Home layout preferences

[spotty_dog]

Why is a master bedroom on the main floor considered desirable? I know that is something you looked for in your new house, Nellie, and a lot of the listings I'm looking at brag of it, and the realtor asked if we preferred it that way before he started searching for us. Probably because we've never really lived in more than one level...I just don't get it! :huh:

[Phoebe]

Re: Home layout preferences

I personally am against having the master on the first floor given that we have such young children. However, it seems more homes I see being built are done that way. I don't know what makes them more desirable. There won't be to me until my children are older.

[Momo]

Re: Home layout preferences

I personally only think it's preferrable, when you have older kids! When you are beginning a family and the kids are young, it is way easier to be on the same floor as them especially when they fall ill! just my:02:

[Momo]

Re: Home layout preferences

I personally am against having the master on the first floor given that we have such young children. However, it seems more homes I see being built are done that way. I don't know what makes them more desirable. There won't be to me until my children are older.

opps phoebe... double post!

[poky]

Re: Home layout preferences

Could also have to do with future usability; if you want to be able to house someone with mobility issues, having a bedroom on the main floor is a good thing.

[medpedspouse]

Re: Home layout preferences

After breaking my ankle while living in a townhouse where the bedrooms were all upstairs, I now prefer my bedroom on the main floor. Just in case.

Re: Home layout preferences

My preference was for all bedrooms to be on the same level, not necessarily the main floor. In our case, we have 4 bedrooms upstairs. Quite a few that we looked at had three up and then one in the basement -- I didn't want to be that far from young kids. If there had been a non-master big enough to share, I would have considered it.

The master on the main is nice for mobility reasons. We were also hindered by finding a house with no more than a stair to enter and a bathroom on the main level for my MIL.

All of this can be easily solved with a ranch style home! There are things I miss about one level living.

[mommax3]

Re: Home layout preferences

Our new house has the master and guest room on the main floor, and the kids' rooms in the basement....but our kids are older. For us, having a main floor master means that DH can get in and out of the house in the middle of the night quickly and quietly, something that happens regularly around here and always will. Our master is on the same side of the house as the garage for the same reason. I had a hard time finding a houseplan with a guest room on the main floor (along with a master) and I definitely wanted that for mobility reasons as far as elderly relatives now and in years to come.

Sally

Re: Home layout preferences

I think I would have been ok with one flight of stairs between my room and the older two. We saw a lot of split level style homes with bedrooms separated by multiple flights. That would have been too much for me and my kids who sleep through the night all night (hardy har).

I agree that having a bedroom or full bath on the main floor would be really nice.

[BonBon]

Re: Home layout preferences

We noticed this trend in the new homes that we looked at in Dallas. It's pretty rare around here (Upstate NY). Parents of teens insisted that we need to have the master on the first floor to keep our sanity, but DH and I would much rather us all sleep on the same level. :huh: (We'll see if I'm still singing that tune in 10 years)

I can see the advantage if you are incapacitated in any way. When I tore my ACL and had surgery, I had to scoot up and down the stairs on my butt. When we retire, we'll definitely be doing one level living.

Alison, where are you moving to? (if that's not too personal a question for the main part of the board)

[DCJenn]

Re: Home layout preferences

We are lucky that we have the optionof the saem floor while dude is young (aka daddy gets to leap out of bed when a cough sounds wrong) and then when all of us are ready for our own 'personal space', we'll send him to the loft.

That said, my beloved ex-husband and his buddy bought a split level open floor 1960's house and it was awful. We heard every sound everyone made from one end of the house to the other. Noise travels. I would NEVER on purpose live in a house that is longer than it is taller again.

Jenn

[spotty_dog]

Re: Home layout preferences

Ahh, OK. I think that clears it up, glad I'm not the only one questioning this trend when I've got little ones in the house.

Chris, we're going to Whidbey Island, just north of Seattle.

[Meenah]

Re: Home layout preferences

So that you will know when your teenagers come home after curfew, and you can also hear them if they try to sneak out of the house after you go to sleep!!!!!! I kid you not!

[Flynn]

Re: Home layout preferences

We didn't want to give up "living space" for our dream M Bedroom but I did want to be on the same floor as the kids.

Our room is at the top of the stairs so if we do stay in this house long term, everyone has to walk by our room to get to theirs.

It's worked out great for us so far -- but that was our preference all along.

[Deebs]

Re: Home layout preferences

There are many houses here with first floor masters. In addition to wanting to be where the kids are, we couldn't do it with DH's schedule. There are so many days that he's home sleeping and I"m here (or worse, have a house full of kids). He can just go and seclude himself upstairs.