Building a house. What would you love to have?

Dolly Welsh

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 6:54 pm

amother wrote:

I would like a sprinkler system inside .
And fire escapes
And outdoor water sprinklers underground on timers all around the house .a nice fence all around the house

Good safety idea about the sprinklers inside and fire escapes if practical and no security concerns. Interesting.

As for a fence, a living hedge fence might be an idea. Evergreens that are known to grow all the way to the ground. Some do, some don't.

The raw bricks in the mudroom absorb a little water so you don't slip. But so will an outdoor-style rug. They can look very nice, there are even elegant oriental designs.

I would spend the money on the hot water spigot if you often have a lot of guests. I think you will forget the money and love the spigot. And it helps resale value.

There are lights that go on automatically when it's dark and these are good along hallways and on stair treads. I would look at all the catalogues hard, such as Frontgate, Solutions, Hayneedle, and all the others.

OOTBubby

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 7:03 pm

As I said above, I too am building a new house from scratch. My situation is different than most posters though. First of all, we are empty nesters, but with a huge family that comes in town for yom tov and vacations, etc. In addition, our property is an odd shape -- triangular, so the home we are building on it is not a typical shape.

We are building a raised ranch with a full basement (the basement will have 8.5' ceilings so it will not seem to be basementy-y).

There will be a living room, dining room (20' x 14.5') and den all in a row where tables can be opened throughout the 3 rooms to accommodate large groups (which we need).

Kitchen will have 2 of everything (no pareve stuff); with a double built in oven for fleishig and single for milchig and a 48" built in fridge.

There will be a mudroom and utility room (with large closet pantry, broom closet, freezer, linen closet).

Main floor also has study (for my husband), office (for me) and master bedroom suite (with large walk-in closets and bathroom including a makeup vanity area and a 4x5' shower stall -- no tub).

There are 2 other bathrooms on the main floor -- one with a tub, and one just a powder room.

Lots of closets and storage.

That's it for the main floor (yes, just the one bedroom).

Basement will be 6 bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms. 3 bedrooms are kids rooms with room to have 4 beds (each will have 2 hi-risers) open. The other 3 are adult rooms, with 2 beds and a closet big enough to hold a pack 'n play (in addition to the clothing closet). There will be a huge play room; laundry room (I don't do the laundery -- cleaning lady does so I don't care if it's in the basement), mechanicals, etc.

We are also doing a huge deck plus a little one off of the master BR for a sleeping sukkah.

There will be a 2½ car garage with lots of storage in it and doors opening in 2 directions.

Underground sprinkler system, etc.

The shape of the house (due to the unusual property shape) gives it slanting roofs on several sides with high windows and skylights.

I've probably left stuff out, so ask away.

mille

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 7:04 pm

Dolly Welsh wrote:

In kitchen, a separate hot-water spigot that makes boiling water. Useful for tea and in cooking.

Lots of nice suggestions Dolly, but I just wanted to highlight this one because the insta-hot tap is soooooo convenient!! In terms of all the dream house additions, I think this one is probably on the low end in terms of cost, and definitely definitely worth it! The only hard part is remembering to put up a hot water urn for shabbos, because as far as I understand, you can't use the insta-hot on shabbos. Still so useful!

amother

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 7:23 pm

His and her bathrooms in the master bedroom. His and hers walk in closet in the master bedroom. Fireplace in the master bedroom.

Separate meat and dairy kitchens. Separate pesach kitchen. Each with their own fridge/freezer, dishwasher, ovens, microwaves, etc.

All bedrooms would have a private full bathroom attached as well as their own walk in closet. Same with the guestroom(s).

Separate dining room, living room, playroom, study, laundry rooms, mudroom, gym, game room, and informal gathering room/family room for watching tv and relaxing.

In the basement, I would built a private romantic getaway room (similar to a man cave) complete with Jacuzzi, fireplace, wine chiller, lighting fixtures that can be dimmed according to mood, small kitchen, full bathroom, king sized bed and anything else you feel like having while on a romantic getaway. This would be a very private place for myself and husband to utilize as we please.
If you got space and money then I would also built a private guesthouse with all the works to either rent out or use for company. A girl can dream.

Barbara

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 7:35 pm

Scrabble123 wrote:

Because I'd want China stored properly in a special China room either in a basement or wherever, and brought up into the kitchen for when it will need to be served. There are built in China Cabinets and silverware drawers. Those would be nice to have in a dining room, but only as built ins and not as a separate furniture piece. Extra furniture is a waste of money and space IMO. It makes me dizzy. So I need very clean, precisely measured out rooms with distinct purposes.

