Ideas For Great Small House Plans

Armed with a few tips and ideas, you can either design your small house yourself or pass your thoughts on to an architect who can make your plans a reality.


The first thing you should plan out are efficient spaces for your everyday living. Small homes need to be efficient so that you can make the best use of every inch of space.

Watch where you place the windows to ensure good views of the outside. It can make any small space feel larger when you get an impressive view to draw your eye outside the room. Large windows will increase the overall price of the building project, but its well worth the expense to visually "increase" your space.

Basic Layout Ideas for a Small House

The main floor of the home should be basic and primarily functional. A combined kitchen/dining room, a multi-functional living area, entrance way, utility room and small bathroom are all you need on the ground floor. There should be convenient doors for both front entry and garden access. For families who have someone working at home, adding an extra room as an office or study works well on the main floor. For summer time use add a patio or BBQ area directly from the living and or kitchen rooms.

In the center of the main floor, a staircase should lead you upstairs to a few bedrooms, a main bathroom and possibly some space for storage or airing cupboard for storing clean linen.

Be realistic and don't try to shrink your space too much. Kitchens and bathroom are expensive to change later because of the fixtures, so plan out their sizes thoroughly. You could even go so far as to build these rooms a bit larger than you think you're going to need, just to make sure you don't outgrow them later.

Place the most windows on the south and south-east sides of the home for the most natural light. You'll save money on electricity when you can light the rooms for free. For those really interested in saving money, solar panels can be integrated into your plans as a way to cheaply heat your hot water grants are available for most installations which make solar energy more affordable than ever before.

About Author:

Adam Robertson is the editor of Plan-and-Build-a-House.com, the resource for do-it-yourself home builders. Find more about simple house plans at his site.