It looks like a nice simple house, but I think you will have problems in the living room.

Because it is only 13-6 wide, placement of furniture will interfere with the walkway from the front door to the rest of your home. One would feel boxed into a corridor by furniture.

I would also switch the location of the spare bedroom's closet with the entry closet to prevent the entry door and the hall closet door from clapping into each other. I could see how it may be difficult to get coats from the closet as guests are trying to exit.

My first reaction was regarding the front door and guest coat closet, as the your first response. Go with what she/he said. With such a small kitchen, why put in two sinks? I guess it would depend upon how you cook. I would put a larger sink in the island, then take away the sink on the wall of base cabinets. That would give you a longer counter top to work on. Right now it feels too chopped up.

I think I'd widen the house beyond 44' to fit a foyer in, along with a staircase running down to the basement. That circular staircase is liable to cost you a bit more than just increasing the width of the home.

Think about placing the entry to the basement where your front door closet is now. (One step down then 90 degree left turn to empty out into the basement under the kitchen.) Now think about separating this space from the family room. (You might be able to fit the closet in toward the end of the staircase.)

I have to agree with the suggestion on the sink, though I would leave the sink in the perimeter cabinets and keep your island open. We have a much larger kitchen with the sink undera window on a perimeter wall (much like yours). Our FAVORITE feature of this house is our 4 1/2 x 8 1/2 island which a joy to work on, prep on, eat on, and the center of all entertaining. A sink or cooktop in the middle would just get in the way.

{{gwi:1496083}}

About the closet- I know what you mean- I had it that way originally, but thought the wall space might be handy for one of our antique pieces. In our current house we never actually use the front closet for guests- too much stuff in it! Coats usually just get tossed on the bed.

About the sinks- My wife wants the main sink facing the view, and I have to agree. She loves looking out the kitchen window! Why 2 sinks? We both cook, and the sink always seems to be 'occupied'(We rarely use the dishwasher). The one on the island will be smaller- 24" single bowl.

I originally drew the great room 2' wider, but that starts pushing up the square footage, although in this case it might be justified. I planned on having a couch facing the fireplace, with a couple chairs grouped around. I'm seriously thinking about putting a flat-screen TV above the fireplace (yikes!) behind panel doors, so this furniture grouping would get used a lot.

I keep trying different things with the stairway. The spiral staircase is the most radical yet. Metal spirals are pretty inexpensive. I've also drawn it up with conventional stairs w/ a landing halfway down that goes out to a set of outside stairs, giving relatively easy access to the back yard. The basement stairs would U-turn back towards the basement. I see what you mean about staircase location- it could go under the bedroom closet. That bedroom is going to be used as an office, so closet space is less important. Of course, the stairway eats up about 4' in width, so I would have to go 48' (2' for the great room; 2' more for a stairway).

Anyway- thanks for the input- we'll see what other ideas turn up. This forum is the greatest!

My house has to have some 'messy space'. That W/D in-a-closet would drive me nuts. I need a 'back hall'. Ours has three doors: garage/hall, hall/kitchen, back yard/hall. Also a door to a powder room. My W/D and laundry sink are there. There's 3 X 10 double door closet that houses mucho stuff, including the ironing board, coats, Costco-sized supplies, etc.

I don't want my back hall type storage in the basement. I sure don't want to negotiate spiral stairs to get to it and I can't imagine how you'd get anything larger than a breadbox down those stairs. (Did I say 'breadbox'? How quaint!)

For me, this house is too small. I'd go for only partial basement and get more one-floor living space. I'd like porch and stairwell within the rectangle -- simpler roofing. Hope your porch is on the cool side of the house. ??

Since you said this is your down sizing home I'm thinking you will be retiring here and living for a long time in this house.

If that is the case don't do the spiral staircase. As you age it will become impossible for you to walk in. Even normal stairs will be hard to use then, but spiral is much worse due to the small space you really have of a full stair thread.

I currently have a 14'6" width living room not counting the fp. You will have a very cramped space there with the door in the area too. Figure that you need at least 4' to be able to say bye and see people off behind the sofa and then ~3' to walk in front of the sofa and chairs. It will be tight especially if you have guests and family over.

Although it is more sq ft in that main area I think it will be well spent there and not something you'd regret.

Our house is a bit smaller than yours and we had to address similar issues. I like your kitchen to great room relationship. The cook can socialize with everyone while doing those kitchen duties.
Your cabinet countertops have no long run for prep work, only the island does. I'd eliminate that island sink. Using the dishwasher may be an adjustment you'll have to make in a smaller home.
The three doors entering the great room will make much of it no more than a hallway.
I had a spiral staircase to our bedroom in a new home once. Would never have one again especially if it was to be used for carrying things to be stored in a basement.
For me personally I'd use the master closet for a larger master bath and the area you have for the bath as the walk in closet.
It's a lot of work but you'll figrue it out. Tom

Don't do the spiral staircase. Walkout basements are a great way to achieve more usable space inexpensively, but not if it has to be accessed via a spiral staircase.

