It's a very nice plan. Do you have children, their ages? Masters on main don't always work for families with younger kids. Too far from parents at night, etc. For empty nesters they are fine.

Two story family rooms can be dramatic but you'll heat all that upper space. What is your climate like?

The kitchen looks typical but the work triangle is pretty big. You'd be going from one side to the other a lot. The island could be reconfigured and one of the elements, as in the cooktop or sink, placed in it to tighten up the triangle and make a more interesting layout. The GW kitchen site is very helpful on these questions.

Using a stock plan is a great place to start. Yours has basically good bones! The exterior looks beautiful too.

Thank you. We have 2 children, 2.5 yrs and 9 month. We are living in a two-story now and use monitors so while not perfect, I think it is doable...at least the entry to the stairs are close to the master unlike some other 2-story plans. I like one-stories, but the cost more and require a bigger lot size.

We will be in eastern NC, southeast of Raleigh.
I was thinking about a slide in range where the cooktop is (no ovens to the side as depicted) to save a little money, but am open to better ideas. I will look in the kitchen section. How would you lay it out, change the island? Thanks for your time and input. Let me know if you would change anything else upstairs or downstairs too... it is hard for me to visualize without seeing it.

I agree with the statement re: the lofted family room. Although dramatic, I'd rather have the space to use on the 2nd floor.

I'd carve some space out of the master WIC to get a closet near the front entry.

On the 2nd floor, I'd make BR3 bigger, using the space for the WIC, linen closet and losing the desk area and making that part of the room. Then I'd have a wall closet on the bottom wall incorporating space from the attic. I'd have the linen closet along the wall heading toward BR4 (the wall to the left of the current WIC for BR3), or I'd carve it from some of the attic space too.

I'm glad to see there is space for a mudroom - that will be handy. And the path from the garage to the kitchen looks good (carrying in groceries, kids, etc.)

Your path from the front door to the kitchen, where most people gather, is through the FR. So if you like to have people over, I'd take that path into account when choosing your flooring.

Thanks chicagoans for the input. If I had the money, or needed the space I would agree with getting rid of the lofted family room. I am thinking about making a bonus over the garage to have a bigger play area for the kids. With that in mind would you change any of your ideas for the 2nd floor? I agree that the desk isn't important and that some of the attic(bonus) could be used for WIC for BD3. A bigger bedroom is always good. Thanks, awesome ideas.

We are almost complete with our build on this house plan. One thing that I wish I had thought of- Use a pocket door on the Master bath entry from the bedroom. If you are standing at the vanity closest to the door, you can be bumped by the door as it opens.

The area over the garage is great for storage and could be made into a bonus room. It will have reduced ceiling height on both sides, but it is still a nice space.

I have attached pictures of our build.

sc_kathyc, thanks for the great tip and beautiful pictures! I was thinking about making a bonus room over the garage. Do you have any more good suggestions and pictures of the kitchen/mudroom? I was thinking about bumping the kitchen and breakfast out 2' to make even w/ family room (and adding a screen porch off kitchen). Was thinking this might make room for a bigger island and prep sink. Any thoughts on that or suggestions chicagoans made above? I also posted in the kitchen forum so if you have any thoughts about what was posted, please let me know. I will not have a basement. Thanks again! If you are willing to answer more questions, our email is dnasmith14@yahoo.com. Thanks, Darron and Amanda

Hi, again. I took another look at the kitchen and can't really see a way to put either the cooktop or sink in the island. Downdraft ventilation isn't as effective as thru the wall, and if you move the sink, you take away the window view! But I do think the size of the island looks sort of small. In the sketch it seems about the same width as the sink. Maybe it could be made more square or bigger in general to give you some drawer /cabinet space underneath. Workspace on top would be increased as well. Just a thought!

Well, right now we have appliances stored in the laundry room so pictures are not really an option. I think bumping the kitchen/brk room out 2 feet is a good ideal. We decided against the island that is shown in the plans because I've had one that size/place before and it tends to get in the way.
Our intention (after we move in and get the feel of the room) is to build an big island in the breakfast area. This has been a DIY, pay as you go build so it is not in the budget right now.

I like Chicagoans option for changing the upstairs desk area. We actually eliminated the middle bedroom and left the area open for a loft/sitting area. For our current needs, this seemed a better fit for us. We can always add the wall later to turn this into a 4th bedroom if we want. We also put a pocket door leading to the shared bath upstairs.

I would not give up any of the MBR closet space for an entry closet. We have a coat closet in the hall/entrance to the master bedroom area that can serve for this.

I like the open ceiling in the family room but have not ever lived in a house with one so I hope I don't regret it. You certainly could gain alot of space if you chose not to do this, but it would change the feel of the home.

I need to take some more pictures now that we are getting to the finishing details. I will send those to your email address once I do. I also had a link to someone else's pics and they had added a screened in porch to the plan. I will see if I can locate that for you too.

