Building a New Home – First Things First

by Paul Foresman | Feb 1, 2021 | HER Home

You’re finally going to build a new home – Yay! But where do you start? Find your builder? Contact a real estate agent? Pre-qualify for your mortgage? Find your homesite?

Your specific situation can affect how that question is answered. You may already own a building lot, perhaps the reason you want to move is to reside within a certain school district, or maybe you’ve already established your new home budget. Still, though we may be a bit biased, finding or developing the home plan may be a wise first step, because it has tremendous impact on everything else.

Home plans are like the hub of a bicycle wheel – with all of its spokes connecting you with everyone involved, from the builder and sub-contractors, to lenders, building officials, the developer, and product suppliers. With plans in hand, you can get bids, verify you’re within your budget; secure financing; identify one or more builders who would be a good fit; and ensure that the design meets the architectural guidelines and covenants for where you want to live.

Of course, many things should be considered when selecting or developing your home plans. Does the lot you own or have picked out restrict the home design in any way? For example, some neighborhoods require all masonry finishes on the front. That will affect your home’s cost. Similarly, it does no good to fall in love with a plan that is too wide for your building lot. Using a ballpark “cost per square foot” can help you keep within your budget. After looking at other new construction homes in your area, if you see prices are running around $200 per finished square foot and you have set a budget of $500,000 for your home, that math suggests finding a plan that is about 2,500 square feet or smaller.

Finding or developing your home plan.

This may be easy, as the builder you choose may have a home design you really like. Or, they may have a designer on staff who will design your home as part of the process. But often that’s not the case. Many home buyers start by searching for home plans online. Such online searches can be fun, but with tens of thousands of plans online, this can also be daunting. If you find a pre-drawn home plan that matches what you’re looking for, fantastic! It can be a great value based on their low price, immediate turn-around, and quality construction drawings. For an additional fee, many residential design firms will also modify their pre-drawn plans to incorporate your specific changes that would make the plan perfect for you.

Still, pre-drawn plans may not be the right solution for everyone. Some areas require an engineering stamp or architectural seal on home plans that is typically not available with pre-drawn plans. In such jurisdictions you will need to also find an engineer or architect to review and stamp the plans. Also, a pre-drawn plan may need to be reviewed and possibly modified to ensure compliance with all local codes. It is wise to contact your local building department regarding home plan requirements before buying a home plan. Or you simply may not be able to find an existing home design that looks and lives the way you want.

It may be that working with a design professional to develop a custom home design is your best choice. In our next post we discuss how to choose your designer to achieve the home plan of your dreams!

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Embrace Women’s Preferences

by Paul Foresman | Jan 25, 2021 | HER Home

It’s a marketing trifecta: “know thy customer”; industry leadership; and having the best products and services. Each of those three distinctions is a powerful reason for home buyers to choose a particular builder. Combined, they make the case that that builder is remarkable.

The intersection of those three distinctions can happen when a builder truly comes to embrace women’s preferences in the home. As detailed in previous blog posts, women think differently about their homes than their male counterparts. For many home builders, that begins with developing a keener understanding of what women generally want and expect when purchasing and building a new home.

That’s also the starting point of Woman-Centric Matters!®, Design Basics’ holistic program for helping builders transform their businesses around women’s choices. Beyond merely learning about women’s preferences through onsite training, builders who enroll in this program put these newfound insights into practice companywide. Every member of the builder’s team identifies goals – ways they themselves could positively impact the experiences women home buyers have with that company. From cleaner jobsites to more livable home designs, improved communications to outstanding warranty service, such builders put “knowing thy customer” into action.

Home buyers and real estate sales professionals notice, appreciate, and come to prefer to do business with Woman-Centric home builders. In recognizing and connecting with how Woman-Centric home builders and the homes they build are different, people come to ascribe leadership with this Woman-Centric approach. And they tell others. Woman-Centric home builders enjoy high levels of word-of-mouth accolades and referrals. Buyers in particular come to appreciate how Woman-Centric home builders have focused on taking the entire customer experience from stressful to delightful.

Search more than 700 Woman-Centric home designs on DesignBasics.com.

Woman-Centric home plans are perceived as different and better. That’s not surprising, since customer feedback, mostly from women, inspired our designers to develop innovative solutions to the real-world challenges and opportunities women discussed with us. Complimenting the home design is a new appreciation for the included products, as well as options and upgrades available, found in Woman-Centric homes. From products that give back a little more time to healthier and greener options, Woman-Centric home builders strive to educate home buyers about the choices they can make, helping those buyers make wise, informed decisions and get the best new home value.

