Client seeking home design input

Date Monday, July 7th, 2008 at 10:30 pm Posts By Ryan Brown

I work with many people who are looking for what I call a ‘property with potential.’  This is a house or a duplex that may not fully meet their needs today, but has the potential to be made into their dream home.  Of course, some assembly is required :).

One such client is now going through the design process on their dream home.  Last year we found their perfect ‘property with potential’ – a large lot near downtown with a livable but dilapidated house.

They are working on the design with Cottam Hargrave, and would love some input from others who are interested in design and modern architecture.  They are very open to feedback and would appreciate your thoughts and constructive criticism.

Design Feedback Contest

They have received some great feedback via posting on ModernAustin, however I’m hoping to get a few more useful opinions for them.  In fact, I’ll sweeten the deal by offering a $25 gift certificate to Amazon.com to the best comment, as selected by my clients.

If my readers don’t participate I’m open to awarding the prize to one of Ben’s commenter’s, but I hope I don’t have to do that!  Share your thoughts and you could earn Amazon spending money (my favorite kind).

Here are a few thumbnails of the design, but please see Ben’s Flickr set for the full-size drawings.  Email me if you have trouble viewing the design files.

NielsenModel

NielsenPlan

Here is another link to Ben’s Flickr set of the design.  Add your constructive comment below and you can win a $25 Amazon.com gift certificate. I will accept entries until July 15, at midnight.

Update: The winner is…

Thanks to those who provided input on the design. See below for my clients’ thoughts. They appreciated all of the detailed input and suggested I offer the prize to SRC. So congratulations SRC! The check is in the mail.

This entry was posted on Monday, July 7th, 2008 at 10:30 pm and is filed under Architecture, Inspired Homes, InspiredAustin.com. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Filed under Architecture, Inspired Homes, InspiredAustin.com

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6 Responses to “Client seeking home design input”

  1. SRC Says:
    July 14th, 2008 at 7:38 pm

    Great House plans. I am envious. It would be great if you could post your expereinces with price of the project. I’d love to do the same someday, and am interested in the real world pricing.

    One comment on the design is that I would advocate making sure the upstairs “library” counts as a bedroom under your local code, so that the house could be sold someday as 3 br. It will still be an awkward design in terms of resale. I know this isn’t the main concern, but I think it is worth considering.

    I would suggest maximizing a deck off the living/dining area. I think it would get far more use than the roof deck. It is not going to be that conducive to eat outside when you have to go across the house and upstairs.

    Also, I think the house would be spectacular if there were more glass along the downhill wall opposite the entry. Since that doesn’t look structural, it would be great to walk in and see the outdoors immediately.

  2. Eric Rauser Says:
    July 14th, 2008 at 9:47 pm

    Hello,

    I have two comments.

    First, though the living spaces and bedrooms are beautifully designed and the exterior is impeccable, the circulation spaces might be better. The entry is constricted; sometimes designers do this to create drama which is great as long as you are fine with the drama maybe wearing off eventually. Of more concern to me is the stair; the bottom seems like it will be dark without day-lighting, and the top has two swinging doors at a very small landing and might feel awkward in use.

    My second comment has to do with energy usage. I don’t know if the architect did any sun studies, but the house seems fairly well shaded by trees. However, even a perfectly shaded window is the equivalent of an uninsulated wall. There are a lot of storefront and windows on the house which means not a lot of insulation. Also, there is a just lot of surface area in relationship to the house’s volume. Because of this, I would recommend getting an energy audit done by an independent auditor. It doesn’t cost much, and they will be able to tell you how much energy your house will consume. If you are looking at $300 per month, it would be nice to know that before hand. If you need a contact for this, email me.

    Cheers,

    Eric.

  3. Joy Nielsen Says:
    July 17th, 2008 at 9:00 pm

    Thanks so much to Ryan’s readers for their input. We met with Jay and Beth of Cottam Hargrave last night and worked through some issues. Your comments got us thinking about a deck off the living/dining, the view from the entrance foyer, and the flow of the stairway. We discussed these and a few other concerns with them. I think they came up with some great solutions and will soon put them on paper. Maybe Ryan will be so kind as to post the updated plans as well?

    Regarding the energy issue- we are contemplating going with geothermal heat/cool, and C/H plans to use many efficient materials, i.e. the glass, spray foam, 8 inch concrete barrier walls.

    Thanks again to all who take the time to help us. C/H actually encourages their clients to seek input from others and we are grateful for all comments.

  4. SRC Says:
    July 21st, 2008 at 5:12 pm

    Wow. Crazy to make money by commenting on a blog. I do remain envious of the home and look forward to seeing the revised plans.

    Ryan- I love the site. We are contemplating a move to Austin, and if we do, will certainly use you as a resource. I can’t wait to see more about your renovations.

    Cheers!

  5. stephanie Says:
    July 29th, 2008 at 6:54 pm

    finally, a site worth viewing, you are inspirational

  6. professional home staging phoenix Says:
    August 5th, 2008 at 5:14 pm

    unique design!

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