Thanks sc_kathyc. Great to get feedback from someone building the plan and get great pointer from people. Look forward to seeing the pictures.
Last night was looking at the plan again and had an idea concerning the mudroom. Curious what you think about it adding value (help resale later). Looking at the laundry/mud room complex, seems that it could better suit my family in terms of function and organization. Keep in mind, we were talking about adding 2' to the right side. So if you add 2' just right of the broom closet and
through the breakfast area that room get's expanded by 2'. I was thinking get rid of the butler's pantry (like most I have a nice hutch, and wouldn't really use it much), but it is a nice feature I am trading off. Also, get rid of the broom closet (move the closet to under the stairs across the hall of the butler's pantry. Now, close the butler's pantry/broom close in, and make that the power room w/ pocket door where the center of the butler's
pantry was. Now, you have more space to work with in mudroom/laundry. Keep the door from the garage as far left as it is. Now along the right wall as you walk in (get rid of the laundry room door/wall on that side) you have a row of nice 4 tall wood lockers (for each person in my family) about 2' wide each w/ cushioned benches, dividers, hooks, cabinet up top, place for shoes underneath, etc. Attached to those (wall and door gone) you should have enough room for a sink w/ small counter and storage cabinet below and cabinet above. Across from
there, you have the washer and dryer with a cabinet over one and nothing over the one on the left. By expanding the room 2 feet, you move the wall next to the washer/dryer over 2' (makes 3rd shelf in the pantry) to make room for a 2' storage cabinet (space below for longer items like iron, etc). Then have a bar that goes from that cabinet to the cabinet over the dryer for hanging a few clothes. Above the washer and dryer, maybe some sort of wood/removable counter above for a work surface. Now, where the powder room was. On the wall on the other side of the wall by the dryer, you could have a long counter with a few cabinets above and below (empty space too for you to sit and work and maybe another bar from an upper cabinet to the wall for hanging cloths). On this counter you can sew, fold clothes, etc. Then on the other wall you have a desk with some cabinets/drawers, charging station, cork board, etc (get rid of the desk upstairs). This give you a place to sort mail, do other things ao the little desk in the kitchen is for cooking and recipe books etc. Anyways, a lot of detail but something I was pondering when I couldn't sleep last night. Feedback?

@sc_kathyc My wife and I are also planning on building this home. If you have more interior pictures I would love to see them as well.
@dnasmith I kind of like your idea of moving the powder room. The thing I would wonder about is where the entrance is. It seems like an odd place.

We built this house plan almost 4 years ago and really like it. Have a large family and the space upstairs works well.

We made several modifications. Needed more space in laundry, so extended garage several feet, which enabled us move wall in laundry, which I love!! Due to this change, also moved wall upstairs in bedroom near garage. Did make a bonus room over garage. Changed bath upstairs near larger br to include dual sinks and door to separate tub/toilet from sink area.

We also lowered ceiling in den and disregarded open stairs (they are partially open, about 4/5 steps up). Gave us tons space upstairs for storage (our attic is huge, with 2 levels) and possible room later. Also helps with heating and cooling. In the den, we also moved fireplace to back wall, added two back doors, and a porch on back of den.

In the kitchen, we stuck with double oven & island but added window seat in eating area along with cabinets (removed back door in kitchen).

Hope this gives you some ideas. We are really happy with it. Would change a couple of things, but for the most part, very satisfied.

Thanks covenantbuilders! If I go w/ vaulted family room, would like your thoughts. If I had a vaulted screen porch of the family room, what do you think about moving the fireplace to the wall opposite the stairs w/ a tall door/window on the kitchen side and a long window on the other side of the fireplace (making it a stone fireplace). That way, where the built-ins are you could add a recessed place in the middle (where the fireplace was) for a large flat screen TV and place for all the components below (receiver, etc) ...would be more like a built in entertainment center w/ bookcases/cabinets on either side.
That way, the TV is at a better viewing angle, you don't see the side of the TV as you enter the house, you can see the TV some from the kitchen/breakfast, and you notice the stone fireplace as you enter and it looks more symmetrical the way the ceiling comes down on part of the ceiling.

My concerns are not everyone who wants to buy has a 50" plasma like me with a lot of speakers/components or wants the "entertainment" portion. Also, some people already have big entertainment centers want to use. Plus, it has to be built nice with some thought into making it look nice. But if you don't recess it, you loss valuable floor space and it interferes w/ the look as you enter. Also, by not having more windows on the wall w/ the screen porch, you loss light that may make the room darker. What do you think?

Did you recess the wall and do built-ins? Wondering how your den is setup on that wall. Any pictures or email where I can ask you some more questions?
Thanks, Happy New Year!!

For those interested in pictures, this is a real estate listing I found online of the house. I don't know whose house it is, I just found the pictures.

