i don't have a copy of my floor plan handy but my home is 2040 square feet..you walk in the front door and there is a living room and across is a dining room..there is a hall going off between the two on both sides..left goes to a full bath and two bedrooms and to the right on the front of the house is closet, bedroom with walk ins, bathroom and laundry room..on the n side of laundry room is a door that goes into the family room that is in the ne corner..between the dining room and family room is an open kitchen and a small dinette on the family room side.

it works out well for us...we have porches off the front and back and deck off laundry which has an exterior exit (3)

What is your style, phoggie? That might help us narrow it down a little. Do you have children or frequent guests? This will impact how many bathrooms you'd need. Do you just want the great room or a more "formal" living area, too? What about a dining room? Or would you be happier with an eat-in kitchen? Also, where are you building? Infill? City lot? Country club? One acre? Twenty acres? And how will your house be oriented?

There are so many variables when looking at house plans! You have one advantage that I don't: Rear view! It seems like 90% of the house plans I'm finding have a great room situated at the back. Lucky for you! :)

I don't really know what "style" I am....traditional, classic, I guess...maybe with a bit of country...probably ranch style.
My DH is 78 and I am 67, so we are older, so that we need to have it "step-free", and all of the handicapped requirements....I have severe OA.

As I said, we will have a beautiful view of a 5 acre lake in the entire back...on a 1 acre lot, in town. Our children all will live within 75 miles, so they won't be staying overnight very often...maybe the grandkids, but they are happy on the floor with sleeping bags. No, I do not do "formal" anything....just comfortable and cozy...What I was thinking was a great room with the LR area on one end and DR on the other. The kitchen will have plenty cabinets, as well as a large walk-in pantry...some space for DH and I to eat in the kitchen...but not on 30" stools...24" okay. I want a lot of storage space...without a basement or up-stairs, I will need that (or at least, I think so)....large utility room with room for my office/computer to be in there, as well as a mud room area. 3 bedrooms..not small ones.... and 2 or 2.5 baths....MB with walk-in shower, 2 sinks & vanity, no tub....but large walk-in closet. 3 car garage, covered or screened patio.

DH is a retired architect, but we are "locking horns" when it comes to these plans. The last time we built a house together, I said, "Never again", but our present house is way too large for us (about 4,000 sf) and we bought our future lot in another town over 2 years ago. We will need to sell this house before we start to build (when?). I keep telling him that with our ages, maybe we should think "assisted living" instead of building again. LOL '

Thanks for your help.

ok, this is sounding a bit like mine - tho mine is 4 bedroom - but 3 smaller ones and is only about 1400 sq ft - so if you make the rooms bigger it'd merge into your 2,000 sq ft.

i don't have a drawing of it right now - and no way to put in computer anyway...

but coming in the front it has a 3x3 'entrance' (enlarge that) and you're in the LR/DR - which goes from the front clear thru to the back w/ sliding doors out to the back. this room is somewhere around 13 x 25 (dbf and I got different measurements from it... he tried to tell me this place WAS about 1900 sq ft, but i only came up with about 1400 for the whole place). there is a corner fireplace on the backside. that I don't like and will eventually take out also. this room i'll use for a 'sitting' room area (for company coming in) and DR (for /if anyone ever comes over to eat with me...lol!). i have big old antiques that do need the space.

to the left off of the LR area is the mstr bedroom (about 14x13 I think. this area also runs front to back. the bath is on the back of it and is a good size. there's a short hallway from bdrm to bath with BIG closets on either side of it. we measured and they were like 5 x 4.5. i think the bathroom is something like 8x12. it does have a garden tub (which i plan to take out) - but that'd give you more space for a double vanity and more linen closet space.

then to the right off of the LR is the kitchen. it is small about 9 x 10 (make it bigger). it's fine for me cause it's just me and the dogs and i seldom cook. there is room in it for my pedestal kitchen table and a chair or 2.

at the back of the kitchen is a hallway - it opens into the hallway so that makes the kitchen seem bigger. to the left in the hall is a pantry (4' x 18" floor to ceiling) then turn right and into the back 'hall' thru laundry room and out the back door. laundry room has space for w/d, freezer (or huge cab), furnace is in there, plenty of room over w/d for cabinets. and still plenty of room to bring my 70 lb dog in during our hot weather.

back into the hallway and to the right - on the left is a bedroom...then another bedroom. straight ahead is an 'indention' of about a foot or so (space to put a linen closet?) - the the right off of that hallway is the main bath and then another bedroom.

i plan to make the first bedroom (directly behind the kitchen) into my computer and tv room. I want to open it up into the kitchen and close off the regular bedroom door that is there now.
these 3 bedrooms are only about 10 x12 each (the closets are deeper than i expected tho...not walk in, but not real shallow like some i've seen).

so if you make the kitchen bigger and the bedroom bigger etc. it should end up close to or at your 2000 sq ft.

I plan to use one of the back bedrooms for 'storage' - my sewing machine, ironing board, exerciser and 2 huge cabinets for my crafts/sewing, computer stuff, wrapping paper, gifts i buy thru out the yr etc. plus there's the closet in there where I'll put things like holiday decorations (i have a lot - not that i use them anymore).

the other back bedroom will be my desk, bookcases, a rocker and the dresser and chest to my 2nd bedroom set (not putting the bed up). will use those drawers etc for out of season clothes...and that closet for more storage. This will also be a room for my boy dog sometimes. will put a dutch door on it so he doesn't feel totally closed off from me and his sister (my girl dog). She is usually in my bdroom with me. but they can't be together inside - they don't play well together...

and then i still have the 2 BIG closets in my room. 1 for clothes, shoes etc. and 1 for extra storage.

i don't have a basement or garage, so i need the storage also. i hope to put a fairly big shed outside and eventually maybe a carport.

if I could build i'd make it basically this same layout - I really like it. i'd just make the rooms a little bigger. those 3 bedrooms especially! i think making it about 2' more front to back and 4 or 5' wider would make up that extra footage.

desertsteph~~ Your house sounds like something I would be interested in......sorry you can't post pics....I am such a visual person that it is hard for me to picture in my mind. Thanks so much for sharing.....and if you can find someone who can post pics, I would LOVE to see them...also a footprint of your floor plan.

phoggie - I'll try to do a drawing of it (somewhere here i have graph paper...) I'm wondering if I can take a pic of it with my camera and it'll show up good enough? I might try that. I've put off getting a new printer til I'm in the new place.
it should be here this next month. I sure hope so - I'm beginning to think getting this place is just a dream...I'm dreaming of a kitchen with cabinets and drawers and a pantry. a shower without a tub ledge...lol!
I don't remember if I posted above that I'm disabled now too. the steps are very hard on me. I'll still have a couple of them - but about half of what I do now. and dbf says he'll put in a ramp next year. we just wanna get it set up and get me moved over into it. He's going to put a fence up for the dogs so at least I won't have to go up and down them so many times a day taking my girl dog out...and back in. I'll just be able to open the door and let her go out by herself! I'm gonna love that...

you know even if I don't use graph paper and make to scale etc with your dh being an architect he should be able to take it from the general layout - right? i'll try to do that tomorrow.

I didn't forget... will try to get it drawn out in the next few days!