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Traditional Style Home Floor Plans

How much do Traditional style houses cost per square foot?

The Traditional style is the natural evolution of upscale European styles. It does not require the complicated architecture of, say, a Victorian house, but it includes embellishments from the Chippendale, Queen Anne, and Sheraton styles like piping, tufting, and wingbacks. Traditional style calls for millwork and fine craftsmanship, and these architectural additions cost money. Traditional style homes seldom cost less than $275 per square foot to build, exclusive of real estate, permits, and utilities, and can cost as much as $500 per square foot when they are built on sloping lots.

Are there Traditional style floor plans with a detached garage?  Is it possible?

It’s easy to find plans for a detached garage in Traditional style matching the house. This is a common feature in plans for Traditional style houses.

Does Traditional style house usually come with a garage?  

In the 2020s, almost every style of house comes with a garage. More than other styles, Traditional houses come with perfectly paired detached garages rather than attached garages, but the garage is built in the same style as the house.

Is Traditional style considered a grand or luxury style of home?  Is the style used for mansions or normally regular-sized homes?

The Traditional style permits intense craftsmanship. It’s possible to find stunning millwork in new Traditional style homes. It’s possible to build a Traditional style house that will find its way into architecture magazines. But the Traditional style is not really the basis for a grand, sprawling mansion that is grand and sprawling for their own sake. At its heart, the Traditional style is comfortable and practical.

Is Traditional style ever built as a "small" home?  Can it be built economically?

It is possible to find building plans for Traditional style tiny homes. That doesn’t mean that they will have curb appeal. Including the curves and piping and awnings and gables that make a home look Traditional takes so much space that a small home in this style looks like all embellishment and no house. But building plans for Traditional tiny homes are commercially available. Who is to say your Traditional tiny house could not be an architectural gem with substantial modifications to the plans?

Can Traditional style floor plans be open concept?

For a Traditional home to be, well, Traditional, a closed concept is favored. Most Traditional homes have walls separating living and dining areas and the kitchen. More and more contemporary Traditional homes, however, are being planned with open-concept kitchens that provide a line of sight for watchful parents and hosts. 

It’s hard to do interior decorating for an open-concept Traditional home. One of the basic principles in a Traditional home is that everything matches, so open areas have to be decorated in a single style. In a closed-concept Traditional home, everything has to match in a room, not necessarily over a large living space.

What are popular Traditional style exterior colors?

Traditional style colors are “subdued” inside and out. You would never find a neon-purple Traditional house with pink flamingos on the lawn. Darker trim offsets light-colored exteriors to draw attention to the gracious curves of windows or the welcoming front door. The front door ordinarily would be natural wood with rich, dark tones, with windows on either side.

Can you build Traditional style house on a narrow lot?  

With a little looking, you can find dozens of building plans for Traditional houses taking up narrow lots. Building plans for a Traditional house on a narrow lot might put the attached or detached garage behind the house, if the lot is deep enough. 

Can this style be built on a wide lot?

It is easy to find building plans for Traditional style houses on wide lots. The key to the perfect look is making sure that you not only have symmetry in your architectural plans, you have symmetry in the landscaping on either side of your house as it fills that wide lot.

Can Traditional style homes be built on a sloping lot?

Never say never, but Traditional style is not conducive with the split levels that would be necessary to take advantage of a sloping lot without a lot of excavation and building retaining walls. The construction of a Traditional home on a sloping lot would require the involvement of engineers and a lengthy permit process.

How many floors/stories does Traditional style usually have?

Traditional style houses have one or two stories, but the style doesn’t really work with three or more floors (unless you count attic space). 

Do Traditional style houses have a basement?

Any Traditional style house can have a basement, if soil and site conditions permit. There is nothing about a basement that clashes with Traditional style, although building plans do not usually include basements.

Does this style of house ever come with a bonus room?

Traditional style does not come with “extras.” You would not find plans for a Traditional style house that has a bonus room built in. But you can always find plans for more bedrooms or office space that you could use as a bonus room as your plans for the house grow and change.

Do Traditional style floor plans come with energy efficient options?

Traditional style homes are inherently energy-efficient, with windows illuminating living spaces and possibilities for using less heating and cooling in rooms that are not used as often.

Is a porch a common design feature with Traditional style houses?

It’s possible to find floor plans for Traditional style houses with a deck behind it, but the style does not work with a front porch or a wrap-around porch. There are plans for Traditional styles houses that have a glassed-in sunroom.

What types of roof does Traditional style house typically have?

Wood shingles (and faux wood shingles) “work” with Traditional style. Metal and tar do not.

Does Traditional style work well with a rustic interior decor?  Or is it more suited to a contemporary interior?

Rustic interiors don’t work with Traditional style. Traditional style calls for crown molding, cornices, coffered ceilings, columns, wood paneling, and built-in cabinets. Traditional house interiors beg for upholstery with complex patterns, such as chinoiserie prints, damasks, florals, paisleys, muted stripes, and toile. They need rich wood tones and metals. And every Traditional house needs window treatments.