Home design has long been plagued by home budgets. Sky rocketing costs have pushed us to build track homes and other poorly designed homes to keep the cost low and the profit high. The damages this has caused are various and are topics of more in-depth discussions. Suffice it to say that theyve created a cost driven society that ignores quality in areas like proper indoor flow, aesthetic detail, materials, environmental safety, health, etc. Home designers arent to blame for this, and neither are builders. Society evolved this way and its a problem in more than just homes. Lets look at a home that strives for something beyond quick construction, low cost, and mediocre design.
The Corbin Park, from one of our newest home designers, is a beautiful Craftsman with a thoughtful design. The floor plan flows well, has both formal and informal rooms, and uses all available space. The garage is hidden and allows the charming front porch with iconic tapered columns, the detailed shingle and masonry work with Frank Lloyd Wright/Falling Water style rock, and nostalgic clapboard siding to gently invite your guests and intrigue the passer-by.
Key features that make this house work so well are apparent in the floor plan. The upper floor is reserved for bedrooms, giving maximum privacy and main floor cleanliness. Of particular importance is the existence of storage space. The closet under the stairs offers quick access storage, while the bonus room could provide organized storage for the whole house. The den also relates to this as it can keep paper work and mail organized as an office. The home doesnt leave much dead space, and builds up rather than out to alleviate cost per sq. foot.
This lovely home design has answers that counter-act the misfortune of the quality=cost equation, and the ensuing poor quality. A little history will help us understand this better. The term Craftsman comes from a magazine started by American Gustav Stickley in 1901, a follower of the British borne Arts and Crafts movement. Its important to note that the Arts and Crafts, or Craftsman, movement was against mass production and a fear of its common side effect: low quality goods and cheap assembly. The Corbin Park is a true Craftsman house plan and offers real design value and real estate worth. The elements of this particular plan call for a higher plane of construction, all while remaining fairly square and tall to save money. From the designers website:
"Our pledge to you is that our [plans] are clear, easy to read, easy to understand and are drawn with a nod to construction industry dimension modules, which reduces cutting and waste. Nothing hurts a builder more than taking a large pile of unneeded debris to the dump and throwing away that money. Our designs are both beautiful and efficient, designed not only for the pride of the homeowner, but for the builders' bottom line."
Quality and cost can work together. I decided to write about this not only to show you a beautiful home, but to discuss real worth. I hope it helps you as you search through our plans and create your home budget.
There are home plans out there that use selective design principles based on creating a better lifestyle. These plans use aesthetics, space planning or flow, and good building techniques to create an easier build, and a smart floor plan. I always tell people to build smart, not big. What I mean is that a well-designed house plan that is smaller will feel and act bigger than a big home. If youre worried about your budget, for example, find a smaller home that has all the rooms you need, multi-function capabilities, storage, and size where it needs to be. You can then afford to spend more on materials and finishes that really make a space. If you love the spaces youre in, you stop being concerned with size. Guests will pay attention to the details and the beauty of it all. Youll be complimented by everyone who stops by.
Look for some upcoming articles on which rooms are most important and why. Well talk about the hierarchy of rooms and sizes, and how to make the most of the limited space you have. For now, pay attention to smaller homes. See what they have to offer. Pick the kind of house you want, or the grade of house, and finish materials, then find the plan that will accommodate that and your budget. Look into ecologically friendly materials and systems that will optimize the performance of your house. Spend your money on real quality, not just on big. Bigger isnt better, its just bigger. A great resource is greenandsave.com. Youll find a wealth of information there. Feel free to contact us with any questions or ideas and well be happy to discuss it. Click here for one more look at the Corbin Park. Good hunting.
For more information, go to
www.theplancollection.com.