two storey home design - Lexia

Deciding to have a brand new home built to your exacting specifications is a major move. It’s a significant investment that will cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars, but it’s a small price to pay for having the home of your dreams.

There are a myriad number of questions you’ll need to answer when you’ve committed to having your own home built from scratch, not the least of which are neighbourhood and block size, but there’s one quite important question that you need to answer as well: are you going two storey or one storey?

Is single storey a better option?

It’s a loaded question, and a deceptively simple one. However, the truth is that there are advantages and disadvantages to both. We've written about why you should build a 2 storey home before here.

Generally speaking, a two-storey home will be more expensive to build than a single storey house. That being said, it’s not as if doubling the number of storeys doubles the price; the increase in cost is usually mild to moderate depending on the overall home design.

Additionally, two storey homes are ideal for smaller blocks, while single storey homes are ideal for larger blocks where you have the space to build out instead of having to build up.

Finally, if your block has some breathtaking rear views, the higher you build the better – you can have some truly outstanding views from a two storey home that you simply won’t be able to get if you just build a single storey.

Or is two storey best?

Meanwhile, there are other factors to consider as well. If you have elderly relatives living in the home, the internal staircase of a two-storey home is going to prove problematic in regards to mobility, which makes single storey living much more comfortable.

Likewise families with small children often find it much more manageable to choose a single storey dwelling to make it easier to keep an eye on the little ones and eliminate the possibility of tumbles down stairs.

By the same token, if you have teenagers or want more separation from the bedrooms and the living spaces in the home, a two storey dwelling is going to provide that in ways that a single storey home just won’t be able to.

In the end, it comes down to personal preference as much as it does the circumstances of your block and your lifestyle. Whatever you choose, make sure you’re satisfied – as you’re going to have to live with it!