Forgot to mention the pantry has been extended onto porch to make it a walk in...and the area above garage is a play/bonus room. Appreciate any help!

The porch extending along the breakfast rm. is a waste IMO, It's not functional, and at best makes a rear elevation more "Interesting". I'd think about making the bkfst bay a foot smaller, and add a separate porch for the laundry room entry. maybe 4' deep x 8' wide, in a different style than the other porches, perhaps a built-in bench and a simple shed roof.
The tripartite window in the LR is crowded into the corner because of the door. Maybe reduce the window to a double or integrate the door into a three-piece composition window/window/door; window/door/window, etc.
Casey

Thanks Casey for the advice! All great ideas! This is why I love this site:)

The master closet would be better made so that it is a reach in closet. It is going to be really tight to walk in there with only a width of 4ft 4in.

I'm not liking the laundry and entry points from the outside/garage there. I have this unfortunate situation of having to walk through the dirty areas to get to the laundry.

The baths do look tight to me. You'll be hitting whomever is using the left master sink with the door if it is closed. Maybe change the swing of the door. Do you need a tub in there?

The vanity in the kids bath I would have prefered to be a bit larger. Maybe consider a pocket door for the kids bath so they don't hit each other with the door swinging in on the person byt he vanity.

For a smaller plan, I think you have too much space in walk in closets that won't actually function that well as walk ins. I'd change their structure so they are all reach ins.

The hall bath is a little small for 3 kids, but you also didn't say how old said kids are, or their gender. All the same? All boys? maybe it will work. If you have just one girl in the mix, you will need more vanity space. You don't need 5 feet for your master toilet room/shower room. I'd flip the orientation of the toilet/shower, then you could put the door (a pocket) to that room across from the vanities. And, the shower on can be the same depth as the tub. Make the room narrower so you can get more room in the hall bath for the kids.

Alternatively, talk to your architect about getting away from boxy bathrooms. There might be some way to jog the space division of the bathrooms that actually does a better job for your space. Also, consider whether or not you really need a 5 piece bath in the master. That is a really big space hog for a smaller home.

Think about how your family enters a house. Where is the "drop zone"? You don't really have one, and I think your dining table will become the drop zone.

The second bedroom that is a funny shape due to the foyer closets is just weird. How will that space be set up? Maybe with a desk or dresser in the "knob"? I'd reconsider that some as well (maybe put the room's closet over there, and rearrange the other rooms' closets as mentioned. You might even be able to put a bathroom on that side of the hall if your architect is good.

I like the overall plan and I think you've gotten some good advice.

My only comment...can't you put two kids in the bigger bedroom and the third in the other bedroom? This would give you an office or dining space now...and you could put double doors, into that room. With the bonus room, the kids can play up there...so the bedrooms are more for sleeping and maybe homework, right?

I really like your half bath, closet and laundry set up. It's handy to the back yard, garage and the bonus room. Also a great idea to have the laundry room double as a mud room, which it looks like you have. I like the bigger pantry, too :)

Thanks Everyone for all the great advice! I really appreciate that strangers will take the time to try to give advice or help :)
lifia the master closet is 9 feet wide, it does look like a 4 on the plan though...I really would like to have a tub in the master. I take more baths than showers. Wierd I know ;) I should look into changing the doors around for sure.
Kirkhall those are all good points. Thanks! Do you think I should lose that closet by the garage door entry and make it a desk area or "drop zone"? The odd shaped bdrm calls for a built in desk area. I don't know why it isn't on this plan.
We will be building this house on a farm so it was important to have a mud/laundry room that could be accessed without coming through the house. 3 kids on a farm = lots of dirt :)
Lavender_lass I sure wish I could bunk two kids together, it sure would makes things easier, but their are 8 yrs between my two boys and my teenager would likely object;) My daughter has a pretty little vanity/makeup desk in her room that she uses, so I justified the tiny bath by that fact and the fact that I am sure she will use my bath..which I am okay with. It really is small but the tiny house we have lived in for the past 4 years only has one bath even smaller than that one(if you can even imagine), so I was hoping it would work, having a half bath when needed. Sometimes I think I should just start all over on my houseplan hunt, but it took FOREVER to find a house that could accomadate 4 bdrms around 2000 sq ft and an optional bonus room, with large porches. I am in the south so that is important to us. I am a stay at home mom so cost is unfortunately a factor in my decions. Thanks for the compliments. This was way harder than I had imagined. If only budget were no concern..:)

lorettomomof3 - the 4ft 4in I'm talking about is the depth, not the width. Clothes will stick out at least 2 ft if not more into that so you'll have ~2ft of space to squeeze through to get to the sides of the closet. That is not much space and will be really cramped. A reach in closet would function much better and you could use that extra sq ft for something else than walking.

