I like the floor plan. A few things: the porches won't let much light in, so the basement and main level will be darker - maximize windows where you can; locate the 2-piece bath by the mudroom/side entry; square off the kitchen and square the kitchen island and enlarge it if possible.

Are you sure you want a 3-level home for a full time home? That's a lot of stairs and a lot of climbing.

A west facing home will be hot and loaded with direct sunlight and glare every afternoon, resulting in drapes, blinds or shutters pulled every afternoon. There goes the view.

I'm amazed at many continual posts there are of people building on west facing lake frontage. Glare, reflections. Glare, reflections. Glare, reflections.

Will children be living with you when it’s your full-time home?

Do you need a home office, or a place to store records?

Will you have a separate garage?

The reason those west-facing lots exist is that all of the better, more desirable orientations have been purchased years ago.

Exactly! And one of the most effective strategies for west-facing lots is to design a house where the major public spaces don't face west.

Unless the owners really don't care about keeping blinds or shutters closed all afternoon each day.

Few consumers who purchase west facing view property may realize that they won't have a view for each afternoon due to the glare from the west afternoon sun which can't be blocked with any architectural feature.

I'm sure you are right.

But I wonder what percentage keep the drapes closed all afternoon, and might as well be in Indiana. Not that there's anything wrong with Indiana...:-)

@Virgil Carter Fine Art, regarding the three story aspect, all the primary living can be done on the main level (master suite, laundry, etc) for future-proofing. As far as the westerly exposure, the rear of the house will face almost north-west. We owned a home two lots over for the past 4 years, and it faced almost due west. With the amount of large trees along the south side of the lot, there will be sufficient shade, and we've lived with this exposure for years and it works for us. And it would seem rather pointless to have all the public spaces face away from the lake views.

@bpath reads banned books too - we will be empty nest when this is our full time home, but we anticipate lots of visitors and hopefully grand-kids. Hence the separate en-suite bedrooms upstairs, and the basement bunk room and rec room. We will not have a garage initially, but plan to build a detached garage when we move there full-time. And no need for a home office, other than a desk in the upstairs loft area.

@Architectrunnerguy your point is spot on. We chose this lot for a number of specific reasons and know there are some compromises. That's why I'm asking for input on a houseplan that would work give the narrow footprint and our desire for a large vaulted family room to emphasize the lake views.

@Sina Sadeddin Architectural Design - you mention a custom design instead of modifying this plan. We were initially scared of the cost to go fully custom. This plan plus the modification fees would come in just under $2000. Given that this plan met most all our criteria, we thought it would be the way to go. I'd like your thoughts on how much we would expect to pay for a full custom plan.

@arch13 would you mind sharing the details behind your comment that this plan will be expensive to build? I'd like to know what factors of this plan stand out as being expensive to build. This would be my first custom home, but I've built two other homes with tract builders.

Thanks to everyone who has posted comments so far, keep them coming! Once we get further down the path of making modifications, I will be posting with more questions.

Well, as I said, that beach in Malibu isn't empty for a reason. And my guess is all the public spaces face the ocean which happens to be west.

Actually, Malibu faces the Pacific ocean more or less due south.

Ok, I'll delete all posts that references to Malibu. My point was missed. Good luck to the OP.

Geez, interesting comments about west facing lake view. Maybe it depends on the climate, but I wouldn’t trade my southwest lake site in Maine for anything. IMHO, Best location on the lake.

It must depend on climate. I’m in the PNW and would covet a west facing view. We have too many rainy and gray days to not appreciate the sunlight.

Lots of things indicate that this plan was not designed for comfortable living:

The laundry room by the porch - the dry will vent to the front porch. You indicated that you may change this, which might help.

The kitchen is a nightmare. It can be reworked, but as shown it is a disaster.

Double doors everywhere!

There is no storage in any of the bathrooms.

The door swing in the toilet room in the master is backwards. If someone were to fall in that tiny room, no one would be able to get in to help them. And where does a person stand to close that door? On the toilet?

You mentioned a computer in the loft upstairs. It's a huge space for a computer desk - but not really suited for anything else. I am not a fan of "open to below" foyers. It ends up being a lot of wasted space.which is pretty inconvenient. Because it's open to below, it can't be used for a second living space because of sound carrying to the living room.

Bedroom closets - it looks like there is access to attic storage through the closets? But the plan shows clothes hanging across that access, which is pretty inconvenient. Even without the attic access, clothes don't really turn corners. Plans that show this are not thinking about how spaces are actually used.

