not a pro - I think people will want some additional info to comment effectively:

- orientation of the house (e.g., faces north)

- how many people live there (are there kids, is this for aging in place, etc)

- elevations

- info about the lot: is there terrain? A view? Constraints for size of home?

- what part of the country

- Dimensions needed

First thoughts from me:

- Is a narrow lot dictating that you have a garage in front?

- You may want some adjustments on your kitchen layout when you get to that point (refrigerator to sink is a long way) (handy thread)

- Looks like front door swings into bottom stair

- Sight line from front door is edge/corner of kitchen island

- How will you vent the dryer

- LR / DR is a long span -- hopefully a pro can comment on how that would be supported with no columns

Why did you hire an architect? (and in the same breath) Why are you trying to perform their services?

Don't get me wrong, I am glad you engaged an architect, but they should be performing the services of design that meets your needs and responds to your site. Some information you receive here may be misleading

We appear to be going 'round and 'round here. None of these threads of the last week seem to have ended with any type of direction or acknowledgement as to where you're at or answered most of the quesions we had.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5889127/pushing-a-kitchen-wall-out-to-make-a-larger-kitchen

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5889129/what-size-should-the-living-room-and-dining-room-be-in-open-concept

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5891441/planning-help-awkward-stairs

I'd think to evaluate the "overall design" we're going to need, the site plan, the second floor plan and the elevations.

Our lot is 50x120. Relatively narrow, 4 people will be living here but we are a growing family. The billiards room may be pushed out to be a little bigger. The garage is on the west side and the billiards room is East.

We are keeping the house about 2700sqf.
We don't have much of a view. We live in San Francisco suburbs.

This is to scale, the gyn is something we have been messing around with so more ideas from this community would be great. Or if there's any idea as to moving the laundry room.

Thank you chicagoans and just Janni for adding actual feedback. These are things we can incorporate and talk about with our architect.

When we built our previous house we scoured a few plans, in books an on line, and realized we lacked the knowedge and vision to design a house, especially one that suited our somewhat challenging site. We sat down with the architect with a list of must haves and wants (3 bedroom house, double garage, open concept, decent deck overlooking river views, no wasted space, no froo fra ornamentation). We wanted an efficient home which suited the terrain and the neighborhood. We let him do the actual design, and what he came up with wasn't anything we had, or could have, envisaged. I really think you should let the architect do his job. Just be clear about thise needs and wants, and the dpbudget.

It looks tight for a 2700 sq ft house. Are there 3 floors?

The gym seems small to function as a mudroom, laundry area, and gym. My treadmill there would become a coathanger.

Kitchen needs a prep sink.

Living room looks small when you consider walkways.

How old are kids? If young, will they have a play area?

Jmm1837 makes some very good points. You may find houzz to be a better resource for design ideas that you like and equally as important, what you don't like. How space is used, how rooms relate to each other, are you really open plan people or dreamers about living in an open plan, do you live better with space deliniation? That may be more valuable at this stage of your design process than comments on an initial concept. It might also help clarify how you each see your living style and vision for this opportunity to build from scratch, bring out any differences in vision and assist in gaining the clarity of design vision which you can maintain through the build so you are not making seperate decisions based on differing perceptions or understandings. Good luck with your project.

Do you need a closet for guests’ jackets, in the foyer? The front door seems awfully close to the stairs, will it be able to open enough to, say, bring a sofa through it?

You might “flip” the powder room so that the door is on the right, seems a bit more private for users.

Will there be a door to the gym/laundry? I see faint lines there but not sure if they were erased. If there’s no door, you’ll come out of the bedroom to a view of backpacks and laundry.

Is the master closet big enough for all your clothes?

Do you want your kitchen to be visible from the front door? It would bother me, but others are not. Maybe because my kitchen often ends up a mess thanks to my co-habitants. I'm going to try to remedy some of it by having two dishwashers, but it still requires them to put it in the dishwasher which may or may not happen.

The gym won't work well as a gym with all the other functions you need and I agree on the billiards room size.

The living room looks very small. Have you tried placing furniture in the rooms? It might make you change your mind on some of these rooms.

