12 Luxury Features to Build Into Your Custom Home
Your custom home is your opportunity to treat yourself in a massive way. All you need to do is choose the features that matter most to you, then work with your custom home builder to make your ideas a reality.
Not sure what to include in your custom home? Work with members of your family to create a list of "must-haves" versus "nice to have." Once you have a budget, you can work with your home builder to decide what will fit within your budget without going over. In this article, we'll discuss some of the more luxurious features to consider for your custom home.
1. Higher Ceilings
High ceilings add a sense of spaciousness to your home, especially in parts of the house like the basement, where low ceilings make the space feel cave-like.
How high should the ceilings be? Just a little taller than average is enough to make your home feel luxurious. Talk to your home builder about constructing a home with 9 to 12-foot ceilings. That's tall enough to make your home attractive, and also tall enough to make room for a chandelier.
2. Energy Efficient Design
Energy efficiency is growing in importance with every year that goes by. The more energy-efficient your home's design, the less money you'll spend on utilities like water, gas, and electricity. There are many ways to make your home more efficient, including:
- Install ENERGY STAR appliances
- Install extra insulation to make your home's envelope as tight as possible
- Choose windows with low-E4 glass and dual or even triple-pane glass
Work with a home builder with experience designing energy-efficient homes to ensure that your custom home will have all the latest eco-friendly innovations.
3. Smart Home Technology
Smart home technology makes life convenient. Although you can buy smart technology and install it after your home is built, it's easier to install it at the time of construction. Some examples of smart technology to consider for your home:
- Video doorbell
- Smart door locks
- Smart blinds
- Smart thermostat
4. Outdoor Outlets in the Eaves
It's a pain to find a place where you can plug in your Christmas lights - unless, that is, you have outlets under your eaves. Ask your builder to install GFCI outlets under your eaves at regular intervals so you won't have to see those unsightly extension cords dangling around your home's facade throughout the holiday season!
5. Built-In Shelves
Dress up your home with built-in shelves! Built-in shelving is attractive and functional, and it raises the value of your home. Work with your home builder to install hand-constructed millwork. Consider floor-to-ceiling bookshelves in your living room, study, or home office.
Not interested in shelving? Consider millwork in other forms. Coffered ceilings, wainscoting, custom crown molding, and even just a simple chair rail in your dining room can add a touch of class to your custom home.
6. Upstairs Laundry Room
A lot of people put their laundry room in the basement, or in a utility room on the first floor. This makes no sense if your bedrooms are upstairs! Think about all the time that you spend hauling your sheets, pillowcases, and clothes downstairs for laundry day and then back up again. You could save yourself time and energy if you had a laundry room upstairs.
The alternative to putting the laundry room upstairs? Install a laundry chute with a direct line to your laundry room. You'll thank yourself later.
7. Breakfast Nook
Imagine yourself waking in the morning, coming downstairs for breakfast, and enjoying a morning coffee in your comfortable little breakfast nook. It's a sweet image, isn't it? Ask your builder to outfit your breakfast nook with a built-in set of benches and a table, or buy the right seats and table for your home.
If you've got a romantic idea about enjoying breakfast in the sunlight, work with your builder to put your breakfast nook on a side of your home where the sun will shine in the morning. For a final touch, ask your builder to install a pendant light fixture over the table.
8. Spa-Like Bathroom
Imagine yourself relaxing at the end of the day in a large Jacuzzi bathtub, or taking a shower with multiple shower heads. Imagine yourself sitting in front of a custom-made vanity to get ready for work in the morning.
Work with your builder to create a comfortable environment with the right colors, natural lighting, and spa-like features for your bathroom. Bonus tip: install heated floors to make those first moments stepping out of the shower as comfortable as possible.
9. Mudroom
Give the kids somewhere to take off their shoes without making a mess... in your new mudroom. To make your mudroom just a little more functional, ask your builder to install custom-made benches with storage space inside. Your kids can sit down to take off their shoes, then put the shoes in the storage bench so they're out of sight.
10. Extra Outlets Indoors
If there's one thing you can never have enough of, it's outlets. While it's common to put outlets on walls, there are many other places where outlets can be installed, including your floors, in drawers, and on cabinets.
Floor outlets are especially useful in homes that have an open layout. Drawers make a great place to charge small mobile devices like a tablet or a phone, so these spaces make fantastic places to put USB outlets. Talk to your custom home builder to discuss where outlets should go in your home.
11. Outdoor Living Space
You love cooking outdoors, don't you? What if you had a whole kitchen out there? ...and for that matter, what if you had a dining room out there too? And a living room? Outdoor living spaces are popular for a reason!
Before working with your builder to design a living space that works for you, make decisions about what you'll be using your living space for, whether that's parties or everyday use, cooking or lounging. This will help you make better use of your outdoor space.
12. Dog Bathing Station
Bathing your dog in the bathroom can make a big, hairy mess. Want to avoid the drama while keeping your dog as clean as possible? Install a dog bathing station, either in your mudroom or garage - whichever makes you comfortable. Work with your builder to ensure that the drainage system can hold up to your dog's shedding.
Find the Right Home Builder for Your Custom Home in Wisconsin
At Sugar Creek Custom Homes, we help Wisconsin homeowners design a custom home they'll love. We can help you too! Contact us today to make an appointment for a getting started consultation.