How would you arrange furniture in the bedrooms upstairs? A queen bed for guests would have to go in front of the window.

One of the things that makes it expensive to build is the jigs and jogs on the exterior, int he kitchen, the garage, and the master closet. None of those bumps add anything but cost.

This plan is a great starting point for a lakefront home. We are currently building our lakefront home from a custom-designed plan. I probably looked at 500 plans only to realize that no one had designed the house I needed. First, realize that there is no perfect home, even if you have a famous architect draw it up, there will always be something that you wish you had done differently. A couple of thoughts about this plan that I would definitely consider changing are:

1. As others have said, reconfigure the kitchen island

2. Add another window to the master bedroom on the wall with only one window. It will improve the light and the symmetry.

3. Having once had a master closet with 2 windows, I have realized the hazards of windows in closets. Fine clothes will fade from the sun peeking through the blinds and you may end up with stripes on your clothes from the blinds. To reconfigure the closet, you may want to play with the location of the powder room and move it closer to the kitchen and laundry area, where it would be most handy. Once the powder room has been moved, you could play with the master closet location in relation to the bathroom.

Have fun, make it yours and don't worry about what others think!

" . . . and don't worry about what others think!"

Even though you asked them what they think.

"We searched long and hard for plans that would work for the site, and it's especially challenging that we only have a narrow envelope in which to place the house on the lot. Despite it being 2.5 acres, the site is realistically limited to a 50' wide home."

If you applied an hourly rate to each hour you spent "searched long and hard", I would bet (figuratively speaking) that you could have paid for a local architect to design a home for you that would meet your needs and fit the site much better than what you are thinking of plopping on your site.

Thanks for the additional input and opinions.

@AnnKH - many of your comments are right on point, and we're making changes to remove the double doors, and reconfigure the kitchen and laundry room. As for the bed locations in the upstairs bedrooms, the headboard would go against the interior wall in each. Regarding the open loft, I totally understand your point about it not being a useful second living space. But it does serve to allow more light to reach the living room from the large windows above the front door.

I have concerns about the number of corners as well, but the "jog" in the kitchen does add more than just added cost. It allows that bank of cabinets to be recessed along that side, essentially adding width to the kitchen itself.

@Carolyn Green/Coldwell Banker, we are adding transom windows along that wall in the master bedroom to bring in more light.

@Mark Bischak, Architect, as I mentioned, we think this plan meets most all criteria for what we are looking for in a lake home. I may still have a consult with a local architect to see what other options may be possible. But to say that we are "plopping" this on our homesite seems a bit of a stretch.

we will be empty nest when this is our full time home, but we anticipate lots of visitors and hopefully grand-kids.

Where in this plan will you put the elevator in case you eventually need one?

Most of your laundry will be generated by your bedroom and as you age in place I would think you'd want to do laundry closer to your bedroom. I know I do and that's why I put my laundry in the hallway leading to my bedroom.

Ann brought up some excellent comments.

If you want to design a better house, might I suggest you get in touch with architectrunnerguy and work with him remotely?

You can add the second symmetrical window in the master bedroom and still fit the headboard against the wall. Putting a transom window next to a regular window, and trying to figure out how to cover it when you don't want the light will be very difficult.

@cpartist does the extra 30 feet of walking between the master bedroom and the laundry area really make that big of a difference? I guess I hadn't considered that, since everything is on the same level. And we hadn't considered an elevator for the same reasons, it's all main level living, with extra spaces in the basement or upstairs that we wouldn't need on a daily basis.

Shannon, I think I'm more aware of it because my mother was the healthiest person I knew. She went to the gym 5x a week and those days she didn't go to the gym, she walked on her treadmill. She ate healthy, never smoked, kept her weight at the right weight for her body, etc.

At age 72 she was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. The most difficult tasks once she became more unsteady on her feet was carrying things and climbing stairs or even climbing the ledge over the shower.

You also say it's all main level living but say the grandkids are over and they're in the rec room. Won't you want to enjoy their time down there too? Unfortunately, we can do everything right and still wind up with "issues" that make it more difficult to move around and not one of us has a crystal ball to tell us if and when it will be us.

Do you have any hobbies or might you consider taking any up? Those extra bedrooms will come in handy if you do start doing a hobby. How will you get up there if you're ever unable to climb stairs?

We built our house and my studio is upstairs. I climb the stairs a minimum of 15x a day and usually more (great exercise!) I am thrilled to be able to do so, but we also put in an elevator in case there's a time when those stairs start to look like Mt Everest to me. This way we'll still be able to enjoy and live in our home.

