3 General Trends That Can Work for Your Custom Home Plans
If you?ve decided to build a new home, you?ve likely felt inundated by helpful suggestions from friends and family. Everyone has their own idea of what perfect custom home plans should look like. In reality, though, there?s no ?right? or ?wrong? way to plan a house — however, this can leave you feel confused as to what your future home should look like.
2016 has been an interesting year so far for custom home builders. We?ve seen an increase in requests for green building, which isn?t too surprising considering that consumers are increasingly interested in purchasing environmentally products. As the Baby Boomer generation continues to age, there?s also been interest in purchasing multi-generational households. A semi-separate first floor apartment can be ideal for housing aging parents or kids attending college (or working unpaid internships after college!).
These are some general trends — but what can you specifically request for your custom home plans? Here are some ideas.
Geothermal Heating
Geothermal heating is a technology both old and new — humans have been taking advantage of it since Paleolithic times, but it?s only made its way into modern home heating plans fairly recently. This system makes use of natural heating and cooling cycles of the earth in order to manage your home?s temperature. Even better, heat is often released through the floor — eliminating the uncomfortable sensation of cold feet. On average, these systems use up to 50% less energy than their more traditional counterparts.
Open Floor Plans
When it comes to open floor plans, many people envision the extreme: a fairly wall-less home where you can see into the bedroom from the first floor dining room. Not so! Rather, open floor plans try and make use of space in a way that opens up your home and makes it feel airy and expansive, rather than a series of tiny, disconnected rooms. In 2016 you do not want to opt for a kitchen that is completely closed off from everything else. Get rid of that wall, and consider opening up the dining room space as well. Just keep noise in mind for your custom house designs: a library or study, for example, is a great example of a space that benefits from walls.
Pay Attention to the Floor in Luxury Home Plans
Padded carpets are in this year. Why? They retain a lot more of their “bounce,” even after regular wear and tear, adding up to 50% more height and thickness than a typical carpet.
A lot of people may have suggestions for ideal custom home plans; whatever you put in your home, though, is up to you! Just keep in mind what you actually need, instead of what you think you’d like; a bowling alley can be fun, but will you really use it as much as a geothermal heating system? Maybe not.