Well, that's a good reason, not to share a bedroom! LOL

What's on the left side of your house? Is there a view? I only ask, because it might be nice to think about a bay window, in your master bedroom, unless your bed is going on that wall...and then maybe a bigger window on the back.

For the kids rooms, it would be so much nicer, to have larger windows, with window seats, rather than all the little windows....especially in the corner bedroom and the future dining room.

Yes, budget is always an issue! Pesky little thing, isn't it? :)

Oh ok lyfia...sorry I was confused, I thought you said width... That makes sense. Make it double doors instead of single and not as deep? Good advice! Thanks!

If you have seating at your bar (backing up to the living room) then after you leave the 42" suggested walkway (or even just 3 ft) between the barstools and back of the couch, you will only have around 8 ft of floorspace in between your couch (assuming it's about 3 ft in depth) and your LV wall. Add in the fireplace and you have even less. Just a consideration.

That is a good point okpokesfan. I should probably start over from scratch but I am pretty sure I will never be able to find or create a perfect plan without sacrificing something :( I was hoping that the bonus room upstairs would offset the small living area. It really is hard to find a house with all the right elements at an affordable size that functions well. I'm tired just thinking of starting over..If I could afford it I would change a lot:)

I know what you mean. There are sacrificies we all have to meet (unless we have an unlimited budget). You just have to decide what is important to you and what features you MUST have and which ones you just want.

We are currently working on our floorplan and have some things in there that before we started we said we wouldn't have, just to make the square footage work.

If you have a bonus it probably will offset that. Good luck!

We too are trying to build a budget friendly, 2000 sq. ft. home in the south! It is a struggle to get everything to work and frustrating indeed.

I really like your large laundry/mud room and your dining area will enjoy lovely outside views. The bonus room will provide a nice retreat for your children.

I do agree that your living area is a little tight. However, there are some slimmer versions of sofas these days that could help make this work. Are you planning to have a masonry fireplace?

You also don't have to have a sofa facing the FP, you could have two loveseats or a loveseat and two club chairs facing each other perpendicular to the FP....I think your living space will be fine! I also think you are smart to use that 4th bedroom as a bedroom now when you need it...but had it placed perfectly to be a dining room when you don't. That is a smart use of space!

Thanks Everyone and Nini you are right, I think the couches would look fine that way. That is a good idea. Thanks so much!

You've mentioned twice that maybe you should start over. Don't be discouraged! This is a nice layout, and can be tweaked to get you to where you want to be.

Here are some more suggestions:

I'm not sure why the 2 bedrooms are so large, especially when you need space elsewhere. I'd take the two 16' bedrooms and shorten them by 2' each. You only need 18" deep for a linen closet, so take a foot from there, and a a foot from the MBR closet. Put the 2' that was in the MBR in the living room. Take the 2' that was in the other BR and put 1' in the 2 closets (with no basement, the kids will need a little more space for their stuff) and 1' in the smaller BR.

Put double doors in the teenager's BR that will become a study/DR. Leave the dining nook the size it is.

In the hall bath, switch the vanity to the wall opposite the door and put the toilet to its right on the same wall. Turn the tub so the drain is at the opposite end. In the master bath put cabinets over the toilet for MBR & bath linen/storage.

I realize you'd like a large laundry, but you might want to consider moving the half bath 3' to the right into the laundry, and then use the space between it and the pantry as a drop zone. That would move the closet over 3' also, and give you a lot more space for 5 people coming in from the garage in what is now a very congested area.

Anne

You've mentioned twice that maybe you should start over. Don't be discouraged! This is a nice layout, and can be tweaked to get you to where you want to be.

Here are some more suggestions:

I'm not sure why the 2 bedrooms are so large, especially when you need space elsewhere. I'd take the two 16' bedrooms and shorten them by 2' each. You only need 18" deep for a linen closet, so take a foot from there, and a a foot from the MBR closet. Put the 2' that was in the MBR in the living room. Take the 2' that was in the other BR and put 1' in the 2 closets (with no basement, the kids will need a little more space for their stuff) and 1' in the smaller BR.

Put double doors in the teenager's BR that will become a study/DR. Leave the dining nook the size it is.

In the hall bath, switch the vanity to the wall opposite the door and put the toilet to its right on the same wall. Turn the tub so the drain is at the opposite end. In the master bath put cabinets over the toilet for MBR & bath linen/storage.

