Browse Forums Building A New House Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 21Feb 23, 2010 8:41 pm Single storey houses are the way I would go, they are easy to adapt simpler to build and you have no real issue with stairs put a slightly steeper pitch on the roof and you could go for a chalet style bedrooms upstairs type affair. Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 22Feb 24, 2010 6:47 am Wow! Thanks for all the tips! As for the resale value, a family friend who invests a bit advised me this but I am not totally 100% convinced. I guess with the general aging population single will probably be preferred. I guess you are right.....if I wasn't building I would have personally preferred not to have double. But given the size of the house I want I am not sure if I can make it work with a single storey. 560 is in my opinion borderline...sizewise on the small size for a big single storey and on the big side for a double storey (hence my confusion and me posting this topic!). As for the views, well we are building in Saltwater coast in Point Cook (Melbourne). For those of you who know the area it is the estate that is meant to be closest to the bay. So another plus for double storey? The sales guy goes we'll have awesome view etc but don't know how true that is until all the houses come up around me! Thanks all for your opinions! Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 23Feb 24, 2010 7:26 am Another person here trying to decide the same thing. Saw a display home for sale and asked the agent if he thought the place was too big for the land and his comment was it's the way of the future. Nobody wants a cricket pitch anymore. He is obviously biased, as he's trying to sell it, but I did tell him before asking that I was only getting ideas not wanting to buy. When does a back yard become too small? Area wise or depth wise? Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 24Feb 24, 2010 7:35 am Maybe it's just me, but I want a backyard I can relax in. We've got a dog, and we're soon to start a family and I want my kids to be able to run/jump/play in the safety of a yard. I can't stand the homes that occupy like 80% of the block and have concreted over the entire yard. Stefan Building the M3tr!con Liberty 42 at Stonecutters Ridge. The New Build Blog - "Life, In Progress." Stonecutters Ridge Community Website | My photos Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 25Feb 24, 2010 7:38 am Redh, there have been many threads on here about house: block size - I think it is way too simplistic to say no-one wants a large yard any more - however I know I am biased too - we have a modest size house on a 707m2 block - I certainly would not want a large house packed onto a small block - yes, I do want a large emough area for garden, shed etc' Im not sure when a back yard becomes too small - that's an individual decision - but I do know the yard areas of modern small blocks would be too small for me. Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 26Feb 24, 2010 7:44 am Hang on I'm confused. In the op you say you want to build 40 sq but then I read 560 which is 60sq. Considerable difference. IMO I prefer single story over double But with the size of your block there are things to condsider as others have said. If you are allowed to build on that area of block and aren't concerned about back yard then go for it. We went through displays near us. Large houses no back yards although the entertaining areas made up for it. Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 27Feb 24, 2010 7:56 am When we were looking at building, I wanted a double storey house and my partner wanted a single storey. We looked at the pros and cons for each and decided on the single storey on a big block with enough space for the kids (when we have them) to play in. Having a double storey you can still have a big house on a small block or on a big block with a big backyard. But if you are going to have little kids you’re going to have that constant worry of them falling down the stair, or install those ugly unfashionable gates at the bottom of your stair case. Also during summer with the heat, the top floor is always hot, not even an Evap unit will keep it cool as it would most likely struggle. Having a single storey we found that we can do a lot more work to the house after handover e.g.; Heating and cooling and easier to maintain. There user friendly for little kids and older people as there are no stair cases. If you want a big house you would need a big block and if you wanted a backyard you would need to have a big block with a small house or a very big block for a big house. At the end of the day it comes down to the layout of the house and if it suits your lifestyle. Builder; Big M Design; Soho 32 Facade; Ascent Blog; http://mickeyb-soho.blogspot.com Trend; viewtopic.php?f=31&t=23990 Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 30Feb 24, 2010 9:07 am I have a 35 square single story home on 665m2 and I couldn't imagine my house on a smaller block. 375m2 on 560m2 is very tight, and as I said in my other post, probably not allowed due to council restrictions (over 60% land usage). One thing you could do, which I love, but it's not everyone's taste is to put only the master bedroom, ensuite and WIR upstairs on it's own level, with the kid's downstairs. You then can reduce the house size on the ground floor, and get your own little bit of privacy also Blog is now up - http://www.jbdave.blogspot.com/ Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 31Feb 24, 2010 9:28 am jbdave One thing you could do, which I love, but it's not everyone's taste is to put only the master bedroom, ensuite and WIR upstairs on it's own level, with the kid's downstairs. You then can reduce the house size on the ground floor, and get your own little bit of privacy also That's a great idea! We wished that we had of put some of our house upstairs. That said, there's enough room in the roof cavity! lol Our house thread: https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=18335 Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 32Feb 24, 2010 12:12 pm pravvy As for the resale value, a family friend who invests a bit advised me this but I am not totally 100% convinced. I guess with the general aging population single will probably be preferred. I just don't think you can make generalisations. There are all sorts of considerations, which others have mentioned. Building a single storey when a two