Mexican-influenced House Plans from The House Designers

by on May 6, 2012 in Architecture, Home Plans

In honor of the 150th anniversary of Cinco de Mayo, The House Designers is showcasing house plans that were inspired by the rich culture of Mexico. You’ll find homes designed in Adobe (also called Santa Fe and Pueblo house plans) with large open courtyards that are great for entertaining and Southwestern/Spanish styling featuring stucco, stone and clay exteriors with red tile roofs, exposed beams and arched openings. The interior of these homes typically feature sun-drenched colors (reds and oranges), stone accents, wood-beamed ceilings, bright tiles, iron and copper decorative accents like clavos, which is Spanish for decorative nails to capture the rich, hand-crafted details of Mexican architecture.

Here are some of our most popular Mexican-influenced homes from our collection of Southwestern and Spanish house plans

Luxury Spanish house plan from The House Designers features a unique open design.

 

This striking Spanish home features a courtyard with grand rotunda entrance. The foyer is flanked by a dining room and den that leads into a circular great room with a 14’ foot viga ceiling and large bay windows that overlook the outdoor patio. The master suite enjoys complete privacy in the front right wing of the home while the rear left wing features three bedrooms and a casita, which shares access to the two covered patios. Tucked behind the side entry three-car garage is a kitchen with center island and circular nook with large bay windows.

Classic Adobe and Sante Fe house plan featuring an open floor plan and plenty of amenities for its 1,675 footprint.

 

This one-story home plan features all the traditional styling of an Adobe/Sante Fe home including a flat roof, clay exterior with large timber beams that poke through the exterior to give the home its distinctive look.

A large covered patio adds to the appeal of this new Spanish design from The House Designers, so homeowners can enjoy their connection to the outdoors.

 

The Coronado House Plan is one of our newest Spanish house plans featuring Old World craftsmanship that starts from the moment that you walk up to the private courtyard and rotunda. Once inside there’s a vaulted great room and gourmet kitchen (perfect for making some spicy Mexican dishes) with a large corner pantry and cozy morning room. There’s a private flexible space that can be used as a den or office. Three bedrooms including the large master suite with his and her closets occupy the right wing of the home.

Be sure to visit The House Designers storyboard of Southwestern-inspired home plans at Pinterest.

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Sizzling Kitchen and Bath Designs | house plans

by on April 28, 2012 in House Plans, Kitchen Designs

Whether you were in Chicago or not this week at the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show (KBIS), there’s been plenty of buzz about the newest, coolest kitchen and bath products. Check out this great article by Housing Zone, which covers the latest trends and innovations from the largest annual kitchen and bath show.

In honor of KBIS, we have assembled a list of our hottest kitchen and bath designs, featuring the most innovative and energy efficient products to satisfy your craving for a functional, professional kitchen and pampering master bath.

master bath

The Cariati House Plan is one of our newest Mediterranean designs. It is designed to capture the essence of indoor/outdoor living. See inspiring photographs of the interior and exterior of this home.

 

The Cariati House Plan is designed with luxury in mind. The master suite is situated off the foyer with a sitting area and access to the covered patio that overlooks the pool and hot tub. The master bath features elegant tiles with a long vanity area, separate whirlpool tub and walk-in shower. There’s also a sauna room next to the private toilet area. You’ll lack nothing when it comes time to creating wonderful dishes in the amenity filled kitchen with a center island. Added features include a sunken media room, game room, cozy breakfast nook, loft area and wine cellar.

Master baths from The House Designers

The Holly Oaks House Plan is a beautifully designed two-story home featuring the latest in energy-efficient home building products. Take a tour of this new house plan.

 

The Holly Oaks House Plan has a spacious kitchen with dinette that opens to the great room wrapped by two large decks and sunroom. Retreat upstairs to a private master suite featuring a large bath with private toilet room, walk-in tiled shower, dual vanities and large garden tub. A finished basement includes a wet bar, media, game, exercise and guest room.

Fabulous kitchen design from The House Designers

The interior design of the Ambrose Boulevard house plan is breathtaking. View over 24 color photographs of this 2,470 square foot, two-story home with bonus space.

 

The Ambrose Boulevard House Plan is a gorgeous two-story design featuring an open floor plan and all the latest amenities consumers crave. The kitchen features a unique galley design with pantry that overlooks the great room with fireplace making it perfect for entertaining. The secluded master suite features and office center and bath with whirlpool tub, private toilet, walk-in shower, dual vanities and 200 square feet of closet space.

