If you run into me on the street, in a restaurant or anywhere else – be prepared.
I have become a crazy person.
A one-track-mind-I-only-talk-about-houses crazy person.
If you are a friend. I’m sorry. Sort of.
It’s just that getting ready to build a house has taken over every little open spot in my brain. And I’m beginning to realize that planning a renovation and planning a house build are two totally different things.
I would like to believe that the renovations we’ve completed give us a good start on the path to home building, but there are just so many things to think about. And we haven’t even broke ground yet.
Just prepare yourself.
As we finalized the house plans and started making decisions, we’ve also realized that many of the decisions were based on our past houses – especially things that drove us crazy and we want to do differently.
Here are a few of those things.
(And I want you to tell me what you would do differently in your house in the comments.)
Practical floor plan over curb appeal
This is a tough one for me.
I so badly want the outside of the house to be adorable. I love a cute little house.
But we live INSIDE a house. And I badly need the inside of the house to be super practical.
This actually came up recently. We had planned a centered door in the front. Because, duh, symmetry.
But then I started losing sleep over the layout in the living room. And I realized that in our last two houses, I HATED walking in the front door in the middle of the room. It essentially meant that we lost a lot of real estate to foot traffic and door openings.
In our last house, we really only used half of our living room space.
So, we decided to change the door placement in the house and align the door on the right side of the house. I’m at peace with this. And the outside will still be cute.
Mudroom
This is pretty self-explanatory. I’ve never had a mudroom. I’ve never had a place to store coats and boots and bags appropriately.
That was a non-negotiable need when we designed the house.
Closets
In our last two houses, we had the standard number of closets in an old house. Which is also known as not nearly enough closets.
And we were stupid enough to lose all downstairs closets in our last house. All we had was a little area of hooks near the backdoor and a built in bench in the front
In the Midwest. Where it snows and rains and we wear coats.
(Can you even believe that’s all the space we had for coats? I’m practically Amish with that simplicity.)
And this was the space I had for my closet in our first house. It was in the guest bedroom.
So, in this house – closets are a first priority. Ample closets in bedrooms, a large linen closet, and a huge coat closet downstairs. And there’s even room in the mudroom for built-in lockers.
Life will be very good.
Stairs
I adore the staircase in our last house. Gawwwwd. I loved that staircase.
But you know what I didn’t love?
Falling down the stairs. Several times. Life flashing before my eyes. And having a minor heart attack every time my toddler got near said stairs.
So, as much as it pains me to say it. We’re going to have carpeted stairs.
More cabinets
Can you ever have too many kitchen cabinets?
The answer is no. So, more is more with kitchen cabinets. I’m just packing those babies in there.
Better pantry usage.
In our first house, we had no pantry. (But we did create this rad little storage area in the area by the basement stairs.)
In our second house, we had a pantry. And I didn’t maximize the space at all.
I put the garbage cans in the bottom, and that was a terrible use of space.
So, in this house, I need a great pantry. One with roll-out shelves, preferably. And I guess the garbage cans will have to be hidden in lower cabinets.
So, those are a few of the things I want to do differently in this house.
Solving big world problems here, folks. Pantries and carpeted stairs.
And now I simply must know …
What would you do differently in your next house?
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Heather Aunspach says
I was surprised by the number of “wants” that went to the wayside once I started working on floor plans. I prioritized budget and efficiency over a couple of things that I had my heart set on like an indoor slide and a bench on the backside of the kitchen island that the kids could stand on to work in the kitchen and also doubled as bench seating for the dining table.
I planned a wheelchair accessible main floor (because you never know) with the master bedroom, hall bath and laundry. I don’t want extra bathrooms to clean and I don’t mind sharing so I didn’t want an on-suite. I considered not putting a bathroom upstairs, but we have four kids and I would probably regret it. Upstairs will have two bedrooms, a bathroom and a play room. I’m also hoping to put a loft above the bathroom.
Major southern exposure is a big factor, I like lots of sunlight.
One big convenience feature that I refused to give up on is having only one entrance. I hate the kids tracking dirt in from different directions and trailing shoes, jackets and backpacks through the house. We finally settled on a breezeway/screened porch between the detached garage and the house. There are four doors in the breezeway; one to the front that will be the main entry for guests and access to the front yard, one into the garage so we don’t have to go out into the weather, one to the back yard, and one into the house which is actually on the side of the house, so the exterior breezeway door will serve as the “front door”. There is room in the breezeway for muddy boots and wet snow clothes.
