First scheme makes the "living" spaces as large as possible, which is a good thing.

Second schemen reduces the living spaces and adds a highly questionable laundry and mud room which can only be reached after tracking through most of the house.

Is it not possilbe to add a back door and deck off the dining area? If the deck was covered, the dogs could be cleaned up there before coming indoors.

@Virgil - I agree that the 2nd layout definitely does reduce the living space. To your point on the laundry/mudroom, there's a separate entrance off the stairs to go to the basement so we wouldn't have to track through most of the house. The house is on a hill so in order to make the separate entrance happen, we have to take a couple of steps down the stairs and exit the door to the left.

@Jamie - Thank you for your input!

Neither plan. I'd ask your architect to redo this. Ideally, you'd have a door off to the right of the mudroom/laundry to let your dogs out. This is coming from someone with 2 dogs!

My dogs have to come straight into my kitchen from the outside. When I had 5 once, the muddy paws in the kitchen were awful, to say nothing of 5 very wet dogs (their coats are like a sponge!). I would have killed for a mud room or direct access to the basement. I needed a place for their crates so I could have crated them to dry/mud to fall off before coming into the house. Alas, no money to do this but didn't I just wish I had! With only two dogs now, and hardwood floors, it is easier. I do gate them in the kitchen if they're wet, and I always keep neatly folded bath towels for drying them off when they come in.

Could you keep layout #1, but turn the coat closet/pantry into a coat closet/mudroom with a door outside to a small covered porch with steps down to ground level?

I like option 1 gives the bedroom more privacy /sound reduction from main living area.

I'd prefer #2

Me, I prefer #2. Sometimes defining spaces makes them live larger. The space between the dining and living defines the center of the house better, and routes, like a crossroads, and I like the wall between mudroom and foyer that is a perfect spot for a large piece of art, or a cabinet, tall secretary, that kind of thing.

Thank you all for your inputs! This further confirms the need for a mudroom since we have 2 dogs!

@Suru - unfortunately, the space to the right of the house is the driveway to the detached garage and it doesn't leave any room for steps to the ground level.

@bpath - Thanks for the tips. We've never thought of it that way! This is giving us a different perspective.

Is laundry in the basement on the first plan? walking through the house might be better than going downstairs?

or

If you don't mind the thought of downstairs laundry (since you're considering plan 1), then perhaps you move the laundry downstairs in plan 2 also, and you gain some extra sqft to play with. just a thought.

I prefer layout #2. The entryway is more elegant and the way the hallway and stairs is configured will make the living area appear to be larger. Even though the kitchen/dining area flows together well, the kitchen isn’t as exposed for all the messes to be seen quite so vividly.

Houzz has polls to make it easier for people to vote.

@ doc5md - The laundry is on the 2nd floor in the 1st plan. With the mudroom in the 2nd plan, we prefer the laundry to be connected so we can wash the dogs in the deep laundry sink :). They fit quite well and it's more convenient for us to wash them on their way in without walking around the house to the bathroom. If we don't have the mudroom, we will probably have the laundry on the 2nd floor so we don't have to walk 2 flights of stairs to do our laundry haha.

@armchairshopper - You are absolutely right! I should've created a poll =[ do you know if it's too late to add? I can't seem to edit my post. I was just considering all of the pros and cons that people have listed so we can be more informed before making the decision. I was actually going to ask the architects to swap the kitchen and dining room because I prefer the kitchen to be the focal point of the house. However, you're absolutely right about the mess....

I prefer 2 given the options- There are no windows/doors other than the entry, so i'm assuming these plans are not complete.

The pocket door into the 'guest area' confuses me as that is the common bathroom area for the first floor. I like how #2 has the living room a little separate from the kitchen - just thinking during holidays and such, you can somewhat escape the mess - and go sit and have a separate conversation without the commotion of kitchen duties.

