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Finding the perfect home plan to build your new home can seem overwhelming considering the thousands of house plans available online. There are a few items to consider as you peruse through home plans on websites and possibly magazines and books. Your house plan will be the blueprint to build probably the biggest financial investment of your lifetime. Take sufficient time to make sure the plans you eventually purchase are exactly what you and your family need and want in a home design. Whether you're considering to build a small house, modern house, cottage style home, craftsman house or traditional home, whatever style is your personal preference, there are items to consider before you break ground and begin building your dream home from the blueprints you purchase.
If you want search tips on how to find the best home plans online, read Tips to Finding Your Perfect House Plan. You'll learn the best ways to quickly and easily find house floor plans that meet your style and budget. If you want help on deciding all of the different residential products that will go into your new house, check out the many articles in our Resources section. You'll find objective, up-to-date information on everything from radiant floors to window choices to appliances and just about every other product that will go into your new home. All of these product choices are part of your overall new home investment, so do your research ahead of time and make informed decisions on the products that will be used to build your beautiful new home.
As you're searching through house plans, don't forget to think about your landscaping and what your view will be from of the windows in your new home. Many clients overlook this and then end up with little to no budget for landscaping or outdoor living space. Carefully consider how you plan to position your new home on your lot to accommodate a pool or patio even if this is something you plan on doing at a later time.
An important item to get clarified before you purchase your construction working drawings is what, if any, your local planning and zoning department requires from a house blueprint. Call your planning and zoning office and ask them if you need an architectural seal or engineer seal to build a home. Also find out if there are any structural details like roof loads or wind or seismic considerations. You may need to have certain factors added to your blueprints. Although, it's probably considerably less expensive having any possible structural detail or stamps added to an online house plan than hiring a private architect, it's best to know all expenses up front as some online plan companies do not allow you to return your plans. The House Designers offers an exchange policy for printed plans to make sure you're completely satisfied with your house plans, but not all online companies offer this!
After you decide on the perfect house plan design, take sufficient time to select your builder unless you're prepared to act as your own General Contractor. The best way to find a competent builder to build your new home design is from a referral. Check out our article Choosing a Contractor for great tips to find the best possible home builder to make your blueprints transform into the home of your dreams!
If you want personal assistance in finding your dream house plans, email, live chat or call our team of seasoned, home plan search specialists at 866-214-2242. The House Designers would be happy to help you in any way that we can to assist you in finding the perfect plan!