You are building your dream home and you have planned everything well, or at least you think so. Have you already thought through every detail? Small budgets and poor planning can lead to some catastrophic mistakes. When planning a house, you have to look at the project from many perspectives. You need to look at your lifestyle now and in the future. You need to consider family planning – Will your family grow larger? Or are your children about to leave the nest? Do you regularly have overnight guests? Poor design decisions can make your home not only unpleasant, but downright unhealthy. Let's take a look at the 10 common mistakes you can avoid.
Poor planning here can lead to problems with moisture and mold growth. You should also consider the size of the facilities. If they are too small, they cannot cool and warm the house efficiently. They will do this in thecold winterand regret the hot summer months. Conversely, those that are too big use too much energy.
Space planning and design are crucial. Adequate storage space is necessary, but be careful where you plan it. Do you really need a large walk-in closet, or can it be built into a niche in the bedroom? Be careful where the cabinets are placed. Do you want a closet for the winter coats in the foyer or can you also store them in the closet in the bedroom?
When designing your new home, you should consider your lifestyle and habits. How long do you plan to live in this house? Do you need to plan safety for young children around the house? Or do you need to think about your needs later in life when you reach retirement age? Think in advance, long term, about what you will need in the future.
Lamps and sockets should be accessible everywhere. As are the windows – as large as possible in every room. Natural light, if possible, should be the main source of light. Think about building skylights.
Creating a game room or gym in the house sounds tempting, but will you actually use that space? What good is a gym where the treadmill is used as a clothes rack? Instead, plan a home office that doubles as a guest room.
The laundry room with washing machine and dryer should be relatively close to the bedroom. We prefer the laundry room upstairs, but many plan to have it in the basement. This is an individual decision.
The bedroom must be as far away from noise and traffic as possible. The bedroom should not be near or above the garage if you want to sleep peacefully. If your home is one story, the bedroom should ideally be planned at the end of the house, again away from the garage. The bedroom should ideally not share a wall with the central living area.
What happens when you have your hands full with groceries and other purchases but have to walk across the house to leave them in the kitchen? This location of the kitchen is not sensible at all. It would be better if it is near a garage or the back entrance, as well as the dining and living area.
It is preferable to have the garage on the ground floor and close to the hallway and kitchen. If the garage often looks like the main train station - with people constantly coming and going, with dirty sports clothing, heavy backpacks, shopping bags, then the dust and dirt could be limited to the kitchen and the hallway.
You know what is best for you and your family. Professionals can make suggestions, but they can't tell you what to do and what you need.