Kenz @ Interiors By Kenz says
All of those things, are things you will NOT regret! Literally, we made sure to have all of those things when we did our build. So far, I’m the happiest with pantry & closets. After living without those things for so long, it’s a nice love affair to have.
Anni L says
It will be a cute house! Speaking from farm family experience, I think the exterior door opening into the kitchen would drive me crazy (or is that just me?) Personally, I would just have windows there, with a window seat that has storage below the seat. I would put in a door from the backyard into the garage as close to the mudroom entry door as is possible; that way little persons, and their dads , get the mudroom floor dirty when they enter and re-enter the house, and not the kitchen. Plus then there would also be a door to the garage, which is always useful on a farm.
I can hardly wait to see how lovely you make the space!
Kim Woodward says
Interesting! It’s really common to have a door in the kitchen here – and we’ll have a large back deck/patio for eating/etc.
We also do have a man door coming into the garage and I expect that will be the most used entrance. The back is actually really steep so it would be a lot of steps to get up to the kitchen door.
Thanks so much for your feedback, though!
Rebecca says
I’m getting a ranch style house for our next one. Because I’m clumsy. And we have a toddler. And I hope the next house will be our forever house, which means I want it to be as easy as possible for us to age in place when we get old.
Amanda says
I’m in an 1875 victorian rental right now – pretty far from what you are planning! But my dream for our first home…
Mud room (or at least an entryway, our stairs and door connect and there is no place for anything)
Working wood burning fireplace (I love building a real fire and our home has two unworking sad fireplaces)
Pantry with LIGHTS and pull-out shelves so nothing gets lost at the back
High ceilings (our victorian has 10 ft ceilings and I don’t think I could ever have less now!)
GARAGE of any kind. (We have no garage. Our miter saw is sitting in the guest room. Ugh!)
I love our original windows. They are wooden and in great shape. With maintenance they will last another 100 years, while today’s plastic manufactured ones only last 20-30 at the most.
Built-in storage. All the built-in-storage. I hate having ridiculous free-standing shelves in the bathrooms. BUILT-INS!!!!
Did I mention built-ins? Built in china cabinets…built in bookshelves… Built in kitchen nooks?!
Screen door! Our house has no screen doors. Why.
Things that I do NOT want in my future home…
I like having the washer and dryer downstairs personally, since I carry the laundry to the couch to fold. I would hate to be folding laundry all by my lonesome upstairs.
Do not want a master bedroom that is so large it needs it’s own sitting area. Who is sitting in their master bedroom except to put on socks?
Wood-looking-tile… I know it is popular but I would rather have wood.
Stackable washer and dryer – am I the only one who worries the top one will come crashing down on me?
Basement that only has outside cellar-door access (not great for Ohio weather)
Too much square footage to clean! I think about a 2,000 sq ft house is about all I’d want in the future.
Rhonda says
‘dumb waiter’ even if your contractor looks at you like your dumb.
I always thought having the washer/dryer upstairs would be a great idea until I thought about how many times I’d have to run up the stairs to switch loads. Some of this has to do with your personal routine. I don’t think I’d even hear the buzzer go off anymore and I’m only ’50’. And isn’t the hearing the first thing to go. Either put a bedroom/bath downstairs or plan to later. Even guests might appreciate it. Two entrances into this lower bath can help alleviate the need for a powder room on first floor. And just remember: even the contractors wives don’t always have things like they wish they did. We just don’t live in a perfect world. But we can learn to be happy with what we have.
Christine says
also, did you give yourself a dedicated craft space somewhere in house? Will this house have a basement that you can finish later on? (once kids get to the high school years and need a hang out place without mom and dad?)
Christine says
question about your current floorplan, the bumpout in the dining room, will you be doing a window seat or built in bench there?
Caroline says
We’re living in a house with lights in the closets (even small ones), and that is amazing! I’d recommend putting a light in every closet and laundry room, etc. I’ve also put outlets in closets and pantry. That way if you ever use it as a craft room, or an office, you can put a desk in the closet. In the pantry, you could put your toaster in it or something!
I know you probably won’t change your layout, but a friend has a small office/large closet type room off their living room that was big enough for a play room, and they could close the door to it and not have to clean it up each night! You don’t really have any space indoors that kids could go play while adults are also chatting. It may not be an issue if you’re planning to host outdoors or at the barn, but I would want that if I were building a house!
Kim Woodward says
Love the idea of the lights in the closet.
As for a play room, we’ll probably use the basement for that. But it’s definitely something to think about!
Amy says
-Never white countertops, or black for that matter.
-Master bedroom must have ample closet space. A small slider for 2 business careered adults is maddening.