What is the extra bedroom for? Is that going to be your office or a guest room? Will you have a lot of guests?
Where are you going to park?

These are my suggestions (assuming that increasing the footprint is not a possibility):

Change the shape of the master bedroom so that the long wall is the wall with the view. I think it will still be about 12' x 17'. You will probably have to reduce the 13'6" dimension of the kitchen a little.

Move the bathroom to where the guest bath is. Changing the orientation of the master bedroom will allow you to have a larger bath in this spot and a bigger closet. Put a stackable w/d either in or very close to the master cloest and bath.

Use the space from the guest bedroom for a staircase and a powder room. You should also be able to push back a little to achieve a wider living room.

I love the big dressing room/closet.

I realize that losing the extra bedroom is a big deal, but it will get you functional stairs without adding sq ft and a powder room will be quite a bit cheaper than a full bath. Not tacking the spiral stairs onto the outside of the house should save you some money too. Maybe not enough to finish a bedroom and bath in the basement, but you can always add those later if and when visiting grandchildren become an issue. I would guess that you would at least save enough to rough-in the plumbing in the basement.

I like the basic plan, but I'm with the others regarding the spiral stairway. The stairway its self might be cheap, but the round turret that will have to be framed and finished will not be cheap. I believe it would actually be cheaper to add 48" to the length of the house to give yourself room for a conventional staircase. Spirals are cool, but not very practical. You would never be able to get anything larger than a box you could carry in your arms down those stairs, plus the wedge shaped stairs can be a safety hazzard. If you add the extra 48" width, you would widen the master a bit and also the kitchen. The secondary bedroom is really small, but if it's just a home office, then it doesn't matter. Entry closet placement...doesn't matter much either. You could swap the two of them easily though. The livingroom is a bit narrow, but not much of a problem, except that you will be very limited on furniture arrangement. Consider moving the fireplace to either the front corner, or center it up on the front wall with a window on each side of it. Then you could make the chimney on the front a focal point.

I was actually thinking about your house this morning.

If your basement will be storage, or anything else for that matter, getting things down a spiral will be difficult if not impossible.

Nothing larger than a small box could be stored there. Even moving a christmas tree box would be impossible.

You might look at the link below for an idea or two.

http://www.ritz-craft.com/sec_results.cfm?model=10750

Here is a link that might be useful: 1422 ranch

I only drew the spiral stairs on a whim. Originally, I had a rectangular bump-out with conventional U-turn stairs. I agree I need something better. If I had something large/bulky to bring up from the basement, I'd just drive around back and throw it in the truck, since it will be a walk-out. The second bedroom is a necessity, since I need space for a home office. I originally had a 2nd bedroom AND a tiny office. The kitchen has a great deal more counter space than the house we are in now! But I will think about not having that second sink. In looking at our habits, my wife does dishes constantly- she can't stand to have them in the sink, so small batches get done several times a day (not the way I'd do it). So, I come in from the BBQ with dirty hands, or have hands full of whatever I'm cutting up in the kitchen, and one side of the sink has dishes drying in it, the other side is full of soapy water. I was just trying to find a solution to the problem. Maybe a really small (bar) sink set off to one side?

The house can certainly be bigger. We currently have 3 people in 1500 sq/ft, and it's plenty, especially considering the living room and dining room are virtually unused. We also don't have a basement (of course, the garage is piled w/ stuff LOL).

One of the design issues I'm up against is the walk-out foundation. If the 'uphill' side is more than about 36', you either have to have a jog in the wall, or have an internal shear wall to support the wall against the unbalanced pressure. In a full basement, you have forces pushing more equally against each other. I'm trying to keep things as simple as possible since I'll be either building it or paying for it, and I'm not a big fan of cutting up walls and roofs just for the sake of variety. I'm envisioning a basic rectangular cape, with a front porch and tin roof to make it look 'southern'. The house won't be visible from the street, and our only company will be friends or relatives who don't (I hope!) care what kind of house we have; they're coming to see us.

Parking is intended to be in the back, at least for us. I planned a loop around the back, and another loop in front for deliveries or company. If either of us is incapacitated at some point, coming up through the basement won't be an option. In all likelihood, we'll just use the front door, like we do in our current house. There will be a detached barn/garage along the loop. I had originally drawn the porch off the back, with parking underneath it. I didn't like blocking the view w/ the porch, though, although we'll probably spend lots of time on the porch.

The master bath size has been discussed a lot, too. The one in the plan is the same size as our current one, and neither of us could see the point in a bigger one. We only use a shower, and would put a tub in the 2nd bath in case the need/desire ever arose.

I've done a few plans w/ the MBR turned sideways, and the great room as well. This ends up being a very long house- will that be tiresome for retirees? I'll keep thinking about all these things, and go through some more paper!

I like the 2nd sink, but would move it one cabinet to the left so it doesn't divide the wonderful island space, but will still be very useful. I think with the big windows you plan, the master will be fine in that orientation, and, like you, I see no need to waste valuable space on a huge master bath area. We use ours as necessary, not as a lounging area. We just can't afford to give up space for that, and in a house your size, I think yours is fine, especially if you plan room for a tub if it becomes necessary.