@Barnes - Thank you for your input! The idea behind the pocket door was so the guests will have more privacy and have the bathroom to themselves at night. Honestly, I don't think we'll be using it for guest bedroom very much. It will most likely be used as our office. However, there's just not enough wall space to put another door there, not without sacrificing the space with the fireplace/TV which is not that large as it is. Let me know if you have any recommendations to work around that.

@Naf Naf - I like what you did with the bathroom! I'm assuming that's a sliding closet door? I will definitely bring that up with the architect. As to moving the staircase, that'll take away the possibility of a side entry door that connects to the mudroom =[. The stairs to go to the basement served as the alternative that will allow us to have the side entry. Once the stairs moved to the middle, that will also eliminate the side door. The mudroom is just not as functional without the separate entrance IMO. Thank you for your help!

Well...if you really want help, post all the floor plans, not simply this one.

Why?

Because the functioning and workability of a house design depends on how all floors work together...not simply how a single floor works "best". The indoor-outdoor relationships, the stair location and circulation requirements, and the overall relationships between all functional areas are what makes a design work or not.

One really can't simply look at a floor or a multi-floor design and make a sensible evaluation.

I'm voting for layout #2. Layout #2 provides a stairhall and foyer. That works much better than entering directly into the Living room (in my opinoin). I also like the connection between the Living room and Dining area better and also like that the Kitchen is somewhat tucked away. Good luck.

Absolutely! Please see attached. Thank you for bringing this up! I wasn’t aware that the design on the 2nd floor will impact the first floor. Always thought it’s the other way around so the 2nd floor is always an afterthought for us. Thanks!

@Norwood - Thank you for your comment. I actually wanted to swap the kitchen and dining. However, noticed a lot of people actually prefer the kitchen tucked away so I want to kind of pick your brain to see why that might be the case? Is it the mess? My mindset with the kitchen connected to the living room was so the person that's cooking doesn't feel left out from the interaction that's going on in the living room. Also, I love the look of a big island and think it'll give off the wow factor.

Where's the basement plan where you apparently go outside with your pets and return inside?

You make a lot of noise when cooking. People in the living room that are watching TV will be annoyed with it. A little separation reduces this. Also nice to not see the mess from the living room. Most people that want to interact will come and do so and sit at the island.

I'm not understanding the whole door thing and the stair requirement. Are you a whole floor up with your first floor? Ie is your first floor elevated by about 7-8 feet or more above ground level?

@lyfia and virgil - the basement of the house is a couple of feet above ground. See attached photo from google as an example. So in order for the side entrance door to be possible, they have to ensure that the landing is at the ground level, which is few steps down the basement. we can’t create the steps outside of the house because that’s the driveway. The space on the other side of the house also doesn’t leave enough space for the steps. The architect came up with the idea of leveraging the stairs to the basement to create the side entrance. I’m terrible at explaining things so I hope this makes sense. They also didn’t provide a basement plan for us yet since it’s really just a open space with a bathroom and utility room. Thank you guys again for your help :).

So it sounds like that you must have a stair against the exterior wall, and not a stair located in the interior. Is that correct? And that same stair location must also work to access the second floor. Right?

If this is correct, then the only plan, of all the plans above, which will work is the plan with the stair located adjacent to the exterior wall. Is this correct?

If so, why have we been looking at and discussing other alternatives?

But...in the photos posted above the first level floor is only three feet or so above grade, and a rear deck and backyard access from the rear of the house is very simple and poses no problem.

Are those photos accurately showing the configuration and ground level placement of your house?

Why is this thread so confusing about the actual conditions?

Of those first two, I prefer the second one. Putting the kitchen plumbing adjacent to the bath plumbing will cost a bit less than having plumbing on both sides of the house -- especially if you were to move the upstairs bath to beside the front left bedroom and create two smaller walk in closets for the master bedroom rather than the one larger closet.

In that back right corner with the angle between pantry and dining, without adding more basement, you could add an "L" shaped footing/foundation to square that corner. You could use that corner and the space currently set aside for a pantry for a mudroom with your washer and dryer and add wall to wall, floor to ceiling cabinets within the mud room to use as pantry space.