Another thought. Do you really need all the space as indicated? You have 3 additional bedrooms plus a loft space, a rec room and a family room. What spaces do you actually need. Yes if the grandkids come visit monthly for days on end, it's obvious you need the bedrooms for them, but if it's once or twice a year, is there other solutions? Can some rooms do double duty?

For example, our guest bedroom doubles as my exercise room for the days I don't get to the gym. My studio also has a pull out queen sized sofa bed just in case the guest room is occupied. And if we're ever blessed with grandkids, there's a space in DH's office for little ones to sleep. However every room in our house is used on an almost daily basis. No wasted space.

"Thoughts on this plan for lakefront build?" "we think this plan meets most all criteria for what we are looking for" " . . . and don't worry about what others think!"

There comes a point in the construction of a house when the thinking has to stop and knowing has to begin.

Reviewing a design that has changes that are not shown is not productive.

A house that is not designed specifically for a site is plopped on the site, using compromises to try to make it "fit"; unless perhaps the site is featureless and flat without neighbors.

Your front entry will let in lots of light on both levels. If you only need a high ceiling in the entry, ask whether this plan has custom trusses in the entryway. You can reduce cost by having a two story entryway that's flat ceiling rather than angled by doing standard trusses. Also be careful that the size of your kitchen isn't requiring custom cabinets. If you're interested, I can share what we did with this plan to change it into our own. What's nice about this one is every room you want to sit in has lake views. Once you move the powder room you'll have space to move your shower to an interior wall and make it larger....

@Keepthefaith MIGirl I appreciate your input. Am I correctly understanding that you modified and then built this plan? I would certainly love to see the changes you made. If we can work out a few additional details I think we may be comfortable "plopping" this house on our lot.

We did not build this plan. We started with it and then modified it into a custom home that we are in the process of building. We did not pay for this plan, but for our own. This was a great place to start. Does Houzz have private messaging?

You're getting some great advice here from pros. I'm not a pro. It comes down to consciously thinking about how you live and what's important to you. For example, I have a very small laundry space because only 1 person needs to fit in there and it's not a place to hang out. What I gained is a much larger entry area off my garage/outdoor main entry with storage and wide open space so multiple people can come in the door at the same time and take off shoes and coats and dump groceries and mail, and use the bathroom, etc. I also made sure I had specific space for pet supplies and food bowls. For me, I enjoy having the glasses/cups near the fridge so kids aren't traipsing through my kitchen for a drink. When I unload the DW I don't walk anywhere to put the main stuff away. Dishes and glassware storage is within reach above or across (drawer in island). I am learning a lot on here from pros as a longtime stalker ;o) so keep the thread open if you have more questions. I don't have all the answers for sure. Good luck and happy lake memories!

We got the modified plans with our changes, and feel that they address the issues we had with original plan/layout. Here is the main floor, which is where the bulk of the changes were made. There were only minor changes in the basement, and none on the upper floor. We're meeting with the builder this weekend to review and determine if any other changes would be needed. I appreciate all the feedback so far, regardless of opinion, and would love to hear more feedback on the current plan. It's all been very helpful.

I like all the changes you've made. The only thing I would consider is turning your island the other direction, as long as it gives you adequate aisle space with the support post. It would give you a better dining area and allow you to face the windows and lake while at the sink.

I note that there is no closet in the bunk room. Perhaps rework so that there is a closet at the back of the room, located near the entrance to the bathroom. I would consider a kitchenette/bar area in the recreation room. Or at least plumb the space so that one can be installed later...for drinks, popcorn, ice cream, etc. Otherwise you will be running up and down the stairs to serve refreshments to your family and friends. Finally, consider blocking out the space immediately across from the stairs in your foyer for a future elevator, moving the coat closet and utilizing some of the pantry space. Even it if it not needed now, it might be built later and could be viewed as an asset if you ever decide to sell. I would inquire about this as an “addition” to your plans. Good luck!

@calidesign we plan to work with a kitchen designer to optimize the layout, and will explore turning the island. Our friends have a kitchen very similar to the layout as drawn and we like the way it functions, but your idea may work better.

@ptreckel here are the modifications to the basement layout. Amazing how our thoughts are the same. I hadn't thought about setting aside space for a future elevator as you suggest, will have to look into that to see if it's feasible.

I like your new lower level plans! Perhaps the bottom of the elevator shaft area can be tucked into your mechanical room space and the mechanicals can be moved into the back of the unfinished room? Just a thought!

