Do you like a shag carpet or a wood floor? Do you like a granite countertop or formica? Do you like an 8ft ceiling or a 9' or 10'?

The point is you pay for aesthetic upgrades. Wall to wall shag carpet is completely functional as a floor covering but it's fallen out of favor, same with formica countertops.

The 8/12 roof looks more pleasing to my eye and if I had to look at my house every day as I drove up the driveway or worked in the yard, I'd be happier with an appearance that I favored than one which I had to compromise on in order to save money, same with shag and formica, but with shag and formica, they can always be replaced later when the finances are in better shape whereas this is very difficult and expensive to do with a roof.

Invest in the structure so that it pleases you. The area covered by a 8/12 is about 7.5% greater than a 6/12.

I think once you settle in, you'll hardly ever look at your roofline. Both look good in the illos you show here. The main reason I'd ever go with a steep roof is for snow shedding purposes -- and both of these should shed well enough except in the most northern parts of the country.

I agree with Artemis. We replaced our roof a short while ago, and during our decision-making and bidding period it seemed like I was constantly looking at roofing materials and observing everyone's roofs when walking through the neighborhood or driving around town. That's all I could see for a couple months! We finally chose a roofer and made a decision about the roofing materials and colors. For the first couple months, every time I turned into our driveway my eyes went to the roof, assessing whether we made the correct decision. Eventually, though, as Artemis said, I stopped looking.

Also wanted to add that we also DIY for most projects around the house. Our current house is pretty steep, and we agreed we won't do that again because it does present some challenges, more so as we age.

Agree with Mushcreek. Personally, I prefer the lower pitched roof. My roof on the house I'm going to be building is going to be a 5/12 pitch but then again I'm building a craftsman style in FL. I don't need to shed snow off my roof. :)

I can't speak to the costs, but based purely on looks, I'd vote for the 6/12, too. I think it looks more "homey," and seems to work with the warm browns and golds (yellows?) you've picked for the exterior.

How much snow load do you expect? Do you anticipate adding solar panels? Our 12/12 pitch has served us very well in both regards. (Plus I like the way it looks.)

It's been my experience that the steeper the roof is the fewer problems I have with them, water really like to run downhill.

The perspective on your renderings is deceptive, unless you're 12 feet tall, like say, Google Streetscape cameras. If you're building on a flat lot, the lower pitch roof may appear flattened, insignificant and out of proportion to the typical passerby. Depending where the viewer is standing, the roof may even "disappear".

As a builder, I should have known better. But in one case I increased the height of a two-storey home by about 3 1/2 feet vs. the plans. Due to height limitations, the roof pitch had to be decreased. As a result, unless you're standing in the middle of the street, the house almost appears to have a flat roof. Definitely affected resale value in my opinion.