-Counter-top space in the bathroom we get ready in. Nothing outrageous, but we should have more than a 4 inch perimeter around the sink for both of us to get dressed for the day.
-Counter-top space around cook-top that is NOT shared with your sink space.
-Make sure that the cabinets and drawers open completely and are useful in every weird corner of the kitchen.
-Make sure there are no dead spaces in your kitchen cabinets, that can work harder by using the space more wisely. Same deal for bathroom storage and utility storage.
Kim Woodward says
These are great things to consider! Thanks for sharing.
Cheryl says
Since I can fall up or down stair, carpeted or not, I would suggest a handrail on both sides of any staircase. In a perfect world I’d have a dumbwaiter so I don’t have to carry things on stairs!
Our house has a tiny coat closet – it is so shallow that all the hangers have to go at an angle. So plan your closets carefully. The linen closet is the same size – but that works just fine – nothing gets lost in the back.
A dedicated spot for cleaning supplies and bulky paper goods. My upright vacuum is in that coat closet. My brooms and mops are in the “laundry” end of the garage. I am able to keep cleansers under each sink along with small stash of shampoo & TP. I keep 8-pack of paper towels in guest room.
I envy your plan for a pantry and mudroom!
Kim Woodward says
These are all such wise tips. Thanks for sharing.
Kathy says
Because we’re building on farmland that’s been in my family for 100 yrs or so, it’s important that this house is “the one.” So, I’m thinking long term accessibility. Open floor plan, one bed/bath on the ground floor, and accessible in the event of limited mobility. (This was a point reinforced when my BFF’s hubby was wheelchair bound for a few months due to a work injury).
Kim Woodward says
Such a great thing to consider.
Christine says
agreed on having at least one bedroom/bath on main level, mostly for visiting aging parents, but if needed for us if we are going to “age in place”.
daisy says
That’s easy. Never live in an HOA-community again! Lesson learned…
Your house is going to be amazing!
Kim Woodward says
Yeah, I don’t think I could take HOAs either.
Kristin says
I wish we would’ve done a water closet in the master bath. Also a different layout to the foyer. The main entrance and the entrance off the garage that we use the most both open to the same foyer space. I’d prefer a separate main entrance than what we use daily. Sounds like you’ve got that covered though. I also wish we did an open staircase, more industrial looking.
Kim Woodward says
Isn’t it amazing how many little things you realize you’d do differently? It’s crazy.
Hillary says
I really love my house! It’s sort of silly that I’m so happy with a 70s split level, and lots of details need to change in it, like the nasty original shower in the master bath. But I LOVE that it’s so open that I can hear the kids in their bedrooms when I’m working in the kitchen and they can hear me. I feel like I always have a decent grip on what they’re up to, which is important when you’ve got a daughter who’s going on 13. 🙁 I also love that we have space for a computer in a public part of the house…again, so I can keep an eye on what the kids are up to. Things I’d change? I might add more spigots outside so we don’t have to move/extend hoses. I’d also add a dedicated dog feeding area somewhere and a spigot/faucet above their water dish. Dogs were not on our radar when we re-did our kitchen. Lastly, I wish it were easier to keep my house warm. Our main room is 22 feet tall and I think all the heat goes up and sits in the peak of the ceiling!
It’s so fun following you on this adventure! Thanks for sharing!
Kim Woodward says
The spigot thing is a great tip – it’s something that bugs me when I do have to water herbs on the deck or whatever. We also love our rain barrels, but sometimes you need a spigot.
I am so looking forward to having a more open space in this house. We’ve always been so closed off before. I think it will be a game-changer.
Carla says
After building our first home, we moved to an existing older style home and we deliberately did not do any renovations beyond a fresh coat of paint until now (2 years) because we wanted to be sure about the changes we were making. If I was to build a new house from scratch, I’d build more cupboards, forget about open plan anything and make sure the bedrooms are proportional.
Kim Woodward says
Interesting! I love hearing what other people would change!
Amanda S. says
The biggest item is a house that is accessible to you if you are injured. My husband was in an accident in November last year (he’s fine now) but immediately upon coming home we realized how horrible our floor plan was for someone with an injured leg. Top of the list for the next house is a bedroom downstairs, along with a bathroom that has a walk-in shower with bench. You never know when you will need it and we painfully learned that a half bath downstairs with all the bedrooms upstairs is useless when you are seriously injured. In fact, we determined we will never own a two story house again once we sell the one we are in! Not sure if that is useful info at all, but it is the biggest item on our list! 🙂
Hautie says
I belong to this club too.
Single story house. Never a two story.