Your dining seems very tight especially with the island side. That seems like it will be a pinch point when trying to walk by. How many people do you want to be able to seat in the dining room?

It's an awful long trek to the pantry. It might be better to make the mudroom into the pantry with access between the oven/fridge and the corner so it is many fewer steps, or you'll want to put your most common used items in the kitchen. Then move the mudroom to the laundry and the laundry to the pantry space and adjust sizes as needed.

Oh my goodness...if I didn't know better I'd say that I was looking at my custom design plan that also sits on a sloping lake lot. I have views from nearly every room. Just very few differences in main level porch, which mine is screened completely across. I have a cathedral ceiling in the living room that allows for tons of light. Also like 12 windows across the master bedroom, living room and dining room. No way will this be dark. The upper level is so similar except I have an office room and twin bunk rooms to the back. My kitchen is not angular like yours, my scullery sits behind the kitchen. My laundry is off of my master closet. We opted for a 5 ft crawlspace that was poured the entire size of the layout for our off season storage. We have been building all year and hope for a holiday move in! Good luck!

@lyfia we are considering a tall pantry-style cabinet beside the fridge to hold the most frequently accessed items, along with a lazy susan upper cabinet in the corner as well. Unfortunately we're kind of limited by the location of the side-entry door to the mudroom, which dictates where it must be. The setback off the front left corner of the house is very tight.

@love2cavies take a look at the updated plan I posted a few posts up ^. We modified things quite a bit. Our lake lot is sloping as well, and we're excited about how this house will work for us.

I think that your changes made many great improvements to this plan. Before you are settled though, do drop in scale drawings of your furniture in the in the important rooms to confirm that they are each laid out right for your intended living.

I would continue studying the layouts of the mudroom, laundry room, and closet, as all seem to be pretty large compared to the amount of function that you are actually getting out of them.

For the mudroom, I recommend that you design in a place for a bench that does not have storage right above it or behind it. Those storage cubbies that everyone does and look so great in magazines with the incorporated benches don't actually work well for sitting because the coats, backpacks, etc take up the same space that a person does when they are sitting. Luckily it looks like you have extra space along this wall.

In the laundry room I would also work in space for a folding table, possibly with a clothes sorter under it. You might be able to get a shallow one in across from the machines, or possibly consider putting the washer and dryer against the left wall with the utility sink at the end of a work counter starting at the door and running along the top wall until 30" or so from the dryer. (Be sure to keep in mind which way the machine doors swing when laying out the utility connections).

In your master closet. There is a decent amount of storage, but the layout is all pretty awkward. On the right side once you get the clothes hung there will only be 2' in between them to walk through and look at what you have. On the left side you have a whole wall with nothing on it. Perhaps since your bathroom is pretty large foot or two to put clothes on opposite sides or at least have a 2' hanging area on one side and shelves for folded clothes on the other. I know you are trying to maintain the symmetry of the front of the house, but you can still have balance with slightly different window sizes on each side. Consider doing higher windows in the closet and running clothes storage underneath them instead. You will likely end up with more storage and more floor space to stand and see what you have. If you are going with custom closet systems (or even if your are not and are doing the layout yourselves), get the designer on board now and figure out the layout before the house is under construction and minor adjustments can be made, not after the room is already built and set.I

I hadn't thought about setting aside space for a future elevator as you suggest, will have to look into that to see if it's feasible.

If you actually put it in now, it can be done for around $20,000 versus it costing more later if you need to retrofit it.

Frankly while I never use mine to go up and downstairs, I do use it to send the bags to be stored upstairs, bring boxes up and down, etc. I put the stuff in the elevator, close the door, go downstairs (or up), push the elevator button and the stuff comes up easily.

You're heading into your golden go-go years. Eventually you'll wind up in your no-go years and no one can give you a crystal ball as to when that might happen.

following

For those following, we met with our builder and have sent out a list of changes to the plans based on his feedback as well as re-thinking some things. The changes relevant to layout are:

- move dishwasher to right side of island when standing at sink

- remove small upper cabinet in corner of kitchen to right of cooktop, we will do open shelving

- make main level doors and cased openings 3'0" where shows on marked up plans

- change master bathtub to a 60" free-standing tub, enlarge shower as space allows

- change swing of master bath water closet door to swing out into bathroom, not into the water closet

- eliminate double windows in each upstairs bedroom, replace with a single window as close as possible to the bathroom wall

- show window seats in each dormer in upstairs bedrooms

- add note for plumbing stub-out of a sink in kitchenette in basement

I will post the modified plan when we get it next week. Then it will go to the engineer for stamps as the grading and excavation begins......