Don’t miss out when The House Designers’ editors share their favorite kitchen and bath products from KBIS in the next issue of Home Ideas. Simply click here to start receiving their free weekly e-newsletter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Go Green With ENERGY STAR House Plans

by on April 13, 2012 in ENERGY STAR, green house plans, House Plans

With Earth Day right around the corner it’s the perfect time to think about how you can incorporate green elements into your new or existing home. The House Designers is committed to providing homeowners and builders with affordable, sustainable house plans that take advantage of passive solar design and innovative green building products so you can save on utilities without sacrificing efficiency and aesthetics.

By building an energy efficient home you will not only be doing your part to reduce the strain on our natural resources, but provide your family with a safe, efficient home. In addition to offering the only collection of ENERGY STAR Approved House Plans, the editors at The House Designers provide weekly articles and tips to assist homeowners in understanding the benefits of building a green home.

Recent articles include: Saving Energy By Going Solar and Innovative Products to Insulate Your Home. For a complete list of articles please visit Product Ideas.

green house plan

The Greensboro House Plan from The House Designers is one of their newest green house plans. This Craftsman-styled ranch home packs in lots of style, efficiency and innovation into its small, angled footprint.

You can stay on top of all the latest home building trends, be the first to preview new house plans and review the newest most innovative building products as they hit the market simply by signing up for The House Designers FREE weekly e-newsletters.

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House Plans: Latest Contemporary Designs

by on March 30, 2012 in Floor Plans, Home Plans, House Plans

If your dream style lends itself to a contemporary flair, you’ll enjoy The House Designers collection of modern house plans, which blend comfortable, livable elements to create a sophisticated, fresh look and feel. All of these designs feature magnificent outdoor living spaces, large open living spaces framed by spectacular, custom walls of windows, luxurious master suites and modern, restaurant styled kitchens.

A distinct trademark of most contemporary homes is large spectacular expanses of glass. This latest design from The House Designers features walls of windows outlining the rear of the home and overlooking the outdoor living area.

 

From the exterior, contemporary homes are very distinctive in styling from other residential architecture. They are typically geometric in form, which means a minimal roofline and plenty of large frameless or minimal frame windows throughout the elevation. The exterior facade is typically horizontal cedar or stark white render masonry with some addition of brick and stone accents.

The Brunswick House Plan features an open living space with clean lines, bright white walls and cabinetry with bursts of accent colors and stainless steel appliances. Check out the retractable glass walls that allows for a smooth, practical transition from the indoors/outdoors.

 

Contemporary interior design follows the concept of clean, simple lines with minimal accents. The main living spaces share an open floor plan that’s functional and appealing. Key elements include using metals like stainless steel, chrome and nickel because they provide a sleek finish and clean look. Walls are typically neutral in color with bold, modern furniture and accents.

How about having your own eco-resort with the Hummingbird H3 House Plan. This high efficiency home leverages all the latest green technology in a functional, affordable footprint of 1,350 square feet. For a smaller version of this ultra-contemporary design, there’s the Hummingbird H2.

 

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Live Like a Celebrity with Luxury House Plans from The House Designers

by on March 4, 2012 in House Plans, luxury house plans

Live like a celebrity with luxury house plans from The House Designers. The luxury house plans in this collection were selected not only for being extravagant and grand, but because of their high-end amenities and features that include sprawling outdoor living spaces with pools, patios, living rooms and fully equipped kitchens; pampering master suites with spa-like baths; culinary kitchens; gorgeous, open great rooms perfect for entertaining and much more. You’ll be surprised to see that many of these luxury house plans range from 3,000-5,000 square feet.

The Valencia House Plan is an exclusive luxury house plan from The House Designers.

This stunning Mediterranean/Tuscan inspired house plan is the kind that dreams are made of. Everything you could wish for is included in this elegant, yet exceptionally functional floor plan. A large private master suite with fireplace and luxurious bath occupies the right wing of the first floor. The left wing features a family room with fireplace, circular breakfast room overlooking the covered terrace, a well-equipped kitchen with two center islands.

