The easiest and simplest way to evaluate the floor plan of your house (or future house) is to check whether the potential solution responds positively to all those issues that present problems and shortcomings that may arise after construction.

A complete list of these issues will be provided below.

How do you know if the floor plan is good at all?

The only real way to determine if your floor plan is good is to apply an objective evaluation process to determine if the general (those that represent building standards) and specific (those that represent your personal needs) requirements are met in full or to the extent that represents an acceptable compromise.

Whether you find a floor plan online or have it designed by an architect, or you are buying an already built house, you are often not sure if it will really meet your needs.

To have doubts at this stage is not only completely normal but also highly desirable!
The changes that are made to the drawing are both quick and easy and free, and the problems that a bad floor plan can cause can be irreparable. That is why it is crucial that you dedicate both time and effort to evaluating your floor plan.

The way many apply is to ask friends, seek opinions on online forums, or compare their own floor plan with someone already built that is familiar to them. The problem is that in this way someone’s subjective opinions are obtained and the evaluation process should be objective.

It doesn’t have to be that way. Below we will present a list of questions that will be your best guide through the evaluation process and that will allow you to do this process yourself as a real expert.

It should be said that there are general issues concerning each floor plan but there are also those that concern only a specific investor. Therefore we will group the questions in this way.

Appropriate zoning

Immediately, at first glance, it must be clear to us, when we look at the floor plan, which part of the house is intended for daily activities, which is possibly committed to work and where is the sleeping area. This is important for many reasons: to orientate the house properly, to move around the house fluently, to avoid excessive crowds and noise …

Adequate kitchen

The kitchen is the heart of the house. Studies show that people spend the most time here.

That is why it is important that the kitchen is spacious enough and connected to the dining and living space, but also the yard.

The decades-old rule of the kitchen triangle says that the sum of the sides of a triangle, consisting of a stove (cooker), refrigerator and sink, should not exceed 320 in, and that each side of the triangle should not be less than 50 in or more than 100 in.

However, one should be honest with himself and say do he really need a full size kitchen if he prepares food once a week? The size and layout of the kitchen should be adjusted to the owner and not to the established rules.

Enough storage

When designing the floor plan, all the furniture must be drawn, but also, equally important, the storage space. Sufficient storage space is a category that is individual and different for each family, but it is a necessary condition for the tidiness of the house, and the tidiness of the house is a necessary condition for a healthy life.

Planned lighting

In addition to other necessary details (layout and size of the room, furniture layout, storage layout …) it is important that the floor plan contains the lighting layout. The layout should be exactly tailored to your requirements and needs, containing the following information:

• the number and position of each bulb location by room
• calculation of the total power of electric energy required for lighting
• the total cost of installation and 
• the calculated cost of maintenance

Exterior and interior connection

The main advantage of building a house over buying an apartment is the ability to use your own open space. In order to make the most of this possibility, it is not enough to have an adequately arranged exterior, but it should also be properly connected to the interior.

On one hand, good connectivity enables easier movement, and on the other, erasing the clear boundaries of the exterior and interior increases the visual impression of the spaciousness of the interior and the functionality of the exterior.

Entertaining and socializing

There are many families who regularly like to organize parties and entertain. Adequate space is needed for that. It doesn’t have to be a special, purpose-built room. It is enough that the floor plan is designed to allow flexibility and quick and easy conversion. In the open space concept this is far easier to achieve.

Effective circulation

The floor plan must be designed for easy and unobstructed movement. Just follow a few simple rules:

• not from the kitchen to the bathroom, 
• not from the bedroom to the bedroom, 
• not from the outside to the living room (hallway brings many benefits), 
• to the bathroom either from the room itself or from the hallway, 
• from the entrance hall to the half-bathroom.

Hosting

By designing the floor plan, the initial arrangement of the furniture is made. If there is no guest room that is specially designed for that purpose, the reception of guests, relatives and friends who need to stay with us for some time, must be provided and a space designated . It can be in the living room, in the office, in the children’s room…

Special needs of residents

Many housemates demand that the space be arranged according to their special requirements because the standard way does not allow them to use it comfortably. Someone can’t use the stairs, or a standard bathroom, someone can’t open an ordinary door…

If you have small children in the family, old or sick, disabled, allergic, pets … be sure to check if the floor plan is tailored to their needs.

That something

At the end of all the checks, however, one should give oneself a little vent.
If by looking at the floor plan you can imagine yourself and your family enjoying yourself, if you feel warmth in your heart, if that floor plan has “that something”, GO FOR IT! A floor plan that is ideal and cannot be criticized does not exist.