funky - I totally agree with the practicality of the extra sink, water by the cooktop, the baking area and as a beverage center for parties. Ranges, I don't like them much. The simple freestanding ones are out of the question, spills run down the side into the netherworld between cabinet and stove...yak, shudder! The slide-ins don't create that type of mess and cost less at the outset than built ins, but if either the cooktop or the oven stops working, both need to be replaced, not much of a savings there. We currently have a GE top of the line slide in range in which the oven racks keep falling off the guides as (can anyone even believe this?) the oven walls have started to bow out. So much for "American made" and "top of the line" in today's appliances. Also, we're aiming to achieve a minimalist scandinavian look, and ranges, even the slide-in ones just have so much bulk to them. As to occasionally bending down, it's probably good for us, and just doesn't bother me. I'd say the bending when filling and emptying the dishwasher is much more of an issue, as we do that repeatedly each day and often for a prolonged time. If my DW would butt up to tall cabinetry in my kitchen plan, I'd elevate the DW center to counter height, the way Europeans build theirs right into their cabs, now that would really make a nice difference. benje - I've seen that kitchen, it's very cool looking. An open galley like that is what my dream home would have, so practical and no corners. And yes, it would look and work fabulous in our family room. But, he problem is, the family room would not look good in the old kitchen space, for one the space is just too small. Secondly, the almost wall to wall and floor to ceiling window and sliding door in the current family room are what make sitting there and gazing into the backyard ideal. We also enjoy these views from our kitchen, as we can see through the family room into the backyard. The reverse would not be the case, the kitchen cabinetry would block the view from people who are sitting on low couches. In the current kitchen, the window sills are at ca. 37" and cannot be changed (beneath two of them sits our tall AC). anyway there is no view out the side yard, and we will not add a "picture window" to the front of our house. So, no, I don't think we would ever use this space as a family room. Nice try though benje - thank you.

Well this is a very good example of why downspouts shouldn't be painted out as trim- they are not architectural elements and shouldn't be highlighted as such. The big problem here is that the façade (front) of the house was remodeled but the original brick and siding was left on the side, so you're seeing a mishmash and all of these elements would too much for me to think through, I have the same concerns you have so I'd keep looking for another house, you don't need to settle for something you don't like.

You have too many different surface colours and textures in your house, and their proportion to each other is not pleasing to the eye. In other words, it looks patchy. To make things worse, the brightest colour (brick) and lightest colour (white) draw the eye to the lower level, away from the front door. Homes look welcoming and somehow "right" when the eye is drawn to the front door area. Stain the brick. Romabio is the product that you want. It's a stain not a paint and has a good warranty. This will definitely not devalue your home as someone suggested above. While you're at it, stain the contrasting stones around your front door, and the too-light pavers. To draw the eye up, I also moved your hanging basket up to your front porch area. Keep the lower landscaping very simple. Tall grasses in front of the porch area will give you the streamlined look that will suit your MCM style.

Where I live, the small space between the upper roof overhang and the porch roof is an invitation for squirrels and other small animals to make the attic their home. I would lower the upper roof eave so the roof is steeper and eliminate the little horizontal blank strip of wall. Alternatively, the porch roof could be steeper. The dormer roof rakes should not appear to rest on the uper corners of the windows. It looks like a hat pulled down over someone's ears and makes the dormers look fake. To me, everything about the design seems poorly proportioned as if it had been designed by phone, zoom or text. It may be partially the fault of an amateur level 3D drawing program but its asking a lot of the builder to fix it while building it.