Formal entertainment spaces include a large two-story grand room with marble fireplace and large dining room. The basement floor plan is all about casual living and features a billiards room with circular bar with seating, an office space with fireplace, recreation room with corner fireplace and game room. There’s also a large guest suite and exercise room with spa and sauna.

This luxury waterfront estate from The House Designers features over 50 color photographs.

 

The Retreat at Water Edges estate is the kind of luxury house plan that you can expect to see on the shorelines of Martha’s Vineyard or Long Island where celebrities and politicians love to have their summer homes. This estate features five structures with complementary floor plans, which are joined by trellised arbors and sheltering roofs so you can enjoy year-round resort living. A retractable glass wall allows the interior to easily open to the large pool terrace featuring plenty of formal and casual living spaces. You must view the slideshow of this breathtaking home, which features over 50 beautiful interior/exterior color photographs. Most of  The House Designers luxury house plans feature gorgeous photographs so you can easily envision what your dream home could look like. If you can’t afford to build a 5,000 sq. ft. plus home, you can certainly afford to add luxury touches to any home. A recent article from The House Designers, Adding Luxury to Your New Home offers insightful design tips to pamper yourself and add luxury touches to your home’s decor without breaking the bank. In fact, you’ll find plenty of informative design articles and product reviews in The House Designers Product Ideas section. Don’t miss a single new article from The House Designers, by signing up for their free e-newsletters.

After visiting The House Designers Luxury House Plans Collection, please tell us which one is your favorite, by visiting us on Facebook.

 

 

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A Builder's Perspective on Shopping for House Plans

by on February 27, 2012 in home building, Home Construction, House Plans, Remodeling

custom homeSelecting the house plan to build your new home can be an exciting process.  Finally you have the opportunity to create the home of your dreams that matches your family’s lifestyle.  Besides square footage, the number of bedrooms and an inspiring design, there are some additional items you should consider when selecting the plans to build your new home. Here you will get some insight from a builder’s perspective on what makes a great set of house plans.

Energy Efficiency:  If you’re thinking of building a more energy efficient home to save on your utility bills and help the environment, you might want to consider a plan that has been designed with this in mind.  The folks here at The House Designers have a large collection of green house plans that are designed to the Energy Star standard.  Because this energy efficient standard requires special building procedures and products, it will save you time and money to include them in the initial house plan set.

Foundation Type:  Your house plan foundation will be affected by the lot that you ultimately choose.  You probably won’t want to build a slab foundation if your lot is low due to the additional costs to raise the building pad.  As far as basements go, you probably won’t want a basement if your lot has rock at, or just below, the surface as this can be expensive to remove.  So, you may want to consider ordering your house plans after finalizing your lot selection.

Plan Handing:  Many of the house plans offered by The House Designers can be reversed…which means the layout can be changed to the opposite of what is shown.  So, if you choose to reverse a plan with a garage, the driveway and garage will flip to the opposite side of the home.  This is sometimes required if you are building on a corner lot as many municipalities won’t let you place a driveway near an intersection.

You may also want to consider views when deciding the orientation of your home.  You may want to reverse your house plan so the large grouping of windows frames that gorgeous ocean or mountain view.

PDF/AutoCad File:  No matter how perfect the house plan you choose is, my experience tells me you will most likely want to make a few last minute changes.  You may decide to add a basement window or two.  Or maybe you decide to replace that half wall at the family room with a spindled rail.  If you have the electronic version of the plan, this can easily be accomplished.

The other nice benefit to having the electronic version of your house plan is the distribution becomes much easier and cheaper.  When I’m bidding out a new home, I like to send a PDF version to each subcontractor through email.  This will save you both time and money versus printing and mailing.  Think about it.  If you have the minimum of three bidders per activity and you have thirty activities required to build your home, you will need to send out ninety (90) sets of house plans.  The electronic version of the plan saves both you and the environment.

Michael Luckado has built, remodeled and repaired thousands of homes across the U.S.  He created Armchair Builder  and the Armchair Builder Blog to help people save money on their new home building projects.

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5 Questions You Must Ask Before Hiring a Contractor

by on February 15, 2012 in home additions, Home Construction, Remodeling

Photo Credit Shutterstock - Couple in front of House

Building a new home can be one of the most exciting events you’ll experience. It can also turn into a huge nightmare if you don’t choose the right contractor. When we say ‘right’ we are talking about a reputable contractor who will build you a quality home at the price agreed upon, and on time.

