playroom or close to the
area where TV or stereo unit is.
* Place dining room next to the kitchen so that you can
avoid unnecessary steps while serving meals to your guests or
your family members.
* Include at least half a bath on the first floor when
planning a two-story house.
* I often see bathrooms next to the kitchen in |
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older
homes. This is definitely a bad combination and something you
should avoid at all costs.
* Walk-in pantry is a good selling point at present time
but make sure it makes sense in your situation. Regular closets
are often more economical and provide more storage.
* Plan carefully on where to put washer and dryer. It is a
good idea to have them on the second floor, next to the master
bedroom, in order to avoid going up and down the stairs with
your laundry. Take the noise into consideration, though.
Calculate extra plumbing costs as well. If it all makes sense,
go ahead and do it.
* Certain areas of the house, like bedrooms and library
should be isolated from sound as much as possible. You can
accomplish this by arranging your floor plan properly as well as
adding an extra insulation in the walls or floors and by
installing solid-core doors with higher sound-proofing qualities.
* High |
ceilings are very fashionable at present but you
have to decide for yourself if they fit both: your budget and
tastes. High ceilings take away living space. The same space
might be used for an extra bedroom. You have to decide if you
are after esthetics or practicality.
* Do you want a basement or can you live without it?
Adding a full basement is costly but you should be able to
recoup the cost at the time of sale, especially if your house is
in the area of homes with basements.
About the author:
Mark Badowski has been in real estate business for the last 21
years. He is a builder/developer in the Chicagoland area. He had
worked in banking, real estate investments and sales. To learn
more about the subject covered in this article you can visit his
website at:
http://www.real-estate-developer-homebuilder.com/house-plan.html.
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