My husband and I are building a new house, should be complete in about 5 months. We were all set to take the standard 8' since other options weren't really discussed and that is what we have in our current smaller house and we're used to it.

Then last week our family room ceiling collapsed (always fun when your house is on the market!) and after the repair I got the tape measure out and realized our ceilings are actually 8'5".

Now I'm thinking 8' will feel so much smaller and we should pay the extra $3500 for 9' on the first floor. I'm trying to keep our upgrades under control however. Our builder thinks we done need it since or family room is 16' that it will really "open up" the rest of the first floor anyway.

I don't ever want to move again, we're really trying to build a forever house, so resale isn't an issue, I just don't want to regret it later if it would have felt much better in the long run.

I appreciate any advice! I've attached the layout of our first floor for reference.