1) Ask for Client References

You know how the three most important elements of buying a home are location, location, location? Well, determining if you are going to hire a stellar contractor must be preceded by references, references, references.

Get at least three and then followup and ask the clients your questions. Don’t be shy, the follow up is essential.

You’ll want to ask:
• If they were happy with the quality of the work.
• Was their home completed on time and within budget.
• Did the contractor spend enough time on the job for their satisfaction.
• Was contractor easy to reach for questions or concerns.
• Would they recommend the contractor to family and friends.

2) Ask for Business References

Here you’re looking for the contractor’s banker, title company, material suppliers, sub-contractors.

The number one question for all these references is: Does the contractor pay on time? And for the suppliers and sub-contractors, ask if they’ve ever had to file a lien for non-payment, and if they still conduct business with the contractor.

3) Ask to see the Contractor’s License

You also want to see the general liability and workers-compensation insurance policies. Some states do not require or even offer a special license (such as Texas) but if your state does, obviously you want your contractor to have it.

4) Ask for the Contract

You’ll want to see the contract you’ll sign in the event you hire them. How much wiggle room is there? The more detailed the contract, the better protection you’ll have. Specifically you want details of the work to be done (with full materials allowances), the estimated start and finish dates, and total cost, and payment schedule.

Before you actually sign the completed contract, it’s not a bad idea to have an attorney review it.

5) Ask for Protection Clause

Ask if you can insert a clause that you’ll be compensated if they go a certain amount of time over schedule. Remember, time is money.. your money.. and the longer the building process takes, the more interest you have to pay on the construction loan.

You might ask for your interest payments to be paid by the contractor for every month they go over schedule. Now, you might agree to at least 30-45 days grace time past the schedule, and generally you allow for delays due to ‘acts of God’.

Along with these five questions, you’ll want to check with your state’s consumer protection agency along with your local Better Business Bureau to make sure the contractor doesn’t have a history of disputes with subcontractors or clients.

Guest Post by Dee, who builds homes in the Texas Hill Country. You’ll find her hanging out at SmallHouseLife.com where she writes articles like the 5 Biggest House Plan Mistakes and also reviews floorplans. She’ll even have a look at yours if you ask her!

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The House Designers and Project Team Up Partner to Provide House Plans to Alabama Tornado Victims

by on February 13, 2012 in home building, Home Plans, House Plans

The House Designers and Project Team Up recently partnered to provide house plans to tornado victims of Tuscaloosa, Alabama to assist in rebuilding new homes for a community left devastated by the worst outbreak of twisters on record in April of 2011. Families can choose from over 6,000 best-selling house plans from the leading designers and architects in the United States. Homes will be built by a team of talented craftsman who are coming from all over the world to offer their expertise and time in building new homes.

“We had gotten offers from local designers to draw up plans, but we wanted to go with an established organization, because we felt having a gamut of house plans would serve us better than forcing a house plan on a family,” said Riz Shakir, Executive Director of Team Up Foundation. He is also a professor at UA, who took a one-year leave of absence to head this project. “We want them to feel special and your portfolio of house plans allows them to browse, choose and finalize a plan for their new home.”

According to Shakir, he approached The House Designers because the website was easy to navigate, user-friendly and the families were enjoying browsing through the collection of over 6,000 best-selling house plans.

“We were so glad when Shakir approached us to offer our assistance with providing house plans to help rebuild a community that lost so many homes,” said Tammy Crosby, CEO of The House Designers. “We were more than happy to provide a discount on all of our house plans and assist with making modifications so these families could have a fresh start and custom their dream home.”

The goal is to have the families very involved in selecting their new home, which is why Shakir sits with them to review house plans on thehousedesigners.com that are applicable to their size (average house is around 2,000 square feet), budget and personal taste. If the family requests changes, he is more than happy to have the designers and architects of The House Designers make changes to the blueprints.

For every million dollars that they raise they will build between 10 and 15 new homes at a cost of about $75k-$100k. “Imagine the 6300 house plan, which would cost about $170k to build, but with free labor and only having to pay for materials the cost is essentially half price,” said Shakir, who is the builder and engineer on all new home construction projects.