Why a flat foundation? You can not begin to image how a single step down into a den will become a nightmare. Until you have to navigate an injured person over it. Gosh forbid a person who suddenly needs to use a wheel chair. One single step up or down is a nightmare.
This includes having to hike up three stairs just to get inside the house. Make sure there is a nice smooth entry somewhere, into the home that does not require climbing any stairs.
One odd thing I have learned.
At least one door, entering the house, needs to be wider.
It makes all the difference in the world moving furniture and appliances into the home. So either the front door or the door coming in from the garage. Making it wide enough to fit a refrigerator through it, without smashing your fingers is the goal.
Because that washer and dryer, are going to have to come inside too. Along with that oddly over sized sofa that you fell in love with… that is just too wide to fit through a normal size door way.
My sister. who built a lovely two story.
Her thing, she tells everyone else choosing to build a two story home. Have two laundry rooms. If all your bedrooms are upstairs… then 90% of your laundry is there. Why would you want to haul it up and down those stairs…. when you can have a nice closet with a full size washer and dryer inside it.
She does have a full size stack-able’s in the back entry area of her home. Which is a combo mudroom/laundry room. This way the odd stinky stuff her husband wants to wash… goes into the stack-able’s by the back door.
Kim Woodward says
Great tips! Love the idea of two laundry rooms. Ours is upstairs, but you have us thinking about putting the hooks ups downstairs, too.
Jessica @ Run Your Mutt Off says
I am SO glad to hear your moving the front door! Our door is in the corner of our living room and I LOVE that. We have a buffet that acts as a landing surface for keys and purses but it’s more than a useless entry table.
I think the things I wish our house had are: french doors off of the dining room to the back deck instead of a sliding door. Although less functional, they’re so much prettier.
I wish our master bedroom had doors to the backyard for hot tub access and letting the dogs out first thing in the morning.
And I wish we had a master suite – with walk in closet and bathroom. I think you’re skipping the master bath in lieu of a shared family bath. But I hate having a shared hall bath. I don’t like my guests using the same bathroom with all my personal things in it.
Kim Woodward says
The door thing was not a decision I took lightly. I really loved the symmetrical look on the front. But I know that it has to be good for living. And the move will be better for us.
Melissa says
I will never ever again buy a house without a pantry. We were first time home buyers and didnt realize until it was too late.
I think that I also would not plant 360 degrees around the whole house landscaping requiring lots of weeding and maintainance. It is just too much
Kim Woodward says
The pantry thing is huge for us, too.
Katherine Kelly says
What a great question … in my current split level home, the builders decided to put a bathroom right next to the master bedroom. The bathroom has two doors – one from the hallway and one from inside of the bedroom. Cool, right? Kind of like an en suite. Great. The problem is the door from the hallway and the door from the bedroom INTO the bathroom collide. Every morning. Every day. The hooks on each door get caught on one another and this is a mess. A pocket door isn’t an option due to duct work … and it gets messy. The moral of the story? If you’re going to throw a connection door from a bedroom to a bathroom, make sure it makes sense. 😉 Also: outlets near mantels by a fireplace (I think you already covered that).
Antonella @ Love Your Home says
These are all practical/realistic needs. My list wouldn’t be any different!
Natalie @ Being Mrs. Olson says
CLOSETS! I totally agree on that one. We are serial renters right now but looking to buy SOON. After living in several places, we’ve learned that we need a lot of closet space. With lots of appliances and food – I agree that a nice pantry is a must-have. Outlets, natural light, and an open kitchen, too! I like to be able to talk while one person is in the kitchen and the other is in the living room. Good luck with everything!
Kim Woodward says
There are never enough closets.
Jamie says
The biggest thing that jumps out to me is that “bump-out” area in the garage. (The area opposite the mud room) We have that situation in our current house. It is CRAZY! Part of this is due to my husband’s truck which blocks traffic to and from it unless he parks PERFECTLY. To truly be able to access anything out of that space other than foods from the deep freezer, we have to back the truck out of the garage. I’m not sure what the solution would be, other than that area to just be part of the house…MORE closet space 🙂
We have tried every type of organizational set up we know, but it is still not as functional as we had hoped.
Kim Woodward says
Interesting – definitely something to think about. I’m not super concerned since we both have really small vehicles and we have a huge barn for almost everything else. But, I definitely need to think it through.
cassie says
i think each house is a learning experience of what works best for us. can’t wait to see the new build come to life!
Cindy@TheFlippingCouple says
I WILL HAVE A MUDROOM GOSHDARNIT. For the love of all that is good and holy, no house in the midwest should be without a mudroom. Also, a coat closet. I would take ours out again, because, open floor plan baby, but I would just really love a place to hang my coat and hide my boots.
