In the market for a new home? Before deciding on the logistics of moving all your belongings, the first step is choosing a new home to hang your hat. When selecting a new home, there are many options to consider from the neighborhood, the school district, number of bedrooms, bathrooms and more. One big option to consider is whether you want to live in a single story or two-story home. There are pros and cons to both types of homes. Consider the following when searching for your next home.
Single Story Home
Advantages to a single story include ceilings that are generally higher. Taller ceilings make your home seem bigger and more open. Single stories are also easier to keep clean, instead of having to vacuum carpeted stair steps, everything is all on one level. Maintaining the exterior of a single story home is also simpler. Cleaning gutters, washing windows, washing exteriors and maintaining the roof are all easier tasks on a single story home. Single story homes are better and safer for young children, dogs, elderly and mobility challenged because there are no steps to navigate. A single story home provides more flexibility when it comes to future home renovations. There are fewer load-bearing walls, so a renovation would be less costly. However, if you are building a home and desire more space, it may be difficult to fit a single story home on your lot. Two-story homes afford more square footage with a smaller footprint. If you like the look of a grand staircase or the feel of a open loft, these aesthetics cannot be achieved with a one story home.
Two-Story Home
Two-story homes tend to have bigger yards because less of a concrete foundation is required on a two-story home because the extra square footage is stacked on top, not spread out on one level. It is easier to have two distinct and separate spaces in a two story home. For instance, if you have guests over, you only need to keep the downstairs area presentable and ready for company. You can also allow other family members to entertain guests downstairs while you go upstairs to bed. Two distinct spaces are also handy for separating adults from kids—with a second story you can tell kids to go play or hang out upstairs in the media or bonus room. Another advantage to a two-story home is the potential for a view out of the second-story windows. Balconies are a romantic addition exclusive to multi-story homes. However, it is easier for sound to travel between the floors of a two-story home. This means that a one story home might be quieter if bedrooms are on one end of the home and living areas located on the other end. Apartment dwellers can relate to the annoyance of sound traveling between floors. First-time homebuyers may desire a one story home to escape this problem. Clutter also tends to accumulate at the bottom and top of the stairs because certain items belong upstairs or downstairs. It can be a chore to fetch something that you need when it is located on another story.
Which type of home is the best fit for your family? Best of luck with finding or building your new home. Whether it is one-story or two, contact Square Cow Movers and we’d be happy to help with all your packing and hauling needs!
Original Source: https://squarecowmovers.com/first-second-floor-pros-cons/