House Plans

Selecting the House Plan that Best Fits Your Lifestyle

• So you are ready to build your new house?
• Wishing you had more space for your growing family?
• Do you find yourself wondering if now's the time to build your dream home?

It’s time to look at some house plans. Where to start?

First things first… Do you have a lot to build on? If not, we recommend you get one. It is best to purchase a lot before you commit to a specific house plan. In most cases you can modify any of our house plans to fit your lot, it is much more difficult to find a lot that will accommodate a specific house plan (See below about choosing a lot).

The next step is one of the most important steps. Selecting the house plan. The house plan you choose will be the blueprint to your dream home (No pun intended).

Selecting a house plan to meet your lifestyle and needs may seem time consuming or in many cases overwhelming. Having a firm grip on what you (and your family) desire in a house plan can help choose the perfect house plan that meets your every need.

Living Concepts Home Plans has compiled 10 questions that should help you narrow down your home plan search while browsing the house plans on our site.

1. How big is your lot? This will establish the dimensions of the house plan you can select. Be sure to use the area within the setbacks of the lot. This is the area you can build in. Sloping lots will allow for a house plan with a daylight or walk-out type basement.

2. How is your land situated? Knowing how the sun rises and sets on your lot will help decide which side of the house plan you want certain rooms to be, such as a sun room or screened porch. Knowing what kind of views you have will let you select the house plan that takes advantage of the natural setting of the lot. Choose a house plan that will best compliment the natural surroundings of the land.

3. How big is your family? This will help you decide how many bedrooms the house plan will need. Other bedrooms to consider are house plans with guest rooms, in-law suites, or apartments.

4. Where do you spend most of your time? Knowing where you spend the most time in your home will let you know what kind of spaces the house plan will need. Recreation Room, Media Room, Den, Study…

5. Do you like to cook? Home may be where the heart is, but he kitchen is where it resides. This is where families spend most of their time together. Select a house plan with a kitchen that will accommodate all the members of your family.

6. Do you have friends over often? Know how you like to entertain your guests. For weekend cookouts we recommend house plans with outdoor recreation spaces. For casual in-door entertaining look for house plans with open gathering spaces. If you prefer more intimate settings, choose a house plan with formal living and dining areas.

7. Do you have any neighborhood restrictions? Check with you neighborhood homeowners association to see if there are any limitations on what you can build. Some neighborhoods restrict house plans to specific styles as well as size or height of home.

8. How much privacy do you want and where? Check house plans for window locations and where certain rooms are located. Do you prefer the master suite on the second level of the house plan or on the main level? Many people prefer home plans with more privacy in the master suite and master retreat areas, others might need privacy in a other parts of the home such as an office, study, or library.

9. Can you remember features of a home you were in that you loved? Think about homes that you have visited in the past. What features did you like and dislike? Think about things you saw and just have to have.

10. Will this home be marketable in the future? In the event that you choose to sell the house in the future, decide if the house plan you choose will be something that someone else will want.

Now that you have a handle on what it is you want, it is time to start looking at some house plans.

Why choose house plans from Living Concepts Home Plans?

Its easy, all the work has been done. All of our house plans start as custom home plans designed by our sister company Building Graphics Architecture. Living Concepts Home Plans provides you these house plans at a fraction of what it cost to initially develop the house plans. You can save thousands of dollars by purchasing house plans from Living Concepts Home Plans over having a custom home plan drawn by an architect. Architectural design fees can cost up to 10 percent of the total cost of the home. You are buying completed house plans.

There is no mystery when building any of our house plans. Most of our house plans have been built at least once. You have the confidence that when you build one of our house plans that you are building a house plan that has already been tested and works!

You don’t have to wait for your house plans. Custom home plans can take months to develop and complete. In most cases house plans orders can be shipped to you within 2 business days.

Building a new home will be an extraordinary experience for you. Many decisions will need to be made from choosing exterior finishes to deciding what color the cabinets will be in the kitchen.

Remember that you will not always find the perfect house plan as is. Most of our plans can be modified to meet you and your family’s every need. With a little bit of patience and a lot of perseverance you will find the right house plan and build the home you have always dreamed of living in.

Choosing a lot

Location. Location. Location. That’s what we hear when buying property. Location is very important but there are many other factors to think about when choosing a lot on which to build your house plan.

First, is it large enough for the house plan you envision? You do not want to build a large home on a small lot. Be sure that the size of the lot will be proportional to the size home you plan on building.

When was the last survey performed? Be sure that the lot has been staked out correctly and a current survey has been performed. Most important to know are the setbacks. This is the area within the property where you can actually construct the home.

What kind of views does the lot offer? Look at the characteristics of the property and think how you will orient the home on the lot. Look at what you can see from different points on the lot and think about what room you would like to be in when seeing this through a window.

What is the topography of the lot? Look at how level the lot is. Does it slope front to back to accommodate a daylight or walk-out basement? Look for any other conditions of the lot that may affect the design or placement of the home.

Before you commit to a specific house plan it is very important to have a lot where you choose to live. Many physical factors of the property will affect what house plan will work best and if the house plan will need to be modified to work with-in the lay of the land.