Some people consider house plans to be a mere formality to be completed before gaining the necessary approvals and building a shelter for themselves. Generally this happens due to ignorance about architectural drawing, measurements and signs. Now, computer aided visualisations and 3d models have come to assist prospective homeowners to decode their house designs for them.
However boring and unintelligible house plans look on paper, you must take due care to study them thoroughly. It would not be an exaggeration to say that much of your future happiness would depend on this. Flaws in this will magnify themselves in a house that you are thinking of building.
In fact, you should actively participate in the planning phase to make sure your house is built exactly according to your tastes and requirements. Do you ever consider handling any project without making due planning for the same? Building a house for yourself and your family is one of the biggest tasks you will ever handle in your life. So you should not neglect the planning phase at all.
Most of us know the house of our dreams in most vivid detail. All you need to do is to express your thoughts on the paper. You need not be an expert to do so. Just draw a grid like structure that resembles the house you want to build for yourself. Do not exclude the interior design for each of your rooms.
Once you show this basic planning to your architect and interior planners they will tell you what is and isn’t possible within your budget. You need to modify your home plans accordingly. This will also help them to envisage your plans. Besides, this will expose some of the drawbacks of your scheme to yourself, if not to anyone else.
Decide on how many floors you want for your building. Consider what should go where. Do you want to build the guest suite on the ground floor level or on the first floor? Can you afford to build a media room on the second floor or perhaps a library and home office? Think about all these aspects and include all that you need in your detailed floor plans. Do you want an elaborate basement area? Then include that in your floor plans too.
A small house plan is not necessarily different than the plans for a bigger house. You just need to be more conservative with your choices. For examples, you will have to decide how many bedrooms you need and can afford to have; where do you place them; can you accommodate a garage in the existing structure and so on.
To build a home within a tight budget, you can opt for pre-approved home plans. When possible, most architects agree to make minor changes in design. A prefabricated structure built according to a preconceived plan can considerably reduce the costs of building a house.
Modern home plans follow the ongoing design aesthetics. Sometimes they are made to follow a particular trend. You will see modern houses with a preference for clean and clear forms, large windows, an unfussy colour scheme, understated décor, minimalist design etc. To be in tune with the time, you can build a modern house based on these elements of design.