Building a home

[RaggedyAnn]

Originally Posted by SydneyK

I'm going to respectfully disagree with the comments suggesting vaulted ceilings. I hope I never live in a home with vaulted ceilings ever again. I'd rather have a room that looks smaller but holds heat. It seems like we're paying to keep the ceiling warm, and since don't often hang from the ceiling fans, it's a waste of money.

I was going to say the same thing. We have 8' ceilings and it holds the heat better, but it really depends on where you live. Up north, it makes a big difference in heating bills-even the 8-9' difference. Also, vaulted ceilings are more difficult to clean. But again, it's all about location.

Neutral tiles in the bathroom and kitchen will make it easier to redecorate and resell.

Lifestyle, as someone said already, is a big consideration. We have a large family, so we have an open floorplan that allows for easier entertaining. Our house is smaller, but it looks bigger because of it.

You may want to look at a list of what adds resale value to the house when building and see what is important to you on the list. It's good to plan for just in cases.

[alum]

Laying ceramic tiles on the diagonal rather than parallel to the wall makes rooms look bigger. The larger the tile, the less grout there is that can get stained.

We have a laundry chute in our present house. I don't find it helpful at all.

[VAgirl18]

Bump out EVERYTHING you can..i.e.: larger garage, extended family room, sunroom, etc.

I know that everyone wants to have everything inside upgraded to the max, but in the end, its the square footage that is going to later sell your house. You can gradually upgrade things once you have the funds, but it costs a helluva lot more to try to add square footage on later.