I've seen I Love Red's plans and they are very well designed and it's a beautiful house. There are definitely good (and a few excellent) stock plan designs out there but it takes a lot of looking to find a truly good one. I know when I was looking I found nothing that would meet our needs for our lot. We worked with a draftsman. If I had it to do over, I'd have hired an architect to work with us as it probably would have taken me a lot less time. I do have a slight advantage in that I'm a visual person, can think in 3d and was at one time thinking of becoming an interior designer (before I realized I'd have to work with people.) There definitely is no one answer but I will say that so many of the plans posted here from stock plans are not well laid out or are extremely expensive to build with lots of unnecessary jigs and jogs, angled walls, gables on top of gables, roofs that could cover the taj mahal, rooms without any light entering them, etc. They attach gee gaws onto the fronts of the elevations to add interest to what is an overdone plan. Many people have no clue even what they are really looking at in terms of how the rooms flow, what works from a design sense, etc. I know if I show a plan to my DH, he has no clue what relates to what. For someone like my DH, if I wasnt around, working with an architect or someone with true design skills would be his best way to create a custom house. If you're someone like Sandy who knows what works for them, can understand a plan and an elevation, can think somewhat in 3D, then you are ahead of the game. In that case finding a stock plan, or working with a designer or architect will work for you.

I'd get rid of the corner pantry, move the range and fridge down, and put tall pantries to the right of the fridge. And put a prep sink on the island--maybe if she has a nice, efficient layout she'll cook more, and with two nice work areas, maybe you'll cook together.

We built custom because there were no homes available (size and features we wanted...large floor to ceiling windows in just about every room of the house) on the type of land we were looking for. I desperately wanted privacy and I was so so tired of the typical subdivisions where you’re on top of your neighbors and every home looks and feels basically the same. Even many of the upscale neighborhoods with large lots and custom homes just didn’t suit us. We didn’t need neighborhood amenities and had no desire for a “showy” community). In addition , we were finished with HOA’s (I can see the value of them, but I didn’t want to have to ask permission every time I wanted to plant a flower. I wanted to be able to look out every window of my home and not see another house and also have enough land that if the surrounding area was clear cut of every tree, we still would be private and have only nature as our view. BUT (and this was a big but, it could not be in the boonies. We wanted property very close to everything (grocery, mall, restaurants, drug stores, airport, etc.). And another absolute requirement was that the lot was situated in such a way that the main living areas (which I wanted in the rear of the house) faced south (but also with open east and west exposures). I need sunshine and bright cheeriness flooding my home all day long, so even though we needed trees on the perimeter of the property for privacy, we also wanted the building pad to be fairly open so sunlight would be able to flood the interior spaces. So, finding a suitable (and affordable) lot was the tough part. We finally found pretty much exactly what we were looking for....almost 7 acres surrounded by trees (privacy!) but with a fairly clear open area for building. It is in a “subdivision” but there are only 7 lots (all with decent acreage). There also is an HOA, but I am the VP so no problems there :). It’s gated which is nice, but does not have the feel of the typical gated community....much more relaxed. And.....the grocery store (as well as a bunch of other stores) is 3 minutes up the road and “civilization” (the mall and restaurants etc.) are a 10 minute drive. There are also a bunch of other subdivisions very close by along with elementary, middle, and high schools....so there is not that feeling of isolation. Perfect setup for us. Now, as far as the building process goes, hoo boy, it was not without its problems. We’ve built several times before....and it’s never been just pure joy (although each time I somehow thought it would be different because I had learned so much from the previous build....that was not reality though). I’m glad it’s over. Making so many decisions in such a short period of time hurt my brain and having to babysit and nag my builder was a pain and nuisance that I didn’t enjoy. We’ve been in the house almost 6 months. Was it worth all the pain and suffering? Not quite ready to say yes to that yet....still need a little distance between the building trauma and our move in date. But i am truly enjoying the house and setting....I’m sitting here this morning and enjoying watching the birds from my comfy window seat. The sun is streaming in all my windows and doing exactly what I anticipated ......flooding the house with light. And I’m sipping a delicious cup of coffee to boot...so it’s definitely getting closer to being worth it. A few more months and I think I’ll be there. This is it though, we will NOT be building again :) Link to Our build

Pitiful but may be ok. You are looking at it all wrong. It is not the lumber it is about if it is plumb and leveled esp at the windows. It is not about foundation bolt - it is about if any of them are missing more than 6' apart and and 2x at the corners. It is not about the OSB flooring, rather if OSB was glued and fastened properly.... Sheathing same way can not end in the air.