storey would have taken advantage of views would probably be detrimental. Single storey might be easier to sell to people with young families who don't want to worry about little kids and stairs. On the other hand some might prefer to compromise on that and install gates as long as the kids have somewhere to play outside. Two-storey might be easier to sell to families with teenagers who want more segregation. (That's not so much resale value as resale ability, some factors will rule out more potential buyers and maybe lengthen the selling process even though the price will end up just as good once the right buyer comes along.) There's the heating/cooling, even in our split level house we are conscious of the higher side being warmer than the lower, so I'm not surprised that this forum regularly gets queries about how to cool the top floor, so that's a negative feature of two storey houses. Overall though, IMO single storey houses are more acceptable whereas double storey houses need some sort of justification. redh When does a back yard become too small? Area wise or depth wise? It's sort of personal, for instance I don't like the current small blocks at all, and there's no hard and fast rule, but I think even people who say they aren't into gardening and like those small blocks should ask themselves questions like, will my outdoor furniture fit comfortably in that space outside the living room/family room, will I have room for a privacy hedge, will I have room to grow something outside those windows to soften the appearance of that fence, will I have room to put a water tank/wheelie bins there? Also council regulations, will the house I want fit on that block AND meet the council requirements? Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 33Feb 24, 2010 2:38 pm Another fan of single storey's here. We built 34.5sq on a 700m block, it gives us a backyard area of 7m x 19.5m which is just about big enough for the kids to have a swing set or trampoline. We could have built bigger but chose not too as we wanted to keep some yard space. Although I don't like double storeys, I think if you want 40sq and you have or want to have kids, then go for the double especially on a 560m block size. Otherwise, bring it back to a 35sq single storey which would fit more comfortably. Blog: http://bluemistkids.blogspot.com "Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark, and professionals built the Titanic." Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 34Feb 24, 2010 3:28 pm We were also tossing up between a double/single. Both have their pros and cons. We sat down and literally drew a line down a piece of paper and wrote pros and cons of a double and single IN OUR OPINION!!!! The house that YOU decide to build ultimately has to serve its' purpose/s FOR YOU!!!! For one - I am not even contemplating resale value, when I am planning on living in this house for the next 20 years!!! This will be our second house that we will have our children in, raise a family and then eventually sell when we want to downsize for retirement - in 20 years the house will most likely triple in valie according to the normal rate of inflation/appreciation in Australia!!! We decided on a 36sq single storey - this plan has the exact same number of rooms that the double storey that we were looking at had - except it was $60k less (better in my pocket!!!) YOU have to decide what you want in life and the quality of life you want! My husband and I aren't gardeners!!! (I kill more plants than anything!) Our lifestyle and jobs do not permit much time for maintenance on our gardens etc - so we bought a block of land that is right next to a reserve, we have a football oval going in behind us and we have farm land over the road - we want our future children to be able to enjoy open spaces, just not our own, that we have to maintain!!! So we bought a block of land in an area that suits our lifestyle and the quality of life that WE want - having said that, this may not suit most people - you have to decide what you want out of life and how your house/land can accommodate those needs/wants and if at all a your house will contribute to those needs/wants!!! Good luck in the quest to finding the right house for you!!! Sleven Moved into our Atlantique MkII 36 by Carlisle Homes Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 35Feb 24, 2010 9:01 pm I would never ever never ever live in DBL storey ever again. For us 25sq single storey means we will have really good size backyard (700sq block) and when you have 3 boys you so need it . Other things I needed take into account: 1. How far I can yell and still be heard and 2. The cyclonic damage they can cause in 5min, smaller the area less stressful the devastation on me. http://burbankascent2500.blogspot.com/ https://forum.homeone.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=28503 [url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/] HOUSE COMPLETED IN 119 DAYS PCI Complete Handover 24th August Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 36Feb 24, 2010 9:23 pm pinkdiamond Other things I needed take into account: 1. How far I can yell and still be heard and 2. The cyclonic damage they can cause in 5min, smaller the area less stressful the devastation on me. As a mum to 2 boys... I second that!! Blog: http://bluemistkids.blogspot.com "Never be afraid to try something new. Remember, amateurs built the ark, and professionals built the Titanic." Re: Double Storey or Single Storey 37Mar 27, 2011 6:24 pm Very interesting topic and I guess it comes down to individual choice and need. Having lived in double storey homes in the UK, which are the norm unless you're old or disabled it seemed the natural choice for us. We are building a future investment property and wanted the flexibility in the future of putting another house on our block as its over 600m2. IMO there's nothing worse than going round the showhomes and walking outside to see a few square metres of land remaining as garden, its pretty claustrophobic. The cost difference was $16000 more but well worth it for the flexibility and for having my beloved veggie garden. Hello All 🙂 We are planning to start our journey of construction our first home. We zeroed down on Metricon and henley homes based on design suitable for our lot and… 0 8200 1 4581 Hi Kristy Around $1.7-1.8m or around $4,600/sqm. if you PM me your email I will send you a break up in a spreadsheet so you can get an understanding of the costs for… 1 9956 |