To each his own, I suppose.

I think that beautiful furniture is every bit as worthy or admiration as artwork.

And since we use our china and silver (well, antique silver plate) at least twice a month, I'd hate to be lugging it up and down from a basement.

acemom

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 8:00 pm

I have glanced through the thread so I see some people have similar preferences as I have. I realize you asked for things that need to be taken in consideration when building, but I am including everything I dream of to give you ideas....

Here are some things I would like:

-At least one bedroom with a bathroom on the main floor for guests and IYH for us when we get older
-Skylights like Dolly Welsh mentioned. I love natural sunlight but too many windows aren't always practical.
-heated floors in bathrooms
-Sink right outside bathrooms as well as one inside.
-A small laundry room off the kitchen if the house is multi-level. The other laundry room can be same level as the bedrooms.
-higher than normal large countertop for baking- I shouldn't need to bend over. (I am tall.)

DH probably can list some more. The running slogan in our family is.... in the new house, I want.... So far a new house is just a dream anyway, so we are having fun dreaming.

amother

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 8:27 pm

We built the wall with extra insulation between my bedroom suite and the dining room. This is an amazing feature as you can't hear the guest noises.

We also built shabbos timers that automatically adjust to Zeman. It is a great feature. We have a sukkot room that automatically closes the roof latches when it starts raining.

Radiant heat and solar heat are musts. Tall ceilings and tall doors are nice. My entranceway is 22 ft high. My dining room is 13.5 ft high. All the doors are 8 ft.

We have the sidewalks and driveway which melts the snow.

We have closets for every purpose. No present closet, but I have a wrapping room. I also have a giant dining room but no playing in it.

We have an exercise room with a stream shower and a hot tub outside our bedroom.

bluebird

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 8:31 pm

Plenty of accessible storage and a good floor plan. Basically, feeling that all the rooms are the "right" size and you can put furniture in the right places, and that the house is easy to walk around in. If you've ever been in a house that has that problem, you know what I mean. A friend of mine's living room's dimensions are such that her couch pretty much has to be in front of a patio door or right in front of the hallway, making people walk around it.

I'd like a house positioned on the lot in a way that makes of much of the land as possible usable. People don't generally seem to like playing or entertaining in the front yard, so I'd prefer a house with a smaller front and larger backyard.

Iymnok wrote:

Secret passage-that's my biggest dream.

That would be so much fun! As long as it was only my secret for when I want to disappear by myself for a bit. Smile

amother

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 9:20 pm

Thanx everyone! Keep those suggestions coming!
This is what I'm planning on doing so far:
Main floor: Study, large living room and dining room, big kitchen with possibly pesach kitchen, den, mudroom next to 2nd entrance. garage entrance. 1 or 2 bathrooms. I would love a beautiful entrance wih a curved stairs. Lots of closets.
2nd floor: 5/6 bedrooms. laundry room. Master bedroom with huge walk in closet. Master bathroom with his and hers sinks, awesome shower and separate tub.
Attic: Will put in framweork but wont finish it.
Basement: Apartment for tenants, and a playroom

I would love to hear some storage solutions to maximize on space.

amother

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 9:53 pm

Lots of great suggestions.
Just gonna add 2 more.
We live in a new construction house, but we didn't build it.
I really really wish my kitchen had a door on it! When people come in to just be able to close my door and not worry if the kitchen was a mess .
Playroom attached to kitchen is a must .for some reason kids only want to play where mommy is .

Other thing I would love is a second staircase in the back of the house. If we have guest in the front and I'm still not ready, I can run upstairs from the back where the kitchen is and finish getting dressed.

Good luck

Aetrsnrady

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 9:56 pm

I love the idea of a pesach pantry off the kitchen. I'd put in a dishwasher. Even though so much if the time is yom tov, pots, pans, dishes, glasses that have sat around for year need to be washed very well.
I have the washer and dryer on the same floor as the bedrooms and it is an absolute lifesaver! Newer machines are not that noisy, especially with the door shut.

Dolly Welsh

Mon, Dec 22 2014, 10:02 pm

If you can have a little patio for the exclusive use of the tenant's unit, it will make that unit more valuable. A glass door to this patio, and just some flagstones or concrete. Put enough wiring in the tenant's unit for their own air conditioner, a microwave, and an iron to all be going at once, with no problem.

If you have the means, how about your own mikvah? Just the minimum kosher size.