The farmhouse-style of houses is very popular these days. While once upon a time they were restricted to rural settings, you can now find all kinds of farmhouse designs in suburbs. Below we showcase some of the best farmhouse floor plans available.
Farmhouses are built in a well-known, traditional style for without fine mill work, metal work, or ornamentation. They are usually framed in wood, although steel-frame farmhouses are becoming more common, and the farmhouse look never requires cedar shingle roofing, stone veneers, or elaborate lighting fixtures. Building a house is never cheap, but farmhouses aren’t terribly expensive,
A “shell” that you finish by putting in drywall and floors as well as all electrical and plumbing fixtures can be built for about $140 a square foot in most of the and a farmhouse in turnkey condition should be about $175 per square foot. The $175 per square foot figure includes a masonry foundation with a full basement, high-efficiency windows and doors, all appliances, floors, interior and exterior painting, and minimal landscaping. It also assumes that the contractor uses farmhouse plans and you do not hire an architect, which would bring the construction price to at least $200 per square foot and possibly much more.
It is easy to find plans for farmhouses and country cottages with carports and detached garages. Farmhouse plans with detached garages come in a wide range of styles and sizes.
Farmhouse style homes in suburban and hobby farm settings are more likely than not to include a garage. Farmhouses on working farms usually do not have garages unless one member of the family also works in town. Working farms will have protected parking spaces not just for vehicles but also for tractors, front-end loaders, and other machines for off-road use.
While there are many extremely comfortable farmhouses, farmhouse style does not lend itself to architectural innovation. There are no grand entryways or elaborate staircases or formal gardens with farmhouses. You will never find a farmhouse McMansion crammed on an urban lot. Farmhouse style is used for “normal,” regular-sized homes.
It’s easy to find plans for farmhouse style homes between 300 and 400 square feet. Most of these small and tiny homes include plans for wrap-around porches. The porches give the property a country look, add to curb appeal, save on insulation needs and cooling costs. Bedrooms do not have to be placed in a loft, even in a 350 square foot design, and full-sized bathrooms and appliances are possible. The footprint of a small farmhouse may double when porches are counted.
Any farmhouse style can be built on an open floor plan. There can be great rooms with vaulted ceilings. Rooms can be so spacious that wide plank wood flooring looks right. Kitchens can be spacious with lines of sight to everything that is going on in the house during the day. On the exterior, the open concept interior will result in the use of gables, dormers, and steeper roof pitches to preserve harmony of the design. All of this will have been considered in your farmhouse plans.
For about a century, almost every farmhouse exterior was painted white. Doors and window frames might have been painted black or blue or occasionally green. In the twenty-first century, it’s increasingly common to see white used as an accent color and the rest of the exterior painted in colors entirely to the owner’s liking. Just about any color works for a farmhouse, although the color schemes are likely to be uncomplicated, easy to maintain, and soothing.
Although farmhouses are associated with the wide open spaces, the farmhouse style can work on a narrow lot. There are designs that use porches, gables, and exterior columns to give the house a distinct farmhouse look without the need for a broad facade facing the street. It’s easiest to find them in catalogs of house plans specifically for narrow lots.
The farmhouse style is a natural on a wide lot. All of the features that make farmhouses so livable are compatible with a wide footprint, especially porches.
If you want to build your farmhouse style house on a sloping lot, you will definitely need to spend some extra money on excavation, but the excavation will make it possible for you to add value to your house while you reduce your cost per square foot with a full, finished basement. The slope of your lot will allow for one or more doors and windows to make your basement light and airy while keeping it cozy.
The traditional farmhouse has most of its living space on the first floor, but attics can be transformed into beautiful, inviting living spaces. If you want two or even three floors in your farmhouse, you can have them. There will be multiple-story options for the farmhouse you will love — you may just have to spend a little more time looking through the catalog.
Farmhouses were traditionally built without basements, but anywhere soil, rainfall, and local building codes permit, any farmhouse can be built with a basement. There will be added cost for excavation but also added value for the additional living space.
It’s easy to find plans for farmhouses with bonus rooms.
Every farmhouse floor plan has to be meet local energy efficiency standards. You will find the specifics in your plans.
Yes! Some people would say that a farmhouse without a porch isn’t a farmhouse. Porches are part of the attraction of the farmhouse style.
Farmhouses are especially well suited to metal roofs. Metal roofs offer excellent protection against fire, wind, and weather, and may last as long as the house. Shake-style shingle roofs are also practical in many situations.
Farmhouses work well with rustic interior decor, and it’s amazingly easy to find pieces to add to your collection. You can spend a lifetime decorating your comfortable, livable, rustic farmhouse.
We analyzed 59,000 floor plans and found that 2.26% of house plans available for sale are the farmhouse style. While that may sound small, keep in mind there are 27 styles included in the analysis and the percentages were somewhat evenly distributed. Farmhouse style falls somewhere in the middle.
Traditionally, no, but hence the name. Traditionally these are rural homes on farms and acreages. However, there’s an evolution in the farmhouse style called “contemporary farmhouse” or “modern farmhouse” which is very popular and these styles are indeed being built in suburbs all over the USA and Canada.
Haha, it seems like most are white, especially the modern farmhouse style houses. However, it’s not a requirement. You can go any color you like. Check out the bright red design at the top or the rustic wood exterior under our 5 favorite examples.
Almost all will have a porch. Some are small porches and some are large wrap-around porches. The porch is a hallmark of the farmhouse design.
No. Actually most aren’t. Rustic style is one of those styles that can be applied to many traditional architectural styles including farmhouse. However, farmhouse styles do not require or even typically have a rustic decor to them. They can but these days, people love the modern farmhouse design which I consider to fall under the transitional interior design effect.
