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riderdude

Need comments on new floor plan.

riderdude
10 years ago

A little while ago I had posted my floor plan and with the help of the members of this forum, I thought finally I had a pretty good plan. In fact pretty much the final plan. However, without going into the details, for some reasons I could not proceed further with that plan. I have come up with a new floor plan and will really appreciate if the members could please take a look and let me know their thoughts. I have learned a lot from this forum and hopefully there are not a lot of glaring flaws with this plan.

Thanks again.

Comments (16)

  • Spottythecat
    10 years ago

    I see a few things-

    I personally do not like a bathroom in my entry foyer.

    The kitchen is closed off from the dining room and seems very private from the rest of the house. Maybe move the kitchen to the location of the bedroom 3 so it's more part of the heart of the home.

    I would have a water closet for the toilet instead of it being out in the open of the master bathroom - more privacy.

    The grand room could use more doors or center the ones you now have with the entry doors so you have a focal point.

    It's a long walk from the garage to the kitchen.

    I assume the laundry room is in the basement?

    I am not an expert...just pointing out a few things.

    Pam

  • willytaylor
    10 years ago

    In my opinion you should make the kitchen with the lounge and laundry should be between the kitchen and washroom and just give one entry from kitchen to laundry so it will be better. I am also not an expert just giving the suggestion.
    sloping block specialists

    This post was edited by willytaylor on Wed, Aug 14, 13 at 5:51

  • jennybc
    10 years ago

    I understand things change and what we expect doesn't always come to pass. You got a ton of advice on your last layout. To see you switch to another layout is disheartening to hear and I didn't give a reply. Neither layout was to my liking so I have chosen not to respond. You may not get as much of a response this time around. Was it the plans themselves? A layout issue? Lot change? Funding issue? All of these answers may help with the review of these plans. Obviously it's not a requirement to answer. And obviously someone who analyzed your plans the first time may decide not to invest more time. I wish you the best of luck!

  • renovator8
    10 years ago

    The Grand Room will be like Grand Central Station; most circulation must pass through it.

    The garage is on the wrong side of the house and needs a door.

    You've taken the trouble to lay out the cosets but not the kitchen. I suspect you have your design priorities reversed.

    Early designs should be done in sketch form even if the basic layout is in CAD. This allows the more important design issues to be solved first instead of last.

  • riderdude
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks for the feedback.
    JennyBC,
    The previous lot that we were planning to build on got sold and that design would not work for the new lot that we are looking at. I spent a lot of time working on that plan and unfortunately it all went to waste. But I definitely learned a lot from it. I am not trying to waste people's time here, it is just an inevitable exercise that I have to go through. I do respect and appreciate everybody's time and effort at this forum.

    Thanks again.

  • zone4newby
    10 years ago

    With the size of the home you're planning to build, I think you've got too many bathrooms. I'd be inclined to have bedrooms 2 & 3 share a bathroom and then use the square footage you gain to enlarge either the laundry room, or the nook or both.

    I'm not sure the nook is at all functional.

    Honestly I don't love the layout at all. The kitchen is awkwardly hidden away and the whole thing doesn't flow well, IMO.

    Where will the door to the kitchen be?

  • live_wire_oak
    10 years ago

    Sorry, but I'm not loving very much of this at all. The entire back of the house needs to be flipped, (or the front) and even then it won't work very well. Too many traffic paths through the great room. The kitchen is for someone who has a servant that they don't want to see, not a family member. And the secondary bedrooms are awkward at the expense of having two baths when one will do. The stairs are in an awkward location to ever be used. You'll never get any furniture down there, and if you expect to finish that basement off, it's going to feel more like the creepy violin music playing dungeon away space because of the traffic route to get there than a family gathering spot.

    Please engage the services of a professional architect when you buy your lot.