@virgil - apologies for he confusion. Initially, my husband and I were having a tough time deciding between the plans. We can see the pros and cons in both but wanted to get a second opinion from others. After seeing many helpful inputs, We decided that it’s crucial for us to have the mudroom, for the dogs and also future proofing with kids, etc.. Others started chiming in to provide alternatives in what we can do with the space. Since the plan isn’t final, we’re thankful of all the insights from different perspectives.

@suezbell - thank you for the feedback! In terms of plumbing, since the mudroom/laundry is on the opposite end of the house, wouldn’t the plumbing be required on both sides? We were thinking the plumbing in the mudroom will connect with the master bath on the 2nd floor. Also when you said adding a “L” shape footing, does that require a crawl space? I will definitely check with our architect on that idea! All extra spaces will help :). Thank you again!

Putting the washer and dryer in that back right corner was an afterthought ... but, yes, it would require plumbing on that side of the house.

Putting the upstairs plumbing over downstairs plumbing would still be worthwhile. You might also ask your architect about locating not just plumbing but also duct work and wiring since sometimes a closet over a closet is the best solution for that.

If your lot is not too narrow to add a wrap around porch on that right front corner, that might make having the entry door and stairs on the right rather than in the center more appealing to those that might prefer having it centered.

Wouldn't really want the front door in the center myself -- makes me think of a "shotgun" house. Having the door in the center, unless you are wanting your entry door and stairwell in the living room itself (rather than having an actual separate entry) could visually at least appear to decrease the size of the rooms on each side of it.

As to the dirt the dogs might bring in, if your back yard is going to be fenced for them, have you considered creating a doggy door for them basement window height -- one that could permit you to decide if that door opens both ways or just one way or is locked -- and having ladder/steps lead from a landing at that doggy door down to a small room in a sunny corner of the basement that belongs to the dogs, enabling them to come and go to/from that one room as they choose so you don't need to clean them off every time they come in ... you'd only need to make sure their feet are clean when you permit them upstairs.

#2. I would think about leaving the mud room, but not having the w/d there. A long way from where laundry is generated. I’d see if there is a way to move them to the second floor.

@suezbell thank you for bringing up these good points! I’ll definitely check with my architect. Didn’t even know there’s one way doggy doors lol.

@maine I definitely do want to explore that option lol it’ll make laundry so much more bearable haha. Not sure if we’ll have space on the 2nd floor but thank you for the suggestion.

Appreciate all the good advices! You guys are why houzz is the place to go for advice and suggestions :)

If I understand correctly, you're tearing the house down except for the foundation, adding to the foundation and re-building. You would be better off tearing the whole thing down and starting with a new foundation. Square up the back corner where you're trying to save the window well. Add some space to the entry in design #2. Then, it becomes a workable plan.

In both plans, the porch is too shallow to be functional. If you want to sit out there, it should be at least 8' deep. Otherwise, it's just a decoration.

Although I didn't notice if the multiple locking option was available on a dog sized pet door, I purchased a cat door from Lowes a decade or so ago that is intended to be mounted in a hole cut in the door (or wall) that, with the turn of a knob, can be set four different ways:

to only let pets in

to only let pets out

to let pets either in or out

to lock the door so no pet can get either in or out.

Just a thought: Somewhere I recall a pic where someone had built a pet house and attached it to the outside of their home and the pet door was installed in the back wall of the pet house with an insulated cabinet door inside the home to provide the option of hiding the pet door.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/272608583678785857/

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/263249540701973491/

Dogs like decks, too.

https://www.amazon.com/Merry-MPS002-Wood-Room-House/dp/B000EGVZE0/?tag=bestdogcratesandbeds-20

Get rid of the open to below part of the upstairs and make that the laundry room. All it is is a shaft for warm air and sound to escape from below to above.

Agree with Summit. If you’re demoing everything except the basement foundation, start over with a whole new plan rather than being married to what the home used to be.