I want the back of the house to be similar to this

First floor plan

second floor- open rail area would serve as a computer nook

The house will be located roughly where the white arrow is pointing. The photo is in perspective (up is north and down is south- right is east and left is west)

If you're feeling fairly sure you'll never finish the basement, why build it at all?

Ditto for the bonus space, which you've marked as "unfinished attic". If you're not going to use this as living space, be sure your builder knows this. He won't build the flooring to the same specifications as a regular room, and it'll save you money.

Having a "guest house" will be nice, if you're going to have extended visitors. And you'll be able to shut off the utilities when no one's using it.

You probably want to move the fireplace to the living room.

The dining room's pretty far from the kitchen.

Upstairs, I'd flip-flop the master bedroom and bathroom. Why? So you'd have no children's room sharing walls with the master -- reduction in noise.

Is that a shower beside the tub in the master? If so, it's tiny. It appears to be only the width of the sink vanity, which is probably 24".

Also, Bedroom 4's closet is smaller than the other two rooms. I'd "even out" the two closets between bedrooms 3 and 4.

I'd also switch Bedroom 4's door to a plain door so it'll match the others and so the child in that room won't have to come into the room, close the doors and feel behind them to find the light switch.

If you're going to use the upstairs bonus room as attic space (and never intend to make it a room), I'd close in that little "hallway" that leads to the bonus room and let it be part of the bathroom. That'll allow you space for a LARGE storage closet inside the bathroom . . . which you'll need since the vanity doesn't have space for any drawer storage. This'll mean you'll need to enter the attic either through the bathroom or through a child's room . . . but since you use the bathroom EVERY DAY and the attic only occasionally, I'd do it.

Builders have told us that cutting the basement out of the plan is the best way to cut cost, but it is something that my husband and I have always wanted. Today is a very cold snow day in Kentucky and the kids are full of energy.....I would love to have a basement where they could ride scooters, play ping pong, ect. Also, we've had some bad tornados in KY lately, which is another reason we really want the basement. You're right about the attic, we really don't need that much storage space. We have a walk-in attic at the house that's already on our property. I like your other ideas as well. We plan on having a larger tub/shower combo in the master and omitting the spa tub (we would rarely use it and it's not worth the added expense). I would prefer to have an outdoor hot tub. Another thing I forgot to mention, our kids do not have computers or TVs in their bedrooms, which is why there is a computer nook upstairs and in the kitchen. I was also thinking that the dining room may be too far from the kitchen, but was looking for a way to not have to look at the mess in the kitchen (from having just prepared a meal) while dining and keeping the open floor plan. Any ideas on improving this layout? I work from home, which is why we have a study on the first floor. Also, the study could be changed into a bedroom as an injury or elderly suite if necessary.

All those windows in the basement will be expensive, especially for rooms that are seldom used. And if you want the basement as a place to go during tornados, you are going to have to wall off your safe area so you will not be hit by broken glass.

I think the safe room will be under the front porch, we don't have a basement plan drawn yet....so I'm not sure. The basement will walk out on the left side and we want a double door or auxiliary garage door and maybe two windows.

Another thing, I don't like the palladium window in the middle, would it look weird if I omit that and just have a rectangular window? I may omit the shutters as well....I want something a little more plain "farmhouse" style.

This post was edited by Kinsley7 on Wed, Jan 22, 14 at 14:01

So you want the basement for a kids' play space. Serious questions: Will they go downstairs and play without you? How many days a year do you think they'll use this space? How many more years do you think they'll be into the rough-and-tumble running type play? I can see this being wonderful -- occasionally and for a short time. The ping-pong table will span out into the teen years, and you might expand upon that type of thing -- but that means finishing the basement. Just be sure you're spending your building dollar in a way that'll really benefit your family.

I totally agree with keeping computers in a public place, though tablets are making that harder. A friend of mine whose teenaged niece ran away with an older man whom she met on the internet said something that made sense to me: All teens have moments when they think their families don't understand them, etc., etc., etc. And the internet gives those teens a vehicle to escape from their families. You have to protect your kids from their own inexperience. Ditto for TVs in bedrooms. You have to work at protecting children's innocence these days.

In all seriousness, I suggest a big, deep sink to hide the dirty dishes while dining.

I think the study is ideally placed for a work-at-home person -- you're right there by the door, if you see clients at home, and you have a bathroom for them right by your office.

I think the study would do for a temporary injury bedroom, but I don't think it'd really "do" as a bedroom for an elderly person. It lacks a closet, and the bathroom isn't big enough for much storage or walker usage. I think if you did, in the future, need to house an elderly person (or future you), your best bet would be opening up the wall between the study and the garage and incorporating some of that space into a real suite.

Since you're in tornado country, are you looking at ICF?

You're right about the study not functioning well as an elderly suite. It will be several years before our parents are elderly and all of our grandparents are deceased....so maybe I'm over thinking the whole thing. We can make modifications when and if necessary.
Also, if we move the dining room into the kitchen...will the living room be too long and narrow? It would be 15 x 30 if I keep the current layout.
- I have looked into ICF and AAC and there are very few contractors who work with these products in residential construction in this area. I don't think it will be feasible for us.

Will your two boys each have their own room? If they will share you might think about opening up the den/4th bedroom for a playroom/study area. I posted a similar plan today for the house we are building. I do like the mud and laundry area.
The dining area is a little large, but you could open up the wall by the living room and had a large living space and have the dining area by the kitchen. You should have plenty of room for a large table and still have a nice sized kitchen
Upstairs, the hall bath is long and looks narrow. There might be a better option for more space or have a sink outside the shower toilet area.

Yes, each boy will have their own room. We will most likely put a bunk bed in one room and toys in the other while they are younger. I was planning on putting the shower and toilet behind a second door in the kid's bathroom. We would like to give our daughter her own little bathroom, but we'll have to how much another bathroom will cost. I read a post the other day about adding a "clutter room"....I really like that idea of containing unsightly ( but necessary) things to one room. I'm going to make the laundry room larger for this purpose.

I drew a floor plan for the first floor from scratch. My dimensions are not are not 100% accurate, but close. Any feedback is appreciated.

Here is a link that might be useful: Floor plan