  • urbanfamily_yyc
    10 years ago

    I like having a kitchen and pantry close to the garage for unloading groceries. I would consider a pantry pathway from the kitchen to the dining room as an easier way to serve food and hide dirty dishes too.
    I would also centre the garden doors in the rec room to the entry door, add more windows to this same wall and not have a door to a bathroom right off the foyer. Hope this helps!

  • Lori Wagerman_Walker
    10 years ago

    I would flip beds 2 & 3 with the dining/kitchen/nook.

    Sorry if someone else has already said this, I didn't read the comments...

  • Brian_Knight
    10 years ago

    I never get into floorplan advice on this forum so consider this a blessing or worthless. Iam a fellow riverdude and hope things fall into place better for you moving forward. I agree with all comments above which is rare.

    Always have your site in hand before investing too much in design. Ive seen so many closings go wrong and while its fine to develop a general idea its dangerous to get overly invested until the deal closes.

    Not sure what building climate youre in but you may want to look into passive solar design if youre in anything colder than a hot climate. I would recommend against an attached garage altogether if indoor air quality is a concern. Youre footprint is huge which will increase costs compared to putting some of those rooms in the basement if your final site really will have a basement.

    Some people do fine designing from scratch and if its something youre obsessed with go for it, but the right professional help in most situations is time, money and effort very well spent.

  • riderdude
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Thanks for all the ideas and suggestions.

    We are not planning to purchase the land due to a not so positive attitude of the banks towards a new construction loan. We are planning to get our house built on a turn key basis. Basically the plan is to identify the lot and have a plan ready to invite the bids from the builders in the area. I'm not sure if it is gonna work or not. We will see. Back to the drawing board in the mean time. :)

  • _sophiewheeler
    10 years ago

    You can't have a house built at all unless you own the land. If you can't swing a loan for your land, you need to look at a subdivision that a builder owns the lots already. They'll have their own plans for you to choose from, with very few modifications, not a custom build with your own plan. Unless it's a very bucks up subdivision. Then you'll need to come up with a pretty substantial downpayment.

    Or else buy existing. That's the cheapest and easiest route.

  • riderdude
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Hollysprings, I have talked to a few builders in the area who are willing to purchase the land and build our plan on it.

  • PRO
    Epiarch Designs
    10 years ago

    its hard to start on the issues I see, and its not just a personal preference. Things such as bathrooms, layouts, flow, spacial relationships, etc. Its a very inefficient design with many segregated spaces.
    Its your time, but as others have stated, save it and hire a designer or architect. If a client brought me something like this I would not bother salvaging it. Start small with the process, go through needs vs wants vs budget. Make bubble and flow diagrams how spaces should relate. Take into account "private vs public" spaces. List goes on.

    and try to find land that you can use, even if you can not own it until you move forawrd. Or at least come up with a faily universal design that would fit many lots. This plan is very lot specific with the garage off the back and side. Not ideal at all.

  • bird_lover6
    10 years ago

    If you're going to build a house on a turnkey basis with the builder buying the lot, I strongly urge you to find a more appealing design. I can't imagine a builder investing money in anything close to the plan above, because if you back out, he will have to sell it, and would have a hard time selling a house with that kitchen and tiny banquette, among other things.

    Good luck!

  • live_wire_oak
    10 years ago

    WIth a builder assuming the entire financial risk of building a home, he won't even look at a custom plan unless you have quite a bit of money to put down to take back some of that risk. He will want to do a generic plan that he's built before, and tightly control the choices. After all, if something happens and you can't close on it, he's going to have to be able to sell it. Also, if you can't get a construction loan right now, that doesn't bode well for you being able to get a loan to close the build with the builder. Even though you've had some "interest" in doing what you propose, it may not come to fruition when it comes to the banks having the same interest. The builder isn't going to carry the loan for the house after it's built, after all. Any bank loan for the property will involve an appraisal meeting a certain amount for you to be able to close. Perhaps it's a good thing to drop back, save more, and get a pro involved that better understands spatial relationships.