Complete change of plans - updated plans etc start on page 7
After 6 years of owning the house, and 8 months since I obtained my first quote on a house plan, we have finally decided what we want and paid our initial deposit. We almost signed on with a custom builder before discovering the Regent 300 by Sekisui and falling in love with it. I feel really guilty about the time that the custom builder put into quoting us and communicating after that, but Sekisui are $10k cheaper with 40sqm more living space and includes an alfresco in that price, when the custom price didn't.
We are going to build the Regent 300. Original house plan:
UPSTAIRS: We have changed the layout of the WIR and ensuite to add a freestanding bath. We were thinking about changing the layout of the minor bedrooms to make them bigger, effectively getting rid of the upstairs games room, but the games room windows face north and we thought that would make a lovely space to curl up with a book in winter I've put both versions below, what do you think?
DOWNSTAIRS: We are adding 9sqm to the garage to get drive through access to the backyard. I'm not entirely sure this will work.... Our block is a strange shape, ill pop up our site survey shortly, and we were going to make the garage wall follow the fence line on a diagonal, creating a triangular shape on one side. I think we'll be able to drive through? Only other changes downstairs are in the kitchen; moving the sink from the island bench to where the oven is and add a window, moving the oven to next to the pantry; and centering the doors and windows along the back wall. We are making both the windows on the back wall 1.5m wide for symmetry.
We will be going with the traditional facade, but extending the eaves along the lower floor in front of the house. At the moment we are thinking cream (PGH Bianca) bricks and shale grey colourbond roof. Traditional facade:
Our block has a lot of challenges that we have discovered through the process over the last 8 months. Challenge no.1: narrow at the front, wide at the back. So 737sqm, but we can only fit homes wig a frontage up to about 12.5 m. Challenge no.2: no sewer connection, so we need to install a septic tank. Challenge no.3: a HUGE gum tree along the back fence line, creating a 13.5m tree protection zone. Challenge no.4 we are on the corner of a culdesac and about 3m of our frontage is covered by the footpath/kerb so our garage had to be on the other side- the south side of our block. Many designs have the living areas behind the garage and many aren't all that easy to flip just the front bit so that we can have north facing living areas.
Our block (ignore the house, the custom builder placed it on there to show us siting):
Luckily, the Regent 300 fits on our limited building envelope and has everything we wanted + more!
I am feeling very excited but also very nervous about all the challenges and potential things that could go wrong!