The Floor Plans

Designing a quality home is a process that requires, not only understanding construction practices but also an understanding of the needs of the family or couple to occupy the home. It also takes a lot of experience and creativity. The very first thing you need to consider when it comes to a floor plan is the function of your particular family. As experts in home design in Utah, we recommend the following:

• Closely Examining the Lot: It’s important to build a home that is designed to fit the lot. You need to check for slopes, sunshine, wind, water and views. All homes don’t fit or work well on all lots, even if they physically fit. Experience in this area makes a great deal of difference. We don’t recommend the cookie cutter approach to building homes. In subdivisions with a narrow list of approved materials and CC&R’s where there is a tendency to have all homes look alike it is still important to have each home fit the lot it is built on and then changing each home to have an exterior with features different from neighboring homes with the same floor plan.
• Knowing Your Budget and Building Costs: Working with a builder you can trust is very important to the process. Most builders have a pretty good idea what a home will cost or what features they can include with a given square footage. But remember that all builders are not equal. There are also many different finishes and features that can either provide a cost savings or that can break your budget depending on the things you choose, even using the same builder. We have experience that can guide you and help you to know what things you might afford.
• A Quality Set of Blueprints: We pride ourselves on our construction experience. It’s one thing to design a pretty floor plan or a cute elevation. But if you can’t put a roof on it that works without falling down or leaking then it’s not going to be a quality home that will last. No matter how cute it may look. We design homes that are structurally sound and that have sufficient structural integrity to withstand the elements. We also know what things are cost effective and still make things look beautiful. Our blueprints are detailed enough to tell the builder what is needed and still allow enough flexibility that you can change many things on the fly, like deciding on flooring, windows and cabinetry during construction. Our blueprints also include detailed sections of walls, stairs, even entire sections of the house to show, in detail, complicated areas.

What We Offer

There is a balance that must take place between what someone wants and what they can afford that must be maintained when designing a home. Having built several homes and constructed various home designs in Utah, we at Draw Works know where money can be saved, without sacrificing beauty, to help the homeowner afford the home of their dreams.

When it comes to professional floor plans, here is what we offer you:

• What You Can See Without Purchasing the Whole Plan: You can purchase a Design Proof Set that is in PDF (Adobe Acrobat Format) that we can send you by email without having to buy the whole plan. You can then print it on whatever size paper you have available. These sets include floor plans that are fully dimensioned and include all exterior elevations and an electrical plan. These plans are water marked with “Design Proof Set Only” and “Not For Construction.” They are for the purpose of deciding if this plan is right for you. They give you all you need to figure out if you want any changes to the plan and to get preliminary bids if you are tight on a budget and don’t know if you can afford the home. That way, you don’t have to risk investing in plans that don’t fit your budget. If you purchase the “Design Proof Set” and then you decide to go ahead and purchase the plan, we will rebate the portion of what you spent towards your purchase. If you decide not to buy the plan there is no refund for the “Design Proof Set.”
• What Our Floor Plans Include: Our floor plans include a Cover Sheet with an Index of the plans, General Notes, Code Review Notes, and a Front Elevation of the home along with a plot plan. Our sets also include a fully detailed Footing and Foundation Plan, Typical Wall Sections, specific details and sections as necessary, fully detailed Floor Plans, Floor and Roof Framing (Truss) Plans, Stair Sections (if applicable), all Exterior Elevations & Electrical Plans. We can include engineering for an extra cost.

Please leave a comment or suggestion for us and let us know what you think of our new website.

During the last few years of the building boom and before the economic bust cost of construction was not a consideration for many people. I was amazed at how many young people who were building a starter home would come it to meet with me and would not be interested in cost savings. The only thing that mattered was resale value. The big question was, “Can we sell it for more than it cost us to build?”. In an “up” market the answer was, “yes”. Therefore, granite countertops, 10′ coffered ceilings, tile roof, etc. etc..

While those things do add value to homes in an upward moving market and they do add to the appraised value and they also add to the “curb appeal”, they don’t necessarily add to the sale value or to what I call, the “True Value”. The “True Value” is what are you going to get out of it and can it be done within your budget?.

I have enough hands-on experience with building along with 20 years in designing homes and working with various contractors that I know where cuts can be made that are effective in both saving you money and still maintaining value in the home. A half-hour face-to-face interview with a professional designer about your desired home can be very beneficial. I offer free interview consultations where you can learn about the process and focus your goals and desires. I look forward to opportunities to help people understand the process better and get the home they want for what they can afford.

Kevin