Designing a home is such a creative and inspiring project to think about and to dream of while looking through real estate ads. You can plan an architectural wonder home for a vacation rendezvous or an environmentally sound retirement cottage. Spacious bathrooms and sunset balconies, walk-in fireplaces and rustic kitchens are just a few design elements you can dream of while sitting at your job. Each detail of the house is imagined and adjusted to fit your desires. Of course, if you do not want to have to try to think it all through or maybe you just don't do well in the creative process then you can buy standard floor plans all measured and laid out for you. A lot of people start with a standard floor plan and then modify it with an architect to fit their needs, many times based on the limits of their money.
Significance
Planning ahead is crucial in building a house. You need to measure every detail of the design and calculate it to fit together with the whole project. It is a serious job and takes hours of an architects' time. Many times, they will sit down with you and ask you questions about yourself so they can understand what is important to you in the home design. If you are an avid music lover, you might want you to have an acoustically-designed living space. If you are a food aficionado, then a gourmet kitchen with an open seating area might fit your cup of tea. If you simply want to make your home as efficient as today's architects can imagine, then alternative energy sources might be included in your plans. Without a plan, your house will be pointless and without a focal point, like a painting without a subject. Even if you start with a standard floor plan, making a few changes with your designer can turn it into a dream home you will be proud to call your own.
Expert Insight
Even the best dreamer needs professional help when it comes to drawing up home plans. You need to meet city, county, and state building codes just to get the blueprints approved. The professional architect will plug all the design elements into a sophisticated software program that can calculate the different elements of the blueprints. The program will notify the user of problems until they are fixed. You ill be involved with many different professionals at each stage of the design process and a good architect will work through each level with you. Money is a key issue during this stage, as designers and architects are expensive to hire, but the investment will pay for itself many times over in the end. Expect your architect to ask you several questions, such as time frame, financial constraints, contact personnel, as well as detailed questions about your heating and cooling choices, lighting options, water and sewer options, and other specific issues about your plans.
Function
The purpose of putting your dreams on paper and calling the resulting blueprint a house plan is simply so you can have a real tangible, visual drawing of what your house will look like. You might find that the dreams in your head are not the same looking when they are on paper. The same thing will apply when you show your plans to your builder. He will be able to see on paper what you are thinking and not have to rely on his interpretation of your desires. The house plan will be referenced over and over during the whole process and as a result you will be ordering many copies of the blueprints.
Considerations
Planning a new house can be a very satisfying process if you take the time to write down everything you think of and address it with your architect, before any action starts on the approval process of your blueprints. When you finally think you are finished, do not call up your architect and tell him you have a new idea. The approval process that can take weeks to get through will be stopped and process will have to be scheduled to start again at a later date. Your actual construction can be put off for months by not having a solid plan for the approval boards.
Prevention/Solution
If you really want to keep your house plans affordable and realistic, do your homework. Understand what your financial limitations are and find out what you think you can do within that framework. For instance, if you think you want a kitchen with granite countertops and high tech appliances but only have a budget for a few thousand dollars, your architect will have the embarrassing job of bringing your hopes and dreams down to reality. Make a budget and stick with it until you have a plan that stays within the boundaries. Plan on everything costing more than you thought, even after doing your homework and be ready for surprises.
When you look for an architect, the most important issue is references. Ask them for a list of work they have completed and the name of a person who can vouch for their work. Most companies host online sites and list satisfied customers' responses, but look for comments, both good and bad, about the architectural firm from other sources as well. Check with the Better Business Bureau for any complaints filed against them.
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