The first two homes being built are the Norcuss House Plan and the Morrow House Plan. The Norcuss House Plan is an attractive 1-½ story design featuring plenty of amenities for a mid-size house plan, including a 252 sq. ft. bonus room. Highlights of this home include a 24’ x 14’ vaulted great room with fireplace, a large kitchen with two breakfast bars, 12’ vaulted ceilings in the master suite with a 6’ Palladium window and 3-car garage with bonus space above. They most recently purchased plan is the Morrow House Plan, which has an abundance of features (very similar to the Norcuss) and an open design for just under 2,000 square feet. The traditional brick exterior offers a refined and elegant appeal that is quintessential Alabama.

“The next plan will be the Shenandoah House Plan, which will go to the local Pastor and his family, who despite their personal devastation have spent months living in their parents basement to assist others,” said Shakir, who feels blessed to be in the company of such a loving community.

Donations may be sent to 312 Merchants Walk Suite 7, Tuscaloosa, AL 35406. For more information, call Project Team Up at 855-832-6877 or visit http://www.projectteamup.com/

 

 

 

 

 

 

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House Plans: Editor’s Choice Dream Homes from 2011

by on January 12, 2012 in Floor Plans, Home Plans, House Plans

The editors of The House Designers have been busy going through over 6,000 best-selling house plans to choose their favorite designs from 2011. These particular house plans were chosen based on their innovation and energy efficiency as well as their interior detailing and curb appeal.

house plans

The timeless design of this traditional house plan will be one you will enjoy spending time in with family and guests. It is accented by gorgeous columns, shake siding and stone to create a unique, appealing exterior.

 

The Palladium House Plan was one of the newest additions to the traditional house plan collection. It was designed to create a multi-generational family-friendly home with flexibility and privacy throughout. The timeless exterior features traditional columns and arches, softened with Shingle-style accents and details. The welcoming front porch opens to a centered foyer, with an opposing den and formal dining room plus butlery and walk-in pantry. The beamed great room with built-in fireplace and entertainment center, gourmet kitchen with its huge island and multi-windowed eating nook create a spacious family area, all opening onto the large, wraparound outdoor living porch.

house plans

The Palladium House Plan from The House Designers features an open design accented by beautiful rich hardwood flooring from Lumber Liquidators® and bright white cabinetry, trim and wall coloring. There’s plenty of extra room for seating — something you’ll appreciate when you're entertaining guests.

 

To view this dream home and many others visit the latest issue of Dream Designs.

Don’t miss out on previewing some of the newest, most innovative house plans from The House Designers by receiving Dream Designs each week. The next issue features Fun, Flexible Living Spaces and showcases some of the most innovative game rooms, entertainment rooms, wine cellars and much more. Simply click here to subscribe to this free newsletter.

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House Plans: Innovative New House Plans from The House Designers

by on December 18, 2011 in House Plans, Open Floor Plans, two-story house plan

The newest house plans from The House Designers feature a mix of innovative green home products and building practices combined with timeless architectural styling and open floor plans to ensure years of comfortable and efficient home living. You’ll find everything from unique mountain homes to gorgeous Mediterranean estates to traditional two-story house plans, as well as designs from their exclusive collection of ENERGY STAR homes.

house plans

A gorgeous two-story stone turret welcomes guests to this new Mediterranean house plan from The House Designers.

 

house plans

Enjoy outdoor living on a covered patio featuring a fireplace and kitchen, which overlook the luxurious pool area.

The Cariati House Plan is one of The House Designers newest luxury Mediterranean designs. The two-story stone turret opens into a two-story living room with fireplace. Just outside is a covered patio with fireplace and outdoor kitchen that overlooks the in-ground pool and hot tub. Pamper yourself in a master suite with a sitting area and access to the outdoor living area. The master bath has an extra long vanity area, separate whirlpool tub and walk-in shower. There’s also a sauna room and his and hers walk-in closets. Other amenities include a gourmet kitchen featuring the latest appliances, a breakfast and formal dining room and a sunken media room. Upstairs are three additional bedrooms (each with their own full bath) and a game room that opens to the covered balcony. This dream home has it all.

house plans

Enjoy the view and warmth of the outdoors from the two-story wall of energy-efficient windows featured in this new log home from The House Designers.

The House Designers has also added a new mountain lodge home, which features all the latest energy-efficient building products and green building techniques. This log home can easily be customized to feature any exterior or interior styling.

Check out our editor’s favorite new house plans in the latest issue of Dream Designs.

