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PaperclipPerfector  5mo ago (text post)   3053 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for June 29, 2025

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Homeowners of The Motte -- what would you differently if you could do it all over again?

I plan on building a house in the next 12 months on a lot about an hour away from the Gulf of Mexico America. It's going to be a two-story 5BR house with porches on the front and the back, built in a traditional Southern style.

I'm a bit overwhelmed as I don't even know what I don't know about building, and I want to avoid making costly mistakes that I'll have to pay to renovate later (or worse, be unable to fix at all). Happy to hear both from people who built and people who bought.

Not a hoomer, but some thoughts:

  1. Get Your House Right is a really good resource for basic design questions (proportions, moldings, layouts, etc). You might also see if Brent Hull has any videos on southern style houses.

  2. Lever handles are much better than doorknobs IMO. I fairly often need to open a door with stuff in my hands and it's way easier to do it if the door opens with a lever handle.

  3. Think seriously about room ventilation. The house should be set up so that you can get cross-breezes going.

  4. Make sure you put in a skookum kitchen hood that's sized appropriately for your cooktop. I've lived my life in places with underpowered or non-existent hoods and it sucks.

  5. Try to avoid making the garage a major part of your house's facade. May not be possible depending on your lot, unfortunately - but it looks much better if you can make it happen.

  6. Put some thought into sealing your garage to keep insects out.

  7. If you end up with a small bathroom, consider installing a pocket door. I have a bathroom right now where the room door and the shower door open into each others' space and it sucks.

  8. Two sinks in the master bath is a must.

Thanks, these tips all make a lot of sense. After living in houses both with and without, I strongly suspect two sinks in the master bath correlates strongly with lower divorce rates.

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