The living room worries me most. I think you should draw some furniture to scale and place it in your floorplan to make sure it'll fit the way you envision, and people can still get to it and around it easily. We'll have a small living room in our house, and anticipate furniture placement challenges, but ours is without entry traffic coming through.

Agree with everyone else on the spiral stairs. Friends had some and they were the most hazardous things I've ever navigated, and I was in my 20s and not carrying things up and down.

That plan bungeeii posted seems just about perfect if you enlarged the master bedroom by removing the closet shown and instead used the one of the bedrooms as a closet/dressing room.

I love the idea of an efficient plain cape with a metal roof.

That is a good floor plan (Ritz-craft 1422)- you could enlarge the MBR by eliminating the closet as shown, and use BR #2 as a big walk-in. I'll have to play with that.... It is a bit bigger than I wanted, though.

The reason I obsess about size is because we are on a limited budget, which is getting squeezed by the declining real estate market. As of today's prices, we are almost below the point in equity where this would be possible, and the prognosis for the market continues downward, esp. here in FL. A year from now, we might be shopping for a nice single-wide!

I understand the need for saving money on what you build. However keep in mind that a rectangular foundation and walls will be cheaper to build than a bump-out for stairs. That bump out will end up costing you more than adding as part of the normal rectangle. More expensive foundation wise, the tie in to the roof, more material to build u-turn steps etc.

The plan posted by bungeii is a really good workable plan. As solie suggested you could remove the master closet use space from bedroom 2 for the master closet. Bedroom 3 will be pushed into bedroom 2. That would take off around 112 sq ft and make it close to 1300 sq ft. You would also be able to get a larger closet for the office/bedroom and it would be a good size to squeeze guests in too in addition to office space.

Another thing to cut down on costs is to keep bathrooms, kitchen, and laundry close to each other as the plumbing is shorter to route.

For the bath size - as you age it will be better to have space to be able to move around easily or if you'd need help with anything.

I really like the floorplan that bungeeii posted too. It is an excellent design and would be economical to build.

I like the cape cod plan, too. You could add a screened porch across the back -- or the side of the LR/DR.

Please consider buying a Dishdrawer dishwasher, or a pair of them. Hand-washing dishes is a real water-waster, and not as sanitary. DH and I fill one dishdrawer per day. You could even use clean out of one while putting dirty into the other. Voila! There's your clean and clear sink without adding a second one.

Our house is as close to flat on the land as it can be. One 4" step up at every door. It's mere steps from garage through back hall to kitchen with groceries. Doorways are all 36" wide without thresholds. One bathroom is large enough so that someone in a wheelchair can use it. WE have a basement but it is strictly to house the HVAC and for dead storage. (I mention these things because you say this is your retirement home.)

Have you thought about how your house will sit on the land? Where there is light and shade?

I don't have a whole lot of choice as to how the house sits on the land due to the slope. The back of the house faces North-north-east, which I know is not ideal, although in a hot climate, it can be an advantage. That is also the direction of the mountain view. The whole lot is heavily treed, so it's shady everywhere. Obviously, many trees will have to go for the house, but we're going to make an effort to keep as many as possible. We'll install a dishwasher; I'm just not sure how much it will get used- old habits die hard. Not to mention- DW washes the dishes pretty well before she puts them in the dishwasher!

One problem I've having in adjusting that posted plan is that I'd really like the porch off the back, since otherwise it will be on the west (hot) side of the house. We have that problem in FL, and it's uninhabitable in the afternoon. But there's not good access, other than through the utility room, which is much less than ideal. I mirrored that floorplan, because I want the MBR on the east side.

Why can't you just flip the ritz 1422 plan. It is fairly similar to what you have. Just need to flip it to the left and you have almost the same room arrangement.

That's what I meant by 'mirrored'- I flipped it. I'm just trying to work out porch access, and how I'm going to pay for a house that big LOL!

Jay, see what you think about this one. Have done variations of this several times over a walk-out

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:1496081}}

While looking at plans for a friend wanting to build on 200 acres, I ran across this one. I think a basement could be added. I love the porch and the privacy of a bedroom on each side. The kitchen and dining area would overlook your scenic view.

Cameron

Here is a link that might be useful: River Rendezvous plan

Both of those are similar in ways to my original premise- many, many plans ago! I was going to have a timber framed center great room, with a wing off either side. Both the front porch and back porch would be extensions of the timber frame great room. Financial concerns have just about eclipsed the timber frame idea. I'll return to that general layout in a conventional house, and see what I come up with. I'm a little concerned with my long-term view towards the front, since we don't own the land between the house and the road. I'm going to try to buy it at some time, but if someone else does, and plops a mobile home in front of us, I wouldn't want the living room focused in that direction. In contrast, the nearest neighbor to the back has a big, beautiful house (which we can't see, even in the winter) but if he subdivided, our back lot line is 700' away, fully wooded.