Open Floor House Plans

What is an Open Floor Plan?

If you're new to an open concept floor plan, imagine a studio apartment. Studios are designed to maximize the space usage in areas with small square footage. By eliminating doorways, studio apartments are cost-efficient for heating and electricity.

A house with an open floor plan has a similar idea, except the bedroom won't be attached to the living room and kitchen like in a studio apartment. Open floor plan homes eliminate the walls between the kitchen, dining, and living areas to create a spacious room within the home.

Individuals can complete several everyday tasks without ever leaving the great room. Cook dinner, keep an eye on the kids, catch up on your favorite TV show—do it all with an open concept floor plan.

Take a look at the main floor from plan #38-527. The front entrance opens straight into the open floor concept, so homeowners can easily monitor their doorbell and listen for people arriving.

From food prep in the open concept kitchen to lounging on the couch, an open floor plan helps homeowners instantly observe any activity in the front and back of the house.

Not only is an open floor plan beneficial for homeowners, but it gives a warm welcome to guests. Large groups of people do not need to single-file as they enter the home, so guests can spread out into the great room as they walk through the front door.

Contrary to studio apartments, open floor house plans still have privacy. The master suite, additional bedrooms, and bathrooms are all enclosed spaces, so you can easily escape into your personal room when you need alone time.

While open floor plans have a similar concept design to a studio apartment, the many additional perks make homes with open floor plans comfortable, efficient, and unique.

Advantages of Open Concept House Plansy

When choosing and designing a new home, there are a lot of choices to make. Style, trim, floor plans, square footage: It's not an easy task, especially for people who can be indecisive.

There are many benefits to selecting homes that feature open floor plans. With abundant light sources and excellent traffic flow, homeowners can quickly move around the main room and remain aware of their surroundings.

Advantage #1: Increased Visibility and Communication

Parents and pet owners: You know when the house is too quiet, someone is likely getting into trouble. With an open concept house plan, small children and pets can remain in the ample space where you can keep a watchful eye on any shenanigans that might occur.

While prepping dinner, children can watch TV in the family room or ask for homework help at the dining room table. Of course, this could occur in any home. But with an open floor house plan, the transition from chopping vegetables to helping children solve math problems is seamless.

With an open floor plan house, you can complete your daily living tasks faster—no more pausing activities periodically to walk around the house and check up on the kids!

Advantage #2: Host Company with Ease

If you expect to host family gatherings or social events, open floor plans are perfect for entertaining house guests. Hosts can prepare dinner and manage snack trays while visitors mingle around the great room.

The best part about open layouts is that hosts can easily enjoy conversations with their guests. Open floor plans allow homeowners to comfortably transition from the kitchen to the family room without interrupting a discussion. That way, you can enjoy socializing and keep the party running smoothly.

Advantage #3: Excellent Lighting

Light travels—so when the walls of a room are eliminated, the living space becomes brighter. Open floor plan designs have multiple opportunities to welcome light into a spacious room.

Windows are one light source that transforms open floor plans. Sunshine pours into the room and instantly illuminates the surroundings through the glass. From sunrise to sunset, large spacious areas can capture natural light at different times of the day.

Artificial light also travels throughout a room, so homeowners with open floor house plans can save on electricity bills. You may find that the kitchen lighting will brighten up the living room, making lamps and other light sources unnecessary.

Take a look at the open floor concept from Plan #50-381. The natural light shines through the windows, illuminating your living space. Once night falls, the multiple lighting fixtures will keep this area well-lit.

Additionally, this space is perfect for movie nights. Homeowners can leave a single light on to navigate the house without casting a glare on the TV or disrupting fellow movie watchers.

Advantage #4: Efficient Traffic Flow

Most open floor plan designs have the front entrance to a home lead straight into the spacious open room. This design allows guests to enter your home smoothly and spread out across a wide area of space.

This feature is truly a lifesaver when it's muddy outside. Guests can remove their shoes efficiently, and no one is left standing in the rain waiting for their turn in the single-file line to enter your abode.

Welcoming visitors into your home isn't the only benefit of an open floor plan's traffic flow. Your family can easily manage their daily routine without impeding on others. Household members can quickly come into the kitchen for food and eat at the dining room table, so the next person can come in and prepare their meal.

Efficient traffic flow is essential during the morning routine. Whether the adults are prepping for work or the children are getting ready for school, everyone can move freely around the space to prepare for their daily activities.

Popular Home Styles with Open Floor Plan Options

An open floor plan takes down walls literally and physically – the concept welcomes light, communication, and observation within the home. Therefore, mixing and matching your home style with an open floor plan inside is easy. All you need to do is remove the barriers between the kitchen, dining, and living areas.

