For many prospective homeowners, the current economic environment can present a significant hurdle when it comes to the cost of home construction. Whether it’s a newlywed couple or a baby boomer, the reality of what they need and what they can afford are at odds. Young couples cannot afford to build a house of the size that they will need for their growing family. Empty nesters retiring are faced with the dilemma of rising construction costs that have outpaced the value of their current homes, which they must downsize. Even young singles with good jobs and promising careers don’t have the money for a decent down payment on a new home and are forced to rent.
build in stages
For people who can’t afford the entire home they’ll eventually need, starting small, building in stages, one phase at a time may be the right solution to get them on the path to affordable homeownership. This has proven to be quite a popular option at our firm, especially for many young families. With the expectations of a growing family, starting small and adding later as the need arises and budget permits not only solves a budget-strapped problem, but also avoids the potential hassle of selling and moving to a new home. bigger house. And with the right kind of pre-planned expandable house design, disruption to future construction can be kept to a minimum, avoiding loss of use and having to find temporary housing.
Expandable house plans start with the basic essential rooms that will be built during the first phase of construction. Building plans provide, in advance, the specific structural details and specifications necessary to easily accommodate later additions with the least amount of disruption to daily family activities and limited remodeling of the existing building. Future framed openings, wall studs, and plumbing/HVAC access are anticipated in the design and layout of the expandable house design. Complete and detailed construction plans are provided for all future additions showing the exact location relative to the existing first phase, as well as exterior elevations of what the entire final project will look like.
Expandable and flexible house plans
Expandable and staged home plans aren’t just for young families looking for a starter home. We have seen a growing request in our design firm for future retired/semi-retired combined vacation homes. People planning for the future by building in stages with multi-use expandable home designs are starting with vacation cottages or tiny rental homes.
One particular expandable house plan we designed for a client was a combined vacation and retirement home built in stages in a small town where his young daughter had just accepted a new job. Known for its ideal retirement qualities, this mountain and lake region provided a welcome vacation retreat from her city life and day job, as well as a place for her daughter to live until she could afford the down payment on a home of your own. Beginning with the daughter’s garage apartment and attached vacation home, her property would be held and watched over until they moved in full time at a later date.
With partial retirement expected in this home, construction plans called for a future home office to be built in the connection between the cottage and garage apartment and additional bedrooms in a wing at the other end of the cottage. Once the daughter is gone, the garage apartment could serve as a rental property, guest quarters, or apartment for the in-laws. Since the farmhouse plan was designed as a home for the age-in-place (a barrier-free design that allows them to live independently as they age), the garage apartment could also serve as caretaker accommodation. in the future.
This type of stage-built, expandable home plan is highly flexible and versatile, providing many incremental options as budgets allow and lifestyle situations change, all without sacrificing the simple pleasures a home can offer.
With a little innovation and reprioritization, young families or baby boomers who are downsizing will have a better chance of achieving their goal of affordable home building. Implementing the staged construction method offered by expandable home plans can provide a convenient and affordable alternative to profitable home ownership.