Already working with a certified Woman-Centric Matters! home builder? Congratulations! Looking for a Woman-Centric home builder in your area? Check our Find a Builder page and look for the Woman-Centric Matters! logo (shown in the Marketing Trifecta image above) next to the builder name. No Woman-Centric home builder in your area? Have the builder you want to work with contact Design Basics about how we can help them and help you get a better home, because you deserve a Woman-Centric Home!

For more resources on thoughtful design and products:

View other articles on our blog
Browse our Her Home™ Magazine
Thoughtful Design Concepts

Why Does Woman-Centric Home Design Matter?

by Michele Weaver | Jan 18, 2021 | HER Home

Research confirms what home builders have long known – women are the primary or sole decision maker in the majority of new home purchase decisions. Which neighborhood… builder… floor plan… countertops… embracing women’s preferences in the home is Marketing 101 – “know thy customer.”

Husband and wife walk into a model home of the Hickory Cottage (plan #42235), pausing in the entry to remove their shoes. He’s seeing the great room’s corner fireplace; she’s noticed that the 6’-9” entry hall is wider than expected, the twin display niches on the left, repeating arches on all sides, the hickory floors, swank light fixture, and paint colors. Men tend to fixate on a single, often long view, focal point (think spotlight), while women tend to take in more of the whole picture and pick up more on the details (think floodlight).

With two young children, she’s looking for a layout with all of the bedrooms near each other, and at least for the time being, the bunk beds would fit nicely in BR 3, freeing BR 2 for use while her husband is still working from home. More than men, women tend to think about a new home purchase through the eyes of everyone in the home.

(Click on image to enlarge.)

He picks up on the garage size and in particular, the big 18-foot by 8-foot high garage door. She tends to appreciate the garage size a bit differently, noticing especially the 20-inch recess at the back and 16-inch recess along the side for storage, minimizing hassles of traipsing around bikes and outdoor products. Coming in from the garage, they both appreciate the Drop Zone and closet, but she’s keener on the seat. And while he becomes aware the laundry room is off the rear foyer, she values having a window, sink, folding counter, and storage!

Storage is one of the “lenses” women have told us they use in evaluating home plans. In keeping with the idea that “storage can be beautiful,” she catches the cabinet-style twin doors into the deep kitchen pantry. So also, the quiet, soft-close cabinetry hardware, as women take in more through their senses than men.

The sunny sitting area at the rear of her suite’s bedroom brings visions of curling up on the chaise with her newest book. In the bathroom, she favors the doorless walk-in shower because it eliminates the task of squeegeeing the shower doors as well as the visual appeal and privacy of the glass block window. Transom windows over the vanity enhance applying makeup, another consideration she cares about that’s not on his radar screen.

The bottom line? Woman-Centric home design is better. From innovative solutions to improved livability and style, Woman-Centric home design talks to women (see also: Homes Talk To Women). That connection, on an emotional level, says to her that this builder cares, and that she/he understands what’s important to her.

Which is where we pick up next time – home builders having embraced this Woman-Centric approach in their businesses.

For more resources on thoughtful design:

Photo credit:<a href=’https://www.freepik.com/photos/house’>House photo created by pch.vector – www.freepik.com</a>

Tour This Home Through the Mind of a Woman

by Michele Weaver | Jan 11, 2021 | HER Home

So… what does a Woman-Centric approach to home design actually look like? Join us as we tour a floor plan through the collective eyes of scores of women we’ve talked with. The Mackenzie (plan #42067) is a family-oriented two-story home that’s just 40-feet wide, fitting perfectly on today’s increasingly common 50-foot wide lots.

Since we go in and out of our homes through the garage 92% of the time (Recon Analytics), the design of the rear foyer receives as much attention as the front entry. We heard tales of having hands full walking in from the garage and needing a place to put things – but not the kitchen island or counters! That inspired the Drop Zone. The coat closet was nothing new, but since kids knew how to use lockers at school, bringing lockers into the home meant a familiar place for everything they needed, from coats to gym clothes to art projects. That would help de-stress the morning rush. A bench meant a place to sit when tying and untying shoes, and since pets are often considered full-fledged family members, a pet shower. Importantly, that essential rear foyer transition space was not to be the laundry room!

Drop Zone Concept

Rear Foyer Concept

Pet Center Concept

Mackenzie rear foyer amenities include a Drop Zone and Pet Shower (click on images to enlarge).

