Master bedroom in front of house?

[racehorse]

Our previous house had all four bedrooms up, with the master facing the street. Although this wasn't an ideal layout, we really didn't experience tons of road noise so it wasn't really an issue.

When we were looking for our current house, we saw one that I absolutely loved but my husband didn't like the fact that the master bath was on the front of the house.

[reginasmu]

Originally Posted by ggolf

Yes, I like having the master in the back where I can put a lock on the fence's gate and feel safer. In the front, who knows? Sure, someone could break the glass and get in, but they'd have a journey to us, and I'd have a 12 gauge and 38 waiting for them.

For me it's all about the noise.

That was my initial thought - that it would noisy. I guess I'm going to have to ask the sales rep what the builder's architects were considering when drafting those floorplans. There has to be a reason. I don't guess that master front would necessarily be a deal breaker for me, if it had everything else I want.

[reginasmu]

Originally Posted by ggolf

Yes, I like having the master in the back where I can put a lock on the fence's gate and feel safer. In the front, who knows? Sure, someone could break the glass and get in, but they'd have a journey to us, and I'd have a 12 gauge and 38 waiting for them.

For me it's all about the noise.

Funny about the 12 gauge and 38....

[loves2read]

we have friend who is builder on small scale--several years ago he bought house in a Colleyville subdivision that needed some significant updating...one that lingered on the market when the market was hot--so you know there were problems besides the dated decor...

after he was done with the remodel we went through it--
he did a thorough job even changing out the hardware on the doors/cabinets to nickle vs the bronze/gold that were in the home originally...really spent too much on what he did because he raised the price point pretty high--had trouble finding someone to buy the house when he put it on the market...

I did not like the layout--the master door was right off the front hall--unless you kept it closed all the time the master was in full view of anyone walking through the house--
that as much as anything would have kept me from buying it (and we were in the market at that time and could have afforded it)
we had been to see other houses for sale in that same subdivison and it was the only one we saw with front master ...
during 3 yrs of looking at homes in NE Tarrant county we saw maybe 3 that had a front master...and never two in same subdivision...
so I think that is not a very popular design in any age home
I tend to see them more when I look at home-plan books--and it could have been that the original owners picked the plan out of a book w/o really realizing the negative effect...

[beasleb]

Originally Posted by reginasmu

I was out yesterday visiting a new community in Lewisville by Mercedes Homes. I like the neighborhood alot, and they have about 8 different floor plans to choose from. One thing I noticed in their plans is that they have several plans with the Master bedroom upstairs, which wasn't alarming, I've seen that several times. The bigger thing that was surprising is that they had 3 or 4 floorplans in which the Master bedroom was in the front of the house. You basically walk in the front door and foyer, and the Master bedroom is the first room you come to, followed by dining, family, etc. I was a little confused, as I am much more used to Master bedroom in the back of the house and maybe a 2nd bedroom towards the front of the house. Does anyone why the builder would have plans with the master bedroom in the front of the house? Is there a benefit? Or, said another way, is it bad to have that in the front? Just thinking about resale down the road. Since the community seems to be made up of a mix of empty nesters downsizing, single young professionals, and young families, I don't think the master up would hurt the resale value in that area and could actually be a good thing for many future buyers. Just a little puzzled by the master bedroom in the front. Thanks for any feedback!

Hi there reginasmu --
My home was built in 2010, by a highly regarded builder, in a nice subdivision in southwest Amarillo. My master bedroom is in the front of the house, too. When you walk in through the foyer, to the right is the living room and to the left is a small quasi-hall (there is a closet on one end) and turn left again and there is the master bedroom. The other bedrooms are on the opposite side of the house. I love it! It's a very private arrangement.
Kind of off the subject, but one oddity I noticed about my house was that the only bedroom that had a locking door is the master bedroom. Guess so kids can't lock themselves in their room!

[reginasmu]

Originally Posted by beasleb

Hi there reginasmu --
My home was built in 2010, by a highly regarded builder, in a nice subdivision in southwest Amarillo. My master bedroom is in the front of the house, too. When you walk in through the foyer, to the right is the living room and to the left is a small quasi-hall (there is a closet on one end) and turn left again and there is the master bedroom. The other bedrooms are on the opposite side of the house. I love it! It's a very private arrangement.
Kind of off the subject, but one oddity I noticed about my house was that the only bedroom that had a locking door is the master bedroom. Guess so kids can't lock themselves in their room!

Hi, Beasleb,

So, you love the arrangement? Does your room look out onto the street? Does it bother you that guests pass by your room every time they come over to visit?

When you were looking, did your builder give you the reason for designing the master bedroom in the front? Just curious of the rationale. In the floor plans in the community I visited with the master in the front, the plans are two stories, with the rest of the rooms all upstairs.

And.....kids don't need to be able to lock themselves in their rooms.....they pay NO bills!

[Squirl]

I own a rental property that is a 2 bedroom and the center of the house is the public areas: living, dining, kitchen all very open and each bedroom is on opposite sides. The master faces the rear and the 2nd bedroom faces the street. If I had children occupying the 2nd bedroom, I would prefer their bedroom faced the rear for fear of someone being able to access the kids' room thru the front windows. The master is protected by the backyard and the gate is locked. So far its not been rented by anyone with a child and the 2nd bedroom is used as an office but just saying for this kind of floorplan I would prefer the master being the room to face the street if I had kids in the other bedroom.

[tbone9900tx]

My master is in the front and i have no problem with it. no noisy street, no noisy neighbors garage, no fear of anyone breaking my front glass to get in etc. I never thought about it the master being in front or back...as far as the master being upstairs I saw that in my hunt for a home and didnt like it...

[Linzy]

It all depends on the neighborhood. If the neighborhood is a quite, master in front shouldn't be a problem with noise and the garage in the back. My current house has master facing front but it is on the whole side of the house and very private. The front door walks in with the living room on the right, office on the left and half bath and down the hall is the master quarter which is away from the rest of the rooms upstairs and the family and kitchen facing the back yard.

[Grainraiser]

My master is in front and faces the street. It has not been a issue for me other than people being able to see into my bedroom if I leave the door open. My family room faces the back which I really prefer. I have never had a problem with road noise. If I get the master and the family room to face the back I would be very happy. If I had to chose one it would family room facing the back.