About the only places that look ok size wise is the kitchen, dining and master bedroom, but it is hard to tell on those too as there are no dimensions that I can read. The master would probably be considered small for many of the general population, but I'm not huge on having a large master.

I wouldn't do a tub/shower combo in the master. I'd prefer to have a good sized shower, but that is my personal preference YMMV.

I would flip the powder room so that if the door is left open nobody sees into it from the kitchen and dining room.

Will you have a TV in the living room? If so where will it go? The window placement there seems to be odd for TV and furniture placement.

usually a pool table needs a space of 14 x 19

Thank you to all that recently posted. The gym is 8x11 we were really just hoping to squeeze in 3 pieces of equipment. I only use the stairmaster and everyone else only uses the treadmill and we have a small dumbbell set. I agree the billiards room is small. We may utilize that room for an office or library.

We aren't really used to having a mudroom. Our washer and dryer are currently in the garage so we are used to not utilizing a lot of space that.

We played around a lot and had so many drawings with the architect that we didn't think he was understanding what we wanted. We drew this ourselves so we can use this to explain our needs. The upper floor will have 3 beds and 2 baths.

The kitchen being a little visible does bother me a little. Doesn't seem to bother my housemates. However, with our layout I don't know how we can get it hidden. Any ideas on that?

So, do you need a billiards room, or do you need an office? Those are very different needs, and should be determined.

”We played around a lot and had so many drawings with the architect that we didn't think he was understanding what we wanted. We drew this ourselves so we can use this to explain our needs“

Now I’m curious to know what the architect drew up and how it differs. And, specifically what you don’t like about it. I think that exercise will help the rest of us, but it might help you better articulate your likes and dislikes to everyone involved (locally or on the internet)

good luck with the build. I understand San Fransisco is an expensive place to build And permit etc

I understand where you are in the process and we felt the same way at the same time. I felt the need to put something on paper to capture my ideas. But I was not proficient at it because I'm not a designer. What ended up being the best was to look at real estate listings in the area and looking at floor plans of homes I did like. I then was able to discern what layouts I liked and disliked and why. When we went to design the home I shared my likes/dislikes and why with our designer and she then designed a home that included my thoughts with the important considerations others have mentioned here like the lot and restrictions etc. It is natural to want to picture what the home will look like. But I encourage you to instead focus on things like, "what do I want on the main floor?" "Where will I store x?" "Where will the bedrooms be?" Don't be fixated on a full plan yet because your lot will dictate some of that. Instead focus on they key parts you can control.

I hope this information helps because I feel home is missing some storage and design functionality.
I believe your site lines create a "bowling alley" effect which could be corrected by making a decorative half wall to living room with storage or columns, doors etc, also creating a nice foyer. Doors would help with noise going upstairs.
Place pocket doors on billiards room entrance.
Create focal point in living room with fireplace wall or tv wall. Must do a furniture layout to see what works for your family. Architects don't always incorporate family and decor functionality in my experience but you should find one that does.
Do you want walls for art work, I couldn't tell where windows were located, which would affect this and furniture placement ?
Don't want closet storage closet door in living room so widen closet so door can be at end of kitchen hall creating a very nice pantry . Jog created on LR side can be built in bookcase /storage.
Could consider a double sided freestanding fireplace between LR and Dining room to create some division while still being open adding unique architectural element.
Dining is very large, could consider adding small sitting space around kitchen or window seat. Do you want furniture in dining area like buffet because your window placement would be an issue.
I think kitchen could have a couple of other design options.. Like extending garage hall, turning island to make other things work and add access to the outside and also redesign to enlarge master closet... It appears way too small. Even bump out kitchen to master wall.
Consider moving laundry to the upstairs where most laundry is generated so should help with exercise room. Please get sizes of equipment and draw scale diagram for room. Then you can decide if large enough or doors can be moved.

Home is a good size but a designer as well as architect could definitely, make this a more functional home... Like closets for coats, mudroom for everyday stuff, adding architectural interest, access to the outside, improved lighting, taking advantage of sun and winds, bump outs can be added for extra storage.
Sorry for rambling,
Hope it helps.