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Lets play a game listing the pros and cons of
a single story home vs a two story home.
I will go first to start the game
Single story pros
More bang for your buck(single story homes
maintain property value better than two story.
Atleast that's the case in non rich communities).
Easier to beautify for lazy people. Maintenance is
easier.
Single story home cons
Bedroom on first floor. If you've ever
lived in a two story home then you know
its not very comfortable.
If you have a egomaniac in your home
that needs plenty of space then you'd
better steer clear of single story homes
and pick a two story home.
Two story home pros
Space. Probably the best benefit of having
two story. If you want to go to sleep you
simply go upstairs and away from guests.
Better AC ventalation. Never too hot or too
cold like a single story.
Cons of a two story home.
Not as easy to secure like a single story home.
Got to make sure alarm works both upstairs and
down stairs.
Stick out like a sore thumb
if placed in a neighborhood
of mostly single story homes. The same is not
necessasarily true of a single story home in a
area of predominantly two story houses.
To me single story all the way. Easier to heat and cool and keep constant temperature in one floor.No stairs as you age. Is worth more because it requires more property. Two story much more dangerous in fires. Bath upstairs plumbing if leak is every damaging and expensive to correctly fix. Any piping in walls is much nosier. Upstair floors are noisy unless concrete. Most two stories are not built in foundation to withstanrd the smaller foot print foundation with second story ;so settle more. It very expensive if you actually build a good two story house with correct foundation and plumbing to hold up as well.
You can keep the servants on the lower floor of a multi-story home to keep you from being bothered by religious proselytizers.
Defenestration is easier in a two story home, but safer in a one story home.
The best part of two story homes is having the private area separate from the public areas. Especially if you like to leave the bed unmade. Another great perk of two stories is that the view is often really nice since you can see farther.
One stories can be great, especially the historic ones with high ceilings and tall windows. Also, no stairs, which is good for old knees, old dogs, and young babies. Of course one story homes cost more on a square foot basis because they need twice as much foundation.
I like stairs - as long as my knees can handle them - so to me they're not a detriment.
Kind of a best-of-both-worlds alternative is a 1 1/2 story home with bedrooms on the first and second floors. My old house had two bedrooms upstairs and one downstairs; I used an upstairs bedroom, while my elderly neighbor across the street in a similar home used her downstairs bedroom. Very flexible space.
Quote:
Originally Posted by luv4horses
The best part of two story homes is having the private area separate from the public areas. Especially if you like to leave the bed unmade.
It is all about light and space. A one story house can have just as much privacy and elbow room as a two story, as log as its designed correctly.
We are in our first one story house ever, ever, and we are glad to be without stairs. Ours is a split plan, so if we have guests at one end, we are not even aware they are there.
Maintenance is so much easier too, since we can reach everything outside with a short ladder.
Better to age in a single story home....storage can be taken care of with a full basement that essentially doubles your space. And I always found the upstairs in a two story to be hot in the summer...I guess you can "zone" but that's more expensive construction? I grew up in a "ranch" and the two houses I've built have been one-stories (not technically a conventional ranch).
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