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Leading architect from The House Designers designs a house plan for Extreme Makeover: Home Edition in Texas

by on December 6, 2011 in home building, Home Construction, House Plans

Leading architect from America’s best-selling house plan company, The House Designers helps design a custom house plan for a worthy family in Texas for “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.”

ABC’s Emmy award-winning reality TV Show, “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” will surprise a worthy family in Bastrop County Texas where wildfires destroyed 1,500 homes this past Labor Day weekend on Wednesday, Dec. 7 with its signature “Door Knock.” Ty Pennington, the show’s team leader will be joined by designers Paul DiMeo, Johnny Littlefield, Tracy Hutson and Jeff Dye, who worked closely with one of  The House Designers leading architects to create a brand new house plan for this next build.

This is no ordinary build. The show with the help of 3,000 volunteers and manpower builds a home in six days (a typical home can take up to six to nine months to build) working 24 hours a day.

According to Milan Vasic, the “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” senior producer, “We actually have 106 hours from the time we knock down or start the demolition process until the family returns, so the builder has about 4 ½ days from start to finish.”

The Extreme Design Team approached Donovan Davis, an Austin-based architect from The House Designers, who has been designing innovative house plans for over 50 years back in October to design a brand new house plan for a deserving family. In literally two days, Davis and the Extreme Makeover Design Team knocked out a brand new design to fit the needs of the family and requirements of the show. It is part of the show’s trademark to include special/sentimental features in their design that will ‘literally’ bring tears to the family.

Davis was recommended by Eric Christophe, owner of EFC Custom Homes, who will be the local contractor overseeing the build. He was selected because of his strong ties to the community and reputation for high quality craftsmanship, energy-efficiency and attention to detail.

Davis is hoping to add this new custom design to The House Designers collection of over 5,000 award-winning, top-selling house plans. But for now everything is a secret until the family is announced on Wednesday and house plans for their new home revealed.

“Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” airs on Friday at 8/7 c. You can also keep track of this new build by following Extreme Makeover on Facebook.

 

 

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Share Your Home Building Experience & Win $250

by on November 27, 2011 in Floor Plans, home building, Home Plans, House Plans

Share Your Home Building Experience

We would like to invite all our home plan purchasers to share their home building experience and rate our house plans to assist others in choosing their dream home.

Send us your photographs of your new home and share your experience building one of our house plans by DECEMBER 20 and you’ll receive a $250 AMEX card if we use them on our home page. First 25 customers who send us photographs (we love interior shots) will receive $50.

Sharing your comments is quick and easy – click here.

We would like to extend our thanks for purchasing house plans from The House Designers and hope you will share your story with us!

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House Plans: One-Story Floor Plans

by on November 20, 2011 in House Plans, One-Story House Plans, Open Floor Plans

Silverwood House Plan

The Silverwood House Plan features an expansive vaulted great room, octagonal nook and open gourmet island kitchen that are perfect for today’s informal gatherings. View over 2,000 best-selling one-story house plans from The House Designers.

 

Today’s one-story house plans go well beyond the traditional ranch home. Architects and designers are taking the single story house plans to a whole new level by incorporating a variety of innovative and unique shapes and sizes to meet the needs, budget and lifestyle of future new home builders.

Consumers and builders can expect to find energy-efficient floor plans featuring flexible rooms, open kitchen, living and dining areas, extended outdoor living spaces, tons of amenities and simple, yet elegant exterior features to reflect various architectural styles.

Many single story house plans offer the ability to have a finished basement to extend the home’s living space. Basements offer the ideal place to create a game room, entertainment or media space to kick back and have some fun.

You can easily expand your one-story living to the outdoors with a large deck, sunroom or patio. Many are designed with complete outdoor living spaces, including an outdoor kitchen, fireplace and a pool/spa area.

Because they are one-story and do not have staircases, they are a great design for first-time homeowners who have small children, people with mobility issues and anyone who wants to save money on maintenance and utilities.

And if you need make changes down the road, having an open, flexible floor plan will make that an easy and affordable remodel.

View an extensive collection of one-story house plans at TheHouseDesigners.com, featuring a wide variety of size, styles and gorgeous interior photography to inspire the designer in all of us.

