House Plan Blog

As two of the most used spaces in any home, today’s kitchens and bath designs are loaded with innovative features, smart technology and a lot of attention to detail. Designers whose home plans are featured by The House Plan Company, a residential plan marketing company based in Oregon, note the following trends this year in kitchen and bath designs:

• Larger kitchen islands for casual dining and entertaining in place of breakfast nooks.
• Upper kitchen cabinets being replaced by more windows and open shelving.
• Built-in coffee bars in kitchens, in butler’s pantries and even in master suites.
• Smart technology in kitchen gadgets and appliances from lighting to faucets....

The term “farmhouse” evokes a sense of nostalgia—of simpler times when families gathered around the hearth to relax after a long, hard day working the land. Often considered the backbone of American residential architecture, the farmhouse represents a timeless setting for a comfortable, peaceful way of life. Grounded in simplicity, purity and practicality, farmhouse design features have evolved over time but still adhere to the principle of form following function. Today’s modern farmhouse designs are more popular than ever, characterized by sleek exterior lines, pitched roofs of varying heights, welcoming porches and open floor plans with abundant natural light.

“The farmhouse is iconic and has remained popular throughout the country—in urban...

EUGENE, OR.—June 4, 2019—Often celebrated as man’s best friend, dogs touch nearly every aspect of the daily lives of their owners, from the moment they wake up to feed and walk their beloved pets to the last scratch between the ears as they say goodnight. It should come as no surprise, therefore, that when dog owners decide to build a new home, their furry four-legged companions factor prominently in the design of the house.

According to Statista.com, there are more than 89 million dogs living as pets in U.S. homes today and most of them are considered an important member of their human family. Rick McAlexander, CEO of The House Plan Company, a leading residential design plan company based in Oregon, can attest...

Newswire - The eternal question for any homeowner planning to build a new home is, “How much will it cost?” But asking builders how much a new home will cost, and more specifically, how much it will cost per square foot, will likely elicit a wide range of responses from low to high and somewhere in between. Cost per square foot analysis may seem like an elusive math problem, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

“Cost per square foot analysis is difficult for homeowners to get their arms around because it’s not an apples-to-apples comparison and there always seems to be many different answers.

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