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| Is Southern Living's home plan collectionthe best? |
| Yes |
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25% |
[ 1 ] |
| Maybe |
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0% |
[ 0 ] |
| No |
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75% |
[ 3 ] |
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| Total Votes : 4 |
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Susan_Sentosa
Joined: 21 Apr 2007
Posts: 1
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 Posted: Sat Apr 21, 2007 1:36 am Post subject: My Dream House! |
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Hi!
I wanted some good designs for my dream house. I want it to be a 3 level house. I have 3000 sq. ft. space in a community full of parks, and I want the architecture to be very graceful.
I have been referred to this site: www.slhouseplans.com
Have heard that it has the most impressive collection of unique home plans, but I have ended up too confused with so many good designs!!!!!!!
Which plan do you think looks best? Also, how best can I fit in a Wraparound front porch ?
Thanks in advance!  |
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sydneyjones
Joined: 23 Apr 2007
Posts: 3
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| Posted: Mon Apr 23, 2007 1:03 am Post subject: Its Awesome! |
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www.slhouseplans.com is definitely a good site ... It has an impressive collection of unique house plans.
You can find plans for different styles here .. Multi-Unit Home Plans, Beach/Coastal Home Plans, small house plans, southern home plans, luxure home plans, and country home plans to Bungalow Home Plans
I think you need to first finalize on the type and after that I think www.slhouseplans.com has an ample number of plans for you. You can also customize the plans if you wish.
All the best!
Cheers! |
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phansford
Joined: 18 Apr 2004
Posts: 556
Location: SW Ohio
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| Posted: Mon Apr 23, 2007 8:04 am Post subject: |
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Susan,
Southern Living has a nice collection of home plans. So do many others. It really is a matter of what you are looking for in your house plans. I have had a few clients purchase plans from Southern Living. We end up not using the drawings because the plans are suitable for flat lots only. All plan service drawings are basically designed for a "typical flat lot". So as a word of caution, you might end up having to redesign the house to fit your actual site. As I recall the Southern Living drawings are very detailed.
Concerning a wrap-around porch, they are a nice way to create exterior living space. But typically, most people cannot afford to build them to a usable depth. Everytime we design one as requested by the Owner, they get downsized due to cost. Depending on size they can add $30-$50 K to a project cost. This porch which we designed added about $25K to the project. Think clearly how you will use the space.
Historically speaking, the wrap around porch as we know seems to have orginated in the south where they were used to shade the house from the hot sun and provide exterior living spaces. Some even were used as sleeping porches during the hot Summer months. Here is an example of what I am referring to...
So do you want to just have a wrap-around porch for visual effect or do you want to make it an intregral part of the living spaces. |
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kmapro
Joined: 03 Mar 2006
Posts: 128
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| Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2007 9:01 am Post subject: |
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I second phansford's comments.
If you are having a hard time finding exactly what you want, or even if there are parts of one you like and parts of another that you like, I would go to a design specialist and have them design a plan that suites your needs best. in the long run, you will probably come out better budget wise.
Reitterating phansford's comments on cost, people pften think that a porch will be a cheep endeavor. They look at it as less costly because it is a structure tied on to the house. this is not the case. In cases where handrails are required, the railing it self can cost upwards of what a framed wall would cost. Special lumber is required for the weather resistance...then there is painting or staining...the list can go on.
The look of the wrap around porch is definately a southern/plantation styling. I love the looks, but have been driven away by the costing - as mentioned. |
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RSCarcht
Joined: 02 Feb 2007
Posts: 92
Location: USA: RI, CT, NY, MA, FL
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| Posted: Tue May 08, 2007 6:17 pm Post subject: |
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A house plan is a good place to start, but a house is not something you want to go out and pick up at Walmart. It is the biggest investment you are ever going to make and you need a good guide to lead your through the many possible difficulties.
People often think that money they spend on design will be less money they have to spend on construction. This is completely backwards. Money spent on good design is money that WON'T have to be spent on redoing construction. It is simply the extension of the old addage "measure twice, cut once" taken to an extraordinarily large and complex scale. A good architect will often save the owner more money than their fee on competively bid construction and will provide tremendous expertise and construction advice as a bonus!
Take into account the special challenges of a given site, local zoning and building codes, a permitting process that can be difficult and some contractors who will be happy to spend your last cent and you will realize that building your own house out of a plan book is like doing your own dentistry. When you feel the pain don't say you weren't warned so don't let your dream house turn into a nightmare.
_________________
Ross Sinclair Cann, AIA APA
http://www.a4arch.com |
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sydneyjones
Joined: 23 Apr 2007
Posts: 3
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| Posted: Sun May 27, 2007 2:25 pm Post subject: Another great site that might be useful to you! |
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Hi Susan, Slhouseplans.com is great, but I found another great site that might help you.
Check it out at www.houseplancentral.com
House Plan Central has a large collection of home plans and unique house plans in many different architectural styles, from the nation's top house designers and architects. There are New home plans, Free House Plans, Small House Plans, Country House Plans, Southern House Plans, basically you can say that the database is huge!!!
I actually happened to find some with a wraparound porch like you wanted so I thought you should take a look at this. Hope you find the right one that you have been looking for! |
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JayRHP
Joined: 01 Jun 2007
Posts: 1
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The Architect
Joined: 09 Jun 2005
Posts: 184
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| Posted: Mon Jun 11, 2007 12:16 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: | | Susan_Sentosa, "...and I want the architecture to be very graceful." |
Nice word that, "graceful". Brings to mind endless concepts of simple elegance. Rhythms and proportions ...and durations thereof.
Take care... |
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