Before we begin, to answer one of your questions, you can find the UPC vent size DFU table on the Vent page in your code check. It is listed as table 11 on the right hand side of the page. I can see a number of small problems on your proposed layout. 1. On the branch drain which is serving the W.C. & shower you show a cleanout on the end of the line with a wye & 1/8bend and a fixture arm to the shower, then another wye & 1/8 bend with a short horizontal offset to the vent riser. In that configuration you have a horizontal offset on the vent below the floor, but code prohibits any horizontal offsets on a vent until the vent reaches an elevation at least 6" higher than the flood level rim of the highest fixture served by that vent, which in this case you be 6" higher than the W.C. bowl rim. You could place the shower arm wye between your proposed location for the cleanout and the vent. In this manner the vent would be on the downstream side of the shower arm and assuming the vent rises vertically you would be ok. For the branch serving the W.C. and the shower the combined fixture load is 4dfu's and an 1-1/2" vent is rated for up to 8dfu's, but note the subscript 2 beside the dfu number. If you look at the second exception on the chart it says NO W.C. A wc requires a 2" vent. On that branch you only need a 3" drain until you reach the wye at the WC. From the WC wye to the shower and vent it can be 2" but be careful here as well. On the top of the drawing it shows the 2" vent has a horizontal offset to the vent through the roof. If any horizontal offset on a vent line exceeds 3' the entire vent line must be increased one nominal trade size. That means the entire vent would then be 3" and the drain line downstream from that vent opening would also need to be 3". If you have enough vertical clearance in the attic space you could make that offset rise at a 45degree angle because in plumbing any line that rises at an angle of 45degree or greater is said to be a vertical line. The lavatories are rated at 1dfu which would be an 1-1/2" drain line, but code will allow us to increase the drain line by one nominal trade size, which would then be 2". A 2" fixture arm is allowed to go 5' from trap weir to vent opening. I roughly scaled your drawing and you should be able to run a 2" line from the tub and tie the vent in at 5'. The vent should then rise between the two lavatories very close to the left hand lav as facing the lavs from the front. You could then run a 2" over to the other lav and still be under the 5' maximum, thus you would not need two vent risers on this wall. The total dfu load for the tub and two lavs is 4dfu's which could be vented with an 1-1/2" line, but since you have a horizontal offest greater than 3' the vent must be increase one nominal trade size, which would be 2" which you have already specified.

If I understand correctly, you are saying that the entire roof of the family room would extend another three feet beyond the current ridge, and there could also be a dormer centered over the windows. I think that would look great! My only hesitation would be the shallower pitch to the rear, because that would be visible when you or guests drive up to the garage. Ask the architect to sketch it out for you. And windows in closets are not always a good idea, as they can lead to sun-damage of clothes. If you decide to go with one, lay out the closet hanging space and shelving before you place the window. Right now, it looks like it's too close to the corner and would eliminate more than its share of storage.

I don't know where these figures come on the amount allocated to furnishing a home. In my experience, if you are buying your first home, you are going to be strapped for cash - at least for the first year or so. Most people I know made do with donations; thrift store acquisitions, odds and ends accumulated along the way and disposable furniture from places like IKEA - or they made do without. If one is moving to a second or third home, surely one has acquired furniture along the way and doesn't immediately discard it. Again, in my experience, most people with middle class incomes make do with already existing furniture and augment as needed. While it's nice to get new stuff, most people I know bought furniture gradually.

What's the optimal size for a shower in an average master bath? Ideally 4' x 5' seems to be optimal. Mine is 44" x 5' and works great. And a related question -- how much glass surround is optimal? I noticed one of the posters on the 10ft shower thread commented that 3 walls of glass made things chillier. I believe I was the one who pointed this out but the problem wasn't that it was chillier. The problem is having to clean (squeegee) all that glass every single time you shower. Otherwise you'll be constantly seeing spots and soap scum on the shower. Yes Showerguard will help with spots and soap scum, but not 100%. The problem wasn't the glass. It was having 10'. Also I just played a bit with your plan again and here are my reasons: In the second bath, I moved the shower to the wall against the existing bedroom. This way you have more room in the actual bathroom for moving around. This also one day could be a handicap accessible bath if needed. Plus now every time you need to use the sink, you don't have to first close the bathroom door just to walk around the door. I moved the entry to your master further into the hallway. This creates a bit more of an "entrance" into your bedroom and actually makes your bedroom a bit larger because you don't now have the doorway taking up space in the bedroom. Plus now the doorway isn't practically hitting the closet door. I flipped the shower and tub and the entry and vanities. Why? So the bathroom door to the closets is closer. Then I moved the bed to the right wall and the dresser to between the closets. This is the exact same size, but notice how more spacious it feels? Plus now one person doesn't have to cram into the space between the night table and closet opening to get to their clothes. (And yes, ideally no one should need to walk around the bed to get to the bathroom, but in this case, I feel the much improved layout trumps having to walk slightly around the bed.