It will be very expensive to build. It has a lot of corners, including some at other than 90 degrees, multiple staircases, one of them circular, plus gables galore. All of these things individually increase the price with little or no livability payback. Together, I predict bids will come back as shockers.

And then there's the buried kitchen with almost no natural light. It will be dark and unwelcoming. Most people would hate it. I know I would. I know my wife would.

Sorry, but I see almost nothing to like in this plan.

I'm sorry too. I don't like *anything* here, starting with the cluttered exteriors.

For starters, I'd stop trying to build a house that will serve a young family AND retirees. (Not that this one would, as a two story without an elevator.)

(We seem to be having a rash of over-30 couples, 'planning' children, building large houses. A trend? People who already have families too poor to build? LOL)

This plan makes for a huge chopped up home resembling a maze. I can't imagine living in it, let alone maintaining and cleaning it. As mentioned, all those angles and such make for a VERY expensive build these days.

My husband and I are in our mid-fifties, and recently ditched the "beautiful" high maintainance home. Never regretted it for a second. Bought 10 acres, are planning a nice cozy log style home under 2,000 square feet, and are relaxed and happy with our simpler lifestyle.

You do not need a large home to raise children in. We raised five children in a 2400 SF home and what they liked best was the open floor plan and the twenty acres of land they got to play on. They still talk about that place.

The "dream" home after that was a nightmare. We spent all our time paying for it and maintaining it. Do some careful thinking before you build.

I do feel that you can build a home that would make you happy with both raising children and retirement years if you plan it carefully. We would have kept the house we raised our children in if it had been in a kinder climate. Kids don't need stuff like media rooms, keeping rooms, etc., etc. They can also share bedrooms rooms (if they are same the sex). What they need is time spent with them and the ability to go outside and build tree forts.

Sandy

What is a keeping room?

And as long as the master bedroom is on the first floor, there should be no problem when retiring and growing old/feeble/immobile...the upstairs can just be ignored as long as it is kept clean by a family member or maid, but there isn't much to clean if no one is ever up there.

I don't really see anything wrong per se with the plan. Do you really want each child to have their very own bathroom though? Seems a little much to me. There is also the thought in some circles that when children and teenagers have their own suites, they rarely come out and live independent lives from the rest of the family.

I can't imagine EVER wanting to continue to pay increasing taxes, increasing utility costs, and having to pay someone to clean, especially when reaching a time of life when all one wants to do is scale down and have fun. Every square inch of a home should be used, otherwise it is nothing but a waste of space or money. The money wasted on a vast upstairs that is never used would buy a lot of enjoyment in life. I'm not saying to not have an upstairs. I'm talking overall square footage.

A lot of us start thinking bigger is better. The truth is, most of the rooms that the glossy magazines make us think we can't live without become a burden, because they seldom (if ever) get used.

Tried the maid thing a few times. Hated having someone in my home like that. Reminded me of being in a hotel. I decided if I can't take care of something myself, then it needs to go.

Sandy

Oh my gosh - I think Sandy is my twin sister LOL - I agree with everything Sandy wrote.
We too built our dream home - big - fanciful - and wow - did we learn our lesson. too big, utterly makes me cringe at how much money, space, etc that we wasted (now this is my opinion only of course ;)
Now we have downsized to a much much smaller home - simplified our living - and for us - we are finally happy. I could not keep up with our large home - and if I can't clean it by myself - then it is not manageable. Why not look through some books about smaller homes and maybe have less space, ample storage, etc - that way you will not be spending a fortune on your new home and will have more time to just enjoy life. We had areas in our home that we never ever used and that made me feel sad and felt that the house seemed lonely (I know, a little weird LOL). good luck!!

This thread has become awfully preachy....

I agree with dixie. It's fine to critique the plan, but please at least try to be nice about it.

I don't think it's chopped up, or if it is - it's not necessarily a bad thing. My husband and I are in our 30s with 3 kids 6 and under. We built our current home 3 years ago(basic 3bd/2ba ranch with great room/ dining/ and kitchen all open to each other.) We now wish we had some separate rooms other than the bedrooms for us to get away from the kids. We do have a basement, which helps - but some un-adjoined rooms upstairs would be nice.

We are currently looking through plans to build our next house on our 10 acres. And we too have looked through a thousand plans it seems. It's hard to know what you want in a "forever" home because circumstances are always changing (kids, grandkids, etc...)

gavr6, I'm sure it's especially hard for you since you don't know how many kids you'll have, etc. We have 3 kids and do plan for each child to have their own room. Our 2 girls share right now and let's just say that for my own sanity, it is paramount that they have their own space :) So we are looking at plans with 4 bedrooms and probably no more than 3k sq ft. We are fairly conservative people and we don't want anything too over the top.

Do you have any width/ lot requirements? I'm not sure if you've seen any Garrell plans, but quite a few of them have separate keeping rooms like the Betz plan. It's so hard to find a perfect plan. We are more than likely going to find bits and pieces of plans and then hire an architect to squish them all together. Sounds so scientific, huh? lol!

good luck!
christy :)

Here is a link that might be useful: Garrell Assoc.

Nice fancy plan. I do worry that the kitchen would be dark. I hate excessive open 2nd story areas - actually I hate most of them. But that is a personal thing. Yes - you are wasting a lot of HVAC but that is another personal thing. You will find that you could build a 5000 sq foot simpler plan but that is not the point. There are an overabundance of fancy places and not a lot of kid play areas.

I do see the point of a lot of posters here but to each his own. It is fancier than I would build and I am at the same square footage.

Have to agree with dixie -- this HAS gotten super-preachy!!! LOL

I'm not here to judge -- hey, if you can afford it, go for it. I wish I could afford a house that big (well, actually only if I could also afford a maid, because I hate to clean, but I'm assuming if you can afford a house this size then you CAN afford a maid, OR you REALLY like to clean).

The outside isn't my taste, but that doesn't mean it's ugly. It's just where I live, people lean much more toward French Country / European designs. More hip roofs than gables (you can drive through some subdivisions and see lots of gables -- that's what dates those houses, it was definitely a mid-90s thing around here).

I don't love those rooms set on an angle, but that might be a personal thing, too. I don't see the rationale for why they're set up like that. I think it will make it awkward to situate a breakfast table with the room set on an anlgle like that.

I do agree that it WILL be very pricey to build, so if you WANT people's opinions on that, than yes, be prepared to PAY for this house.