Kim Woodward says
It should be a law for all midwestern homes to have a mudroom.
Kasey says
A few small things. I love the look of pedestal sinks, but have grown to hate the lack of storage and counter space. I would only use these in a guest bath at this point.
Also, and maybe this is just me, but space in the mudroom for cleaning supplies including the vacuum. Right now, there is nowhere to put this stuff in our current house except the basement. We have a dog that sheds a lot and I would like to vacuum more regularly, but frankly, hauling the vacuum out is such a pain. It would be easier to have it on the main floor tucked away.
And pocket doors – we love them to save space.
Kim Woodward says
Great tip on the cleaning supplies storage. Definitely need to figure out where we’ll put that stuff.
Christine says
agreed on vacuum storage and pocket doors! We just finished having plans designed to remodel our home and those were two must haves for us too!
Isabelle says
Pocket doors are great, But also thin. So they don’t block sound much. I Would not use them in bathrooms or bedrooms 🙂
Debby Wagner says
Moving the door is a great ideal. That also gives you a little entry space. Not sure about carpet on stairs, I have slipped more on carpeted stairs. Either way falling on stairs hurts. Be sure to have gates at top and bottom with small children. Our home now only has stairs to basement, which has do or at top.
Your plans look great. The one thing I would change would be adding an exterior door where mudroom window is located. Don’t want wet, dirty or muddy feet coming through the kitchen or garage. Please make sure there a lot of exterior outlets, you use more than you think will. We have had to add more. Good luck with the home planning.
Kim Woodward says
Ugh. The stairs thing is killing me. I hoped the carpet would help, but maybe not?
Gates are always in the picture for us, but I still need them to be safe when we’re on them.
As for the door in the mudroom, it’s not really a possibility with the way the back elevation is. But thanks so much for sharing the recommendation – it’s a great point.
Isabelle says
We had carpeted stairs in my last house and if I was wearing only socks, I fell down them a bunch of times. I’m now pretty anti-stair now, but I understand that’s not always possible for the house you want. But making sure you have a good solid railing is the best safety tip!
Sara says
my friend has double the padding put into her carpeted stairs. I LOVE how soft they are and they aren’t SO scary to think about falling on.
Kim Woodward says
This is such an awesome idea – thanks for sharing this tip.
Joyce Fowler says
Built several large walk in closets in my current home love those. There are two that do not have lights in them and would like to add that, these two are not as large.
The main change I would make to my home is in the kitchen. This one has two corner cupboards with lazy susans. Hate those cupboards. They are hard to use. Also now have a deep pantry area with pull out shelves, would rather have not so wide so you could see everything when you open cabinet door. Would love to have one wall floor to ceiling with only cabinets for all the dishes and pantry items, and move the bar to the other side at an angle to fit in with dining area. Would like a built in desk somewhere in the kitchen, no over counter cabinets on sink side and an additional window over sink. I have two windows, but would like three. I personally like a smaller kitchen as I think it is easier to cook in. Your idea about the mud room would be a welcome addition to my front door as it now opens right into the living room. A heated bathroom floor would be wonderful. My home is a little over 1700 square feet and one story. I did have lots of shelves built in in the room that is the office and that is very nice. Also I have windows in every room including laundry area, love all the light.
Good luck on your project.
Kim Woodward says
Interesting points. Thanks so much for sharing your experience.
ruthann says
OUTLETS!!! Think Christmas lights, little lamps, above cabinets, We have found you can’t have too many! light switches to yard light in masterbedroom and kitchen. Love building!
Kim Woodward says
Definitely a great tip!
Kristi says
You are too funny and cute! “Practically Amish!” Ha! These are all very good points. In our next house, we will not have all of the bedrooms in the exact same area, note will we have them on two levels. (Don’t ask me where they will be, but we’ve had it both ways and neither is perfect.) Our current house has a proper entry and shave for a mudroom, both things I love and will look for again. We also have a basement for storage, hallelujah! I do believe a heated garage with stroller and bicycle parking will be added to our next home. And no we aren’t planning on moving again any time soon!
Kim Woodward says
All great ideas for your next house. No rush!
Gretchen says
Milo fell down our stairs carrying Abe the other day. I really need to get a runner on those suckers! This is our third house, so I pretty much knew the stuff we wanted here, and when we didn’t get it it was because we had to compromise somewhere (since we weren’t building our own house!). Mostly I wanted a coat closet and a fifth bedroom. oh well.
Kim Woodward says
Stupid compromise.