Tips for Choosing the Right Floor Plan

Posted by Jenni Barnett on Friday, September 11th, 2020 at 9:06am.

The choice in buying a home is without a doubt, overwhelming. But with so many different factors, what does it really come down to? The floorplan. The floorplan of a home is what you’ll truly be living in day to day. Because of how important floorplans are, it’s necessary to really give it some thought before you’re on your house hunt (or looking into designing a new build). By thinking about what you want and need ahead of time, you’ll have a smoother search process and end up more likely to be happy with your choice for years to come. Here are some ways we like to think about floor plans and what you might want out of them:


Budget

The harsh reality is that, unless you have a truly unlimited fund for your home, there will be a budget involved. Knowing and deciding on that upfront will help in many ways. First, your choices will be narrowed - and while it’s not fun when your dream house is out of your budget - why waste the time looking at it in the first place? Instead, focus on maximizing your budget for what you can decide on. Having options that are in your budget will allow you to look at your realistic choices. Your budget will also help you know what is a priority between size and amenity. Both come with costs, and it’s important to know which one is a priority for you. This prioritization will help both a home search and figuring out the details of a new build. 


Current Growing Pains

No matter where you’re coming from, whether it be a house, apartment, condo, or starter house, you likely have something that you without a doubt want to be different. Is it that with a growing family you literally don’t have enough rooms? Is it the fact that as someone who works at home you have never actually had somewhere to call your office? Do you wish you had more open spaces? Smaller spaces? Take note of what has been on your mind at your current situation - that is likely a great place to start.


Your Future Life

Similar to thinking about what you need in your current home that you don’t have, what do you think you’ll need in the next five to ten years? Would you like to see your family size double? Will you be empty nesters? Do you hope to have a couple more dogs with a fenced-in yard for the first time ever? Planning for not just the here and now, but what you hope your life will look like will help set you up for success for the long term.


Bedrooms

Bedrooms are obviously a given - but the setup and preference for bedrooms are not. Most couples with small kids like to have bedrooms grouped together in one area of the house. Families with older kids or others living with them prefer to have bedrooms in separate areas of the house for more privacy. There’s also the master on the main preference. Deciding on your ideal bedroom set up will help you narrow in on options where you already know you enjoy a major aspect of the floorplan.


Entertainment Area

Depending on how often you like to host guests and entertain, you may want to think about how you would like your home to open to guests? Are you the type that wants the front door to open up to the first level, leaving no rooms out and plenty of room for large gatherings? Or are you more private, and ideally wanting a formal living room as soon as guests walk in, keeping the rest of the house private? More food for thought!


Outdoor Space

Deciding how much, and what type of outdoor space is another aspect of a home that is helpful to make decisions on upfront. There are not only choices in size, but features and amenities as well. A large yard, a pool, a waterfall - all are huge assets, but also require lots of upkeep and can easily get rundown without. Deciding on what you’d like ahead of time also helps you narrow where you should look, and how to prioritize budget for both an existing home or new build.


Do You See Yourself There?

Whether you’re buying an existing home or designing a new build, what really counts is “can you see yourself there”. As corny as it may sound - no matter the prioritizing of features and budget and location and all the other details, at the end of the day you need to just have that feeling that you can picture yourself happy there. One trick is to mentally walk through your morning and night routines in a home you’re looking at to see if it feels right. Does something feel off? Think about the categories above! Everything feel “just right”? You may have yourself a keeper! 

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