While we have been told we’ve never designed a home with too much storage space, the Mackenzie’s kitchen might come close! The long wall of cabinets is interrupted only by the sink and is complemented by the 5’-2” by 6’-9” pantry – deep enough for cabinetry at one end. Meal prep space is essential, and abundant in this kitchen, while three transom windows over the range add sunlight. Also note the location of the door onto the covered rear porch. Unlike most designs that access the back yard via a door in the eating area, this design solves the problems of that door dictating placement of the table and chairs.

Holidays coming up? Go ahead and add the two leaves to your table – the Mackenzie’s 17-foot-deep dining area can easily expand for larger gatherings – so important to women we spoke with. The Great Room’s triple windows deliver daylight, while its sloping ceiling provides drama. Built-in storage for books, games, electronics, and display items is suggested along either side of the home’s fireplace.

Just off the entryway, the den/home office is close to the powder bath, ideal when receiving clients and colleagues into your home. Just past the front door, a seat recessed between the garage and stairs is handy in case another client shows up early, while the angled office entry provides visual privacy.

So many items on wish-lists are accommodated in your suite! The double door entry is a reminder that this suite is special. Splitting the windows to the corners of the bedroom provides another possible location for your bed. There’s a provision for furniture and/or an entertainment center at one end, and it’s a stunning view into your bathroom with sloping ceiling through yet another set of double doors. Bathing options include both a corner soaking tub and 6’-4” by 4’-9” doorless shower (no door to clean!). Women told us showers should be large enough that her elbows don’t run into the sides when washing her hair.

Separate vanities mean they can be built at differing heights, which is a more comfortable solution if your partner’s height is quite a bit different than yours, and a gentle radius countertop adds a bit of sophistication. There’s also a makeup counter area next to the interior vanity. Regardless of how long you’ve been together, there are times when you just need your privacy. Hence the toilet area design with storage shelves, because when you’re sitting in there and there’s no provision for additional rolls of toilet paper or hygiene items, it’s simply not good design. And at 10’-1” by 9’-3”, your walk-in closet provides generous storage.

We learned maximum closet space is also a priority in the secondary bedrooms that, in this design, are separated by a compartmented bathroom. With the toilet and tub separate, two people can use this bathroom at the same time, easing schedule conflicts. The linen closet is also big enough for extra bed and bath items. A study desk in the hall provides another option for completing homework. And for homes with all bedrooms upstairs, locating the laundry room on that second-floor also means avoiding carrying overflowing laundry baskets up and down stairs, which can be dangerous as well as annoying. That laundry area design also answers the calls for natural light/fresh air, a folding counter, sink for washing delicates, plus storage.

Larger households may prefer the four-bedroom Mackenzie (plan #42067-4Bed) option. Lost is the sloping ceiling in the great room, in order to gain another full suite with private bathroom and walk-in closet. Or turn this space into an upstairs playroom for the kids when you have neighbors over. How you purpose this additional 318 square feet of space upstairs is entirely up to you!

For more resources on thoughtful design and products:

View other articles on our blog
Browse our Her Home™ Magazine
Thoughtful Design Concepts

Cover image: <a href=’https://www.freepik.com/photos/technology’>Technology photo created by gpointstudio – www.freepik.com</a>

If You Need “Me Space” – Sanctuary!

by Michele Weaver | Jan 8, 2021 | HER Home

This is a high priority among today’s home buyers, whether spoken or not. We long for such a space in our homes, particularly in light of COVID-19 limitations. “Me space” in the home, whether it’s exercising… prayer/meditation… reading… whatever you like to do to relax, re-center, or recharge.

Pandemic fatigue set in for many of us working from home and learning remotely. While most of us found ways to adapt our homes to the realities COVID ushered in, we kept hearing things like parents hiding out in their bathrooms for a few minutes of sanity. Along with work from home and remote learning solutions, personal space took on heightened importance.

In response, we’ve started incorporating a Sanctuary Space™ – your private getaway, directly off your bedroom suite – in select home plans. For example, in the Trufant (plan #29323, below), the 9-foot by 15-foot outdoor storage area can become your Sanctuary Space! Bathed in healthy, natural light and afforded maximum privacy, such a space in your home may be exactly what you’re looking for!

Intrigued by this concept? Looking for ways to combat fatigue, increase energy levels, and improve your outlook on life? Ask us about incorporating a Sanctuary Space in a design(s) you’re interested in!

For more ideas on Sanctuary Space in home design, see also: I Need My Space!

For more resources on thoughtful design and products:

Building a New Home – First Things First

Finding or developing your home plan.

Embrace Women’s Preferences

Why Does Woman-Centric Home Design Matter?

Tour This Home Through the Mind of a Woman

If You Need “Me Space” – Sanctuary!

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