I asked around about the budget in the area. They say on average it’s about $250-300 per s/f. I am thinking I would multiply $300 with s/f and add 20% for cushion. I chose the upper end since the site is challenging to build.
CF, my builder works exclusively with his architect. I saw a couple of houses they built. I liked them.
The architect we used for designing our basement layout asked us to tell him what we wanted to do or have in each space versus telling him we need a 16x 20 ft family room space. As in…we would like our family room to have a couch, 2 recliners and a game table, a location for the TV where it won’t be affected by the sun, a sight line to the kitchen and in a location where the TV/noise won’t be heard from the master bedroom.
^Exactly it’s the architects job to figure out how big the space should be, but they have to know what you want to do in the space.
I drew the floor plan and then had the builder work with a draftsman to put to blueprint.
The builder had so many good suggestions.
I fought for twice as many lights in the kitchen (great room/dining/kitchen all open).
Had a designated huge storage room and almost lost it but did not budge.
Somehow someone wrecked my laundry room plan to have space for a folding
table.
Mostly all good.
Wish I had more space in the kitchen. Had more sliding glass doors.
Had stuck to my desire for double hung windows in the Master even if it did not “look” as good.
Wish I had put many ceiling fans in even though have AC.
Still love all of the cherry wood throughout. The 9" ceilings. Huge! closets.
Enjoy. Next to having my kids this was a highlight of my life.
Get a builder who you get along with and can be fun.
My builder told me that for the time being we were “married”.
It really was like that. And letting go of the process was difficult too!
I browsed Building a Home forum at houzz.com @Silpat suggested. Tons of information. Most there recommend not to bring your own floor plan.
I designed my parents house and my Dad had some sort of sketch floor plan with a stair that would have been a ladder. I did give them a house that my parents were happy with in the end. I’d rather not get a floor plans, but I do want to know whether you want the kitchen open to everything, whether you want the kids near your bedroom or a separate wing.
How would it be if I say where the great room should be due to the view? Is it too dictating?
No not at all. What views you like and when you want to enjoy them is definitely something the architect should know!
You say you have an odd lot. Make sure your house is positioned correctly on it to capture the view you want.
Our house is on the river and was set parallel to the river and NOT the street to get the maximum view (as an example).
And I do think it’s good to not get "married’ to a floor plan you may find. I was thinking more of a bubble map of general placement of rooms to take to the architect.
Our neighbors house is also on the river–and only ONE room actually has great views --the upstairs have NO view.
The wife had found a house plan she loved in a magazine and wouldn’t change anything much to the builder’s dismay (we know the builder and saw the house). She even nixed changing the upstairs window plan to get better water views. It was a great house for a lot with no particular views but horrible for a house with a focal point.
As good as your architect may be, they aren’t going to be living in your house with your lifestyle. And nobody is good at everything. Our architect admitted he wasn’t the best at designing bathrooms–we had an odd shaped powder room. So that was a space we played with ourselves (and I love it).
STORAGE, STORAGE, STORAGE. We have some built in dressers that I’d do again in a flash. Book shelves. Linen closets. Think about what you want to store (after the garage sale)–files, kitchen stuff, holiday decorations. As long as you’re starting from scratch look at your belongings and give them a home too. Don’t let anybody grab your closet space. If your H needs room for fishing equipment, he doesn’t get to use your linen closet.
And again, list items you have that aren’t going anywhere–perhaps small office space, piano?
I wouldn’t buy a ready made house plan. There’s none that would work for the lot. It is a difficult site. I doodled a lot and have a plan that may work. I thought about showing it to the architect. After reading comments, I changed my mind.
I enjoy the challenge of overcoming challenging sites. What makes this site difficult?
The architect (if they are any good) will want to understand what is important to you in your new house plan. Going over your doodle with them can help them understand. “I put the living room here because I wanted a view of the river; I put the kitchen here so I can enter without any steps; we want to have a king size bed and two armchairs in the bedroom so I made the master bedroom big.” Those comments will allow your architect to better design what you want, even if their superior knowledge of architecture might mean that there are other choices that might better achieve your goals.
I would definitely show your plan to the architect. It’s a starting place at least before they go drawing the kitchen a football field away from where you haul the groceries into the house.
This thread made me think of the NF book by Tracy Kidder called “House” it is a house being built from 3 POVs–homeowner, architect, and builder and their relationships/issues. I’ve read it more than once.
^Sounds like a fun book! I’ll check if the local library has it.
@Iglooo - What makes the site difficult? I’m experienced at solving these challenges.
House is a fun book, though the architect is an idiot. Though to be fair if I remember correctly it was his first solo project.
My favorite book for thinking about architect and what makes spaces work is A Pattern Language by Christopher Alexander. It’s basically a list of patterns that work, going from small scale (room) to large scale (city). On the room/house scale he talks about entrance transitions, alcoves, window places, interior windows, thick walls, sunny counters, child caves (one of my favorites). I don’t think he’s right about everything, but he’s provocative and the pictures and sketches are evocative. The design of the book has this weirdly 19th century vibe, but while he’s asking us to look at what works in traditional spaces, you can do much of what he suggests with more modern styling.
@sherpa It is on top of a decent slope and the buildable lot, located at the top is small. It is regulated with conservation in mind. It also has to satisfy township codes specific to the site regarding height, roof pitch/type, and a few others.
@mathmom That sounds quite useful. I will check that out.
We custom built our last home and our builder suggested we browse through this website: https://www.dongardner.com. It’s super searchable based on square footage, stories, number of bedrooms/bath, and styles. We picked one we liked and used it as a starting point.
The only other advice that I would add is be very clear with your architect about your budget (kind of like college). Our builder was able to make suggestions to make the plan we like more affordable and keep us within our budget.
You also need to decide what’s important to you about where you want to spurge and where you want to cut back if need be. Our builder’s “allowance” for the kitchen was ridiculously low for us but his flooring and lighting budget were way over than what we needed.
Happy designing! Such an exciting process.
@Iglooo - Dealing with sloping lots is challenging but fun. Let me see if I understand; is this an uphill lot, meaning the driveway will climb the hill? And I’m also assuming you’ll want one level living, and also want an attached garage. Is that all correct?
The roof height restriction should be easy to handle, especially given the smallish size home you’re shooting for.
Are there any other site considerations to contend with?