I realize you'd like a large laundry, but you might want to consider moving the half bath 3' to the right into the laundry, and then use the space between it and the pantry as a drop zone. That would move the closet over 3' also, and give you a lot more space for 5 people coming in from the garage in what is now a very congested area.

Anne

You know, if you're willing to give up the separate bath and shower, in the master...you could recess the fireplace into that area and put the toilet, where you have the shower, now.

It might make the bathroom a little smaller, but the living room would sure benefit, from the extra space!

Wow...so many great ideas! Thanks Jimandanne! Lavender_lass, I had thought of that too, but I sure do hate to give up my tub:/ I am going to really consider that though. Pay it forward, it will be a gas log fireplace. My husband would be content not to have one at all because we rarely do ever use one....but I am not sure?
I have lots of new ideas and suggestions! So thankful to you all!

Some more suggestions:

Hall bath--I had one the same size (9 x 5) that had the tub where yours is, but the vanity was on the wall opposite the door and 6' wide, with the toilet on the wall where you have the small vanity. It would give you LOTS of counter space, and more storage underneath for hairdryers, etc. for multiple kids. Mine had one vanity section 3' wide with the sink centered in it on the left, then a set of drawers (they opened fairly far out, but couldn't be taken out completely because they hit the toilet, but were very useful), and an opening to the right where I kept a waste basket. One long counter went over all of this to the wall on the right. Vanities come either 21" or 18" deep; mine was 21", but you could make it 18" if you wouldn't mind a smaller sink. There is only going to be one person in that bathroom at a time, so although there's less floor space, the arrangement worked well for me.

Master bath--What I'm going to describe would work for you (we have a little more space than you do), but you'll need to decide if your priorities are the same as mine were when I designed ours. I wanted to be able to soak for along time in the tub after gardening or x-c skiing. I'm getting older, and the body doesn't look as good as it used to, and I really wanted my own space without my husband walking in since I wanted peace & he's usually talking. So I put the tub where you have the shower, then the vanity, and then the toilet on the long wall. In the other part of the master bath, I put the shower where you have the tub, and a single vanity where you have two. If I am soaking and tying up the toilet area, he just uses the other bathroom.

I know your budget is tight, and you're on a farm so probably have other out-buildings. But it would be very inexpensive to add one to three feet onto the garage and laundry end of the house--ask your builder about this. I'd definitely add one foot. 3' would be better, because it would allow you to expand the congested entry in from the garage to the house, and would still give you a larger laundry if you take my suggestion above to move the half bath and closet to the right. Also, it would give you more storage for kids stuff, maybe small tools or a workshop, etc.

Anne

Some thoughts: if you do convert that bedroom to a dining room it won't seat more than eight with any comfort. It will be mostly a show room and not a place where you can have a lot of guests. Instead of having a small breakfast nook, I would bump out the whole width of the living room/kitchen, and have the dining area in the upper right corner - but you can flex out into the living room if you have a lot of guests. I really hate my 11x12 dining room - the only time we use it is when we have guests and then it is too small.

When your teenager moves out (sniff, mine are in the process) the room can become a home office, guest room, sewing room...

I would consider either moving the toilet to the existing cabinet area and making the vanity twice as long. Maybe keep foot away from tub? Might even get two sinks there. May have to move door. I think that bathroom could be reworked. I would have a built in mirror or cabinet above the toilet. Also, if you could rework that master bath shower you could get another foot in the kids bath. That is too much space for the toilet in the master, don't you think?

I think you have been given some good advice. I will echo NOT to give up...it takes hundreds or m ore of revisions. Take your time, as it is worth it.

I know so much of the way we live is personal preference. I certainly would have much smaller bedrooms and more living area. Your kids are having their own room, so I wouldn't think they need all that space. use graph paper or a room layout program and see how a bed, night stand, dresser works out. I find that with walk-in closets and a really good system for organizing, my kids fit basically everything in their closets. I hang everything possible..as it saves me time and wrinkles.

Also, I certainly love a nice laundry area, with that said...mine was 10' X 10' and was wonderful. So much can be done with these spaces with well thought out cabinet, shelves and storage arrangements.

I definitely think you will want a bigger kitchen/eating area.

Look as smaller floor plans...1600 sq ft or so and then see if you can add to it...probaly will need an actual pantry, laundry room, etc.

You will get there and it will be worth it!

Thanks everyone for ALL the great ideas and words of encouragement! I really appreciate you all taking the time to help! I have A LOT to think about...for sure! Thanks again!