Here is a link that might be useful: Kensington Park Pictures

We did a lot of what you mentioned. Moved the FP to back wall with patio door on either side. Where FP was originally designed to be, we replaced with a built-in entertainment armoire (drawers on bottom, space for 42" TV & doors to close, & shelf above). Really like the configuration. Only disadvantage I can determine would be the traffic is heavy due to back door, large kitchen entrance, and foyer w/stairs all converging in the den area. I will try and find pictures. Not sure what 50" TV would do to built-ins.

Concerning light, the two patio doors on either side of the FP allow for plenty of light. Although my den is not vaulted, it was high enough (10 ft.)to allow for transoms over patio doors, which enables quite a bit of light. Almost white cabinetry for built-ins also helps.

Thanks covenantbuilders. As I have to pick my plan in the next week or so, any details/pictures are greatly appreciated (dnasmith1499@yahoo.com. Would also love to see your kitchen/breakfast area in attention to the living room. I agree w/ white cabinetry...I guess if I do stained wood in the kitchen, they don't have to match? Take a look at what I want to do in the laudry room forum w/ the mudroom and let me know what you think. That change, along with moving the kitchen out 2" to be even w/ living room (my builder said he can just move kitchen out (not upstairs above it) adds about 4' to the width of the kitchen. Along w/ that, I was planning for a bigger island w/ prep sink and place for a couple of seats in breakfast area (I plan to add 2" through breakfast/garage to make it a ittle wider). I figure the breakfast table can be biased toward the windows to allow traffic to not get as clogged up where the breakfast/living room met. Let me know your thoughts and the value of these changes. Also, curious what you would change upstairs. Thanks for your help. Greatly appreciated to all of you. Happy New Year!

Also, ealier you mentioned you would change a couple of thing in your house, what would you change? Any suggestions for exterior look w/ vinyl/stone, brick foundation?

I finally found the link for the pictures that I referred to earlier. I do not know the owner of this home, but found the pictures one day when I was browsing. You can see that they did not build the 2 story family room.

http://clippings.gardenweb.com/clippings/irisheyesaresmiling

Kathy

We are currently building this house. We elected to have the kitchen wall made even with the family room in back giving us an extra 2'. We also made the firplace a see through on the wall between the kitchen and family room with a 12' raised stone hearth on both sides to sit on.

Sc kathyc..... Love your house! Is that brick or rock? Do you know the name of it and the color of your house? Love it all!! Great job:)

Hello everyone! It has been some time since you all have posted in here so I truly hope one or all of you will help us if you are able! We are building the Kensington Park in September and are desperate for more interior and exterior photos and suggestions. Some of you may have your house up and finished and it would be so helpful if you could post some pictures up (as many as you can!). We are in Harrisonburg, VA and it has taken us so long to choose a plan and we know this is "the one." My direct email address is jessicapeachey@gmail.com if it is easier to send photos there. Thank you all for this link- it has been so helpful! We are just so anxious to see the outcome of a lot of these suggestions! :)

We recently finished building this house and we LOVE everything about this floor plan for our family. We made a few changes to better suit our needs and it has worked well for us! Great layout!!! Easy for entertaining as well!!!
*note we did extend the side wall of the house by 3 ft and also extended the back wall 3 ft to give a little extra room in the kitchen for a larger island, which also gave us a larger laundry room

This post was edited by jbtotherow on Sun, Jan 4, 15 at 17:44

Living room-Kensington Park

Living Room

Foyer

Open stairway

jbtotherow,

Beautiful house!
Sent you an email. Thanks

Up the stairs we took out the desk area and added that square footage to the bedroom and put a Bonus/Family room over the garage. We dropped the floors in the family room 2 ft to give us extra ceiling height.

Bonus/family room over garage

We tweaked the bedroom upstairs on the front of the house to gain extra storage space. Where the closet was located we changed to attic storage space and used another wall with plenty of space behind it and made his closet which was quite spacious.

We chose to omit the butler's pantry to gain a larger mud room area behind that wall. We took out the broom closet and added extra space to the laundry room where I can easily store brooms there.

Mud room without broom closet so I could have a storage bench

A different view of mud room with the laundry room wall being moved out to give a more spacious laundry room

Bedroom 3 we took out linen closet and desk area outside of door and added that square footage to that bedroom.

Dining room

Another angle showing the large windows and the detail of the angles in the ceiling in the living room

Is there any way that you could post a picture of the garage side of the house? We are about to build this plan and just would like to see how it looks. Thanks

Jbtotherow - thank you for posting all these pics! Your home is beautiful, and it is so helpful to see for those of us in the plan selection phase.

Jbtotherow - would you be able to tell us the color and manufacturer of the exterior? Thanks!

For anyone who is interested in an easier forum to post discussion and thoughts regarding the KP, we have a group on FB. Feel free to look us up. Search for Kensington Park Home and request access.

Could someone post the exterior paint color information?