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House Plans: Innovative New Cottage House Plans

by on October 28, 2011 in House Plans, Open Floor Plans

The House Designers recently featured some of their newest cottage house plans in their weekly newsletter Dream Designs, which keeps consumers and builders updated on their latest house designs.

These new cottage homes go well beyond the simple cabin or bungalow by combining luxury design features and amenities with traditional cottage styling, which include steep overhanging roofs with gables, large bay windows, panel front entry doors and ornamental detailing.

Regardless of the size and architectural styling, this collection of cottage house plans features gorgeous and flexible interior floor plans, innovative and energy-efficient home products and plenty of curb appeal.

cottage house plans

This gorgeous luxury cottage house from The House Designers is the newest addition to one of the largest collections of online cottage house plans.

 

This luxury mountain cottage house plan is one of The House Designers newest designs, which features a large open living space that surrounds the kitchen to allow for plenty of entertaining. Homeowners can pamper themselves in a large master suite with spa-like bath, which occupies the right wing of the first floor. Three additional bedrooms occupy the second floor, which has a large bonus room. There are also plenty of green features to this home to ensure years of energy-efficiency. The entire home is wrapped in exterior insulated boards, which is like wrapping your home in a warm blanket. Combined with three high-efficiency gas fireplaces this home has a high R-value, making it perfect for colder climates.

cottage house plans

The Marymoor is a popular compact rambler that combines a dynamic exterior facade composed from elements of cottage, country, Craftsman and lodge styles with an open floor plan that fits todays informal lifestyles.

 

This country cottage house plan mixes the styling of a Craftsman and rustic mountain lodge to create a beautiful exterior façade, which is accented by a front and rear covered porch for extended outdoor living. The interior features an open floor plan with vaulted great room, chef’s kitchen with island and cozy nook with large corner windows. There’s a flexible front room that can be used as an office, den or formal dining area. This house plan also comes with a basement and daylight basement option to add to its future living space.

Looking to make changes to a house plan? You can customize any house plan to fit your lifestyle and needs by simply requesting a free modification quote from The House Designers.

 

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Green House Plans Featured in Professional Builder

by on October 6, 2011 in green house plans, House Plans

Professional Builders October issue highlights some of the best and most innovative green house plans to promote efficient living. One of the plans selected for their House Review feature piece was the Evergreen Cottage House Plan from The House Designers.

This house plan took first place in The House Designers 2nd Annual ENERGY STAR Competition, where leading architects and designers presented their best concepts and design solutions to address the challenges faced by home builders to build innovative, energy-efficient homes.

“This competition is just one way we try to encourage our architects and designers to create new, authentic, sustainable, energy conscientious home plans in support of our partnership with ENERGY STAR®,” said Tammy Crosby, CEO of The House Designers, the internets leading provider of residential house plans. “Being featured in publications like Professional Builder and Green Builder Magazine are all part of our initiative to educate consumers and builders about the benefits of building a green home.”

The results of this year’s competition produced a new collection of sustainable homes that mix high-tech and low-tech materials and systems with timeless architectural styling with up-to-date floor plans to ensure years of easy, efficient living. These plans can only be found at The House Designers exclusive ENERGY STAR® Approved/Green House Plan collection.

The Evergreen Cottage House Plan was selected because it offers tremendous flexibility in its design, while offering the latest in green technology and innovation. Both active and passive energy saving technologies have been considered, with such features as 6-inch SIP exterior walls, a 20-square-foot grass roof tile system, a Gale Vertical Axis Winder Generator or a Wind-Finder hidden in the traditionally detailed cupola, a rainwater capture and storage system, along with photovoltaic and water heating panels.

“One of the things we want to come through [with House Review] is the fact that designers don’t have to radically change their design approach to incorporate green elements and energy efficient features,” said Larry W. Garnett, FAIBD, House Review Lead Designer. “Take the Evergreen Cottage where you have a very traditional design with a lot of sustainable features built into it.”

Equally important is that designers and builders start to educate consumers by making them aware of the products and services available to build a green home. Since house plans are the first step in building a home, it is imperative the designers and architects present a strong case for why consumers should build a green home. Companies like The House Designers and publications like Professional Builder and Green Builder Magazine are instrumental in ensuring the “green” home building movement continues to gain momentum.

green house plans, house plans
The Evergreen Cottage House Plan is an award-winning green house plan that features the latest in green technology and innovation

 

 

 

 

 


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