You don't want your master bath toilet door to swing out, or you will have to keep it closed all the time so it doesn't interfere with your other spaces. If you change it at all, make it a pocket door.

Glad you changed the kitchen and island. I would also eliminate the 2 separate screen porches and make one big one. Great room will still be good size or you can bump other rooms out a little...when you have company everyone will want to hang out together. you could keep master separate if you want but have the other be one big one [dining and great room]. Maybe have the lower level be an open patio [not sure what plans are there]... Assuming walk out lower level or there's a window for bunk room in basement.

I'd also recommend putting kitchen in the kitchen forum as they'll help you with work triangle, etc. If this is for a vacation lake house, you might consider a 2nd dishwasher. That pantry feels far away from the kitchen.

If it's a vacation home, I'd also recommend lots of closet space for towels and linens and paper products.

Best of luck.

I am not a pro. Spent lots of summers at family lake house.

You DO want the master bath toilet room door to swing out or, if walls allow, a pocket door. This is an enormous safety issue, as mentioned in an earlier post, and will become more of one as you age. I would also reconsider the size of that toilet room to allow for future mobility issues. Perhaps a foot or so could be swiped from the powder room and the long double sink counter? You don't want to be forced out of your home because you can't use the toilet with a wheelchair or walker.

Posting to update. We made a few additional revisions to the plan and took a some iterations with our builder on allowances and finishes, and we now have our permits and the process is moving forward. Our lot has been graded and excavated for the basement, and foundation work should begin next week. Our projected cost to build the house alone (doesn't include grading, retaining walls, or septic, but does include the well) works out to almost exactly $150 per square foot.

I've attached a couple photos of the property now that the grading is complete:

Following!

This is almost my lot and almost my house! Except some other person built it and lived in it first. I'll give you my 2 cents!

As to the sunlight--I face SE with the big windows and in the summer have blazing hot bright light until 1PM in my front window. Excellent sunrises. But much mid-morning mid-day sun that its almost unpleasant to sit in there without sunglasses. You will have the opposite problem, late afternoon bright sun but with a beautiful sunset view.

I have french doors on both ends of my first floor deck, like yours, out of the kitchen and living room (we only have public rooms facing the lake, current master is upstairs with the loft and a view) and our french doors open out rather than in so as to not impede the furniture. As I said, I didn't build it, but now that I have them that way I quite like them. I also like having doors on both rooms b/c I find myself carrying food/dining items in/out the kitchen doors, past the dining area, while the living room doors are more for general in and out. At least have one door exiting from your kitchen/dining area on to the deck.

Our home is designed for us to age in place, with the first/middle floor level, no steps, laundry, curbless shower, etc. What will become the master someday when I can't climb stairs isn't quite as lovely as the loft/master upstairs but I worked with what I had. That room is also the darkest in our house and has been perfect as a kid's room b/c it is so dark.

THe basement has also been made into something that can serve as an aparment/guest space/living room gathering kind of thing. It too has a single level access to everything, with a patio that is connected to the drive way should one want to park in front of those doors. The kitchen is a kitchenette but is great when you've got wet kids, muddy feet, lake water etc and just want snack/drinks. Currently my mother lives in that part of our house, and it's been a wonderful option.

I badly want my closet and master bath connected!! I know people said it's inconvenient; perhaps they haven't spent their mornings going back and forth between the two. It's one of several changes I'd have made if I had been the builder.

I do have a squared up kitchen island, with seating that is perpendicular to the big front windows. While your back is to the TV/living room, the do get to look out the window if you sit there. Something needs to be done in your corner to make that better, I just have corner, and a window above my sink.

Did you plan a space for an elevator so you can continue to enjoy this house for many years?

@cpartist indeed we did! There is space set aside for a future elevator to access the basement from the main level.

following

That will make it much easier to stay in the house if it's needed in the future. Hopefully you'll never need it!

Been gone for a while so I just discovered this thread. Keep us posted - the photos of your landscape are beautiful!

Lots of progress over the last month or so. Basement and retaining walls complete, basement framed and first floor decking is down. Pics attached for anyone following....

Thanks for posting and please continue. Always fun to follow projects like this. You made some good changes to your plan and hopefully you'll be thrilled with it once you move in.

FWIW, ours is: https://bamasotan.us