Personalizing Your Home Plan

by Eric Englund

You have your own idea of what your dream home will look like.

As you leaf through this magazine, you may find a floor plan that you love, but with an exterior facade that "needs a few tweaks." Or your situation may be the exact opposite, with a layout that requires some changes.

Few readers fully realize how much the front of a home and its floor plan can be individualized. There are hundreds of material choices and endless personal touches that will set your home apart from any others built from the same blueprints.

Builder: Williams Development

What does this mean to the average home-plan buyer? Individuality at a modest price. Mark Englund of LifeStyle HomeDesign in St. Paul, Minn., explains, "No two families' lifestyles are the same, so modifications to mail-order plans can be a cost-effective way to meet their unique needs."

LifeStyle HomeDesign offers complete modification services for any stock blueprint. "We've built an entire business around helping meet people's design needs," Englund continues, "with mail-order home plans as a starting point."

Plan HDS-99-179, designed by Home Design Services, Inc., of Altamonte Springs, Fla., is a proven best-seller that has been built possibly hundreds of times across the United States. Three of those built homes, presented on this page, demonstrate nicely how the same blueprints can result in dramatically different facades.

Russ Kingman, of the firm that designed this home, offers some insight into a builder's perspective, having worked closely with builders for a number of years. "Changing colors, textures, accents, window sizes and pavers is easy; it gives a different feel to the house without much added cost, keeping the basic plan the same."

The first home on the page (builder: Williams Development) was constructed just north of Orlando, Fla., with a striking blue-violet front door. The snow-white columns and garage door lend a nice contrast to the cream-colored stucco facade.

Builder: Hamilton Breed Homes

If you look closely, you will see that the home above (builder: Hamilton Breed Homes) sports a combination of beige brick and stucco. This home was commissioned by HomeStyles, built near Houston, Tex., and showcased in early 1996 in conjunction with The Builders' Show®.

The home below, (builder: Sago Builders) built just west of Orlando, retains the stucco exterior, but with a more vibrant color. The clay-tile roof gives the home a Spanish or Mediterranean flair, while a teal front door and smooth white columns draw the eye. In this case, the lot was sufficiently wide to allow the builder to move the garage door to the far right side. Note the different feel, with the driveway moved out of the front yard.

Builder: Sago Builders

The three families who live in these homes are justifiably proud of the end results--and the innovative changes to the original plans. Personalizing the plans to meet their needs was remarkably easy, and it allowed them to express their good taste.

Now we wish you well as you choose your home plan, and as you make the decisions and creative touches that will complete your dream home "as you like it."


Photography by Mark Englund/HomeStyles
Content provided by HomeStyles.com