Here are some of the most popular exterior styles that feature interior open floor designs for potential homeowners to explore:

Modern Farmhouse

The Modern Farmhouse style is ideal for open floor plans. The Farmhouse style home promotes a comfortable and cozy feel with a spacious kitchen area. Most Modern Farmhouse plans feature an open floor plan to complement the ample kitchen space and increase communication among family members in adjoining rooms.

When you're looking for a chic, trendy house style and all the added benefits of an open floor plan, explore Modern Farmhouse style designs.

Craftsman

The Craftsman style home is a classic architectural design created in the early 1900s. These average-sized homes provide a cozy interior with a modest exterior, complete with covered porches, dormer windows, and open floor plan designs.

This is an example of an open concept house plan within a Craftsman style home. The design and layout maximize the space available in the room, so people can easily transition from relaxing on the couch to doing dishes in the kitchen.

For homeowners looking for a moderate-sized house with unique architectural features and comfortable living spaces, a Craftsman style house with an open floor plan is worth considering.

European

European houses feature delicate stonework on the house exterior and spacious square footage on the interior.

When you're investing in a beautiful European style home, you don't want the house to feel closed off. Find a design with an open floor plan, so the home will appear bigger without adding additional square footage.

European homes feature raised ceilings, elegant staircases, and large foyers, making this home design an excellent candidate for an open concept floor plan. Homeowners will enjoy decorating their spacious, open room to create the perfect interior design for their dream home.

Traditional

Traditional homes focus on a homeowner's needs over fashionable design. While the name implies these houses look plain and ordinary, this couldn't be farther from the truth. Traditional homes can be stylish and symmetrical. However, architects will prioritize functionality when designing a traditional house.

When you expect to raise a family or host social events within the home, a Traditional style house with an open floor plan is a great interior design choice. An open floor plan serves a purpose: to allow adults to keep a watchful eye on children or entertain guests from the kitchen, dining or living areas.

This design also improves communication – you won't need to yell throughout the house to grab people's attention in the dining room or great room.

It's easy to see why an open floor concept would be an attractive feature in Traditional houses. The plan offers a contemporary, modern design without sacrificing functionality.

Beach House

Beach houses are typically used as vacation homes, making this style an excellent option for an open concept house plan. While working in the kitchen, homeowners can join the conversation about scheduled vacation activities or watch a movie with guests.

A Beach home with an open floor plan will maximize vacation time spent with family and friends. You won't feel left out or secluded while preparing meals or cleaning the home. Guests can easily keep you company while remaining relaxed and comfortable in the beach house.

How to Decide if an Open Floor Plan is a Right Choice for You

Open floor plans provide great natural light, increase communication abilities, and help hosts manage their party guests. And, most houses have front door foyers that lead straight into the open concept design, so homeowners can easily see who has entered the home.

While there are plenty of perks to open floor concepts, there are a few caveats to this design that potential homeowners should be aware of:

• Cooking smells will linger in open areas
• Noise will travel through the space
• Limited privacy is available while watching TV in the living room

If you or someone in your household are sensitive to strong odors and noise, you'll want to consider managing this sensitivity in an open floor plan. Opening windows to air out the room and retreating to a private bedroom are two easy ways homeowners can negate this potential problem.

When it comes to the living room, expect anyone who enters the open area to catch a glimpse of the TV. This visibility isn't necessarily a problem unless you have small children. You may want to wait to watch mature programming until after the children's bedtime or in a private room of the house.

Indeed, none of these issues are deal-breakers for homes with open floor plans. There are many simple solutions for managing television exposure, unpleasant odors, and noise control.

So, if you're looking for a dream home perfect for monitoring children or pets, hosting company, and welcoming natural light, a house with an open floor plan would be perfect for you.

Start the Search for Your Ideal Home

Never feel claustrophobic in your living space again—open floor plans offer a spacious room with opportunities to converse with guests comfortably, watch children, and cook in the kitchen.

This easy, unique design can work with any home style, so you can mix and match the interior and exterior choices to create your dream home.

Monster House Plans has thousands of house styles that feature open concept floor plans. Homeowners interested in specific exterior design styles can find plans that suit their specific style while maintaining all the interior features you desire, including an open floor plan.

If you are interested in these collections of open concept floor plans, contact the professional architects at Monster House Plans today and start searching for your ideal home.

We have the right option for your house, with open floor plan designs for every individual. And, we'll help you find fashionable and functional house plans to suit your everyday needs.