Are these room sizes decent?

[EllisRoses]

Purchasing a 4 bed detached property off plan and I can't get my bearings of room sizes. The lounge seems plenty long enough, maybe slightly concerned about width. I was chatting to my mum about how happy I am to finally have a utility room and she replied it was a tiny one. I've been going off the floor plans and thought it was a pretty generous sized house? For a family of 4 plus a dog I'd hate to feel cramped?

Gosh that's so weird, it's almost identical to my plans for my extension I'm doing soon.

I'd say they're decent sized rooms, OP. Fourth bedroom is maybe a bit smaller but still 2m*3m is a good size!

So jealous of the utility room!

Can you go and look around a different house (not even anything similar) and compare the measurements?

The sitting room is on the border for being too thin. We had one that was similar and it was a PITA.
Master bedroom seems tight too.

Are there other houses already built by that developer anywhere?

Obviously, how does it compare to where you are now? Measure it all out as you are in each room.

I think they're fine, the living is on the narrow side but you need to choose furniture that's not too deep and you don't want a radiator behind your sofa on the long wall.
It looks well designed with a good use of space.

All looks good to me. Plenty of kids have a bedroom the size of your new utility

Even the fourth bedroom could fit a double bed, or a single along the shorter wall leaving floor space, so I would say they are decent sizes.

Could you mark out the room sizes in your garden (you could do one at a time) as that way it will be easier to imagine being in them and where furniture could go etc?

Thanks all. Good idea about viewing another property for comparison. I've tried working it out with tape measures but I just can't get a feel for it. It's our first time buying a house so we aren't exactly sure and to us it looked massive but I don't want to go in with too high expectations!

Not super big (particularly bedroom 4) but there's a utility and more than enough bathrooms, which makes a big difference!!

The utility doesn't need to be big it's just to get the washer / dryer out of the way and to keep the clothes horse and to store other laundry related bits and bobs. Plus it will be good for kids with mucky shoes!

That's huge for a new house. If you want larger, you should look at period properties.

Thats quite a standard layout for new build homes and yes, they're OK room sizes. I would trawl Rightmove to see if you can see any similar-ish properties being sold kind of second hand (so real homes with real furniture etc - show homes tend to have all sorts of tricks to make the rooms look bigger - slightly smaller furniture than standard, no doors etc) so you can compare the layout in "real life".

I think the kitchen looks narrow to have that kind of breakfast bar - the sink and hob are not to scale so as to make the scale look bigger. The kitchen width for example at 3m with a row of cabinets along the right hand side means its wide enough for 2 double cabinets, or 4 single cabinets. The utility run of cabinets would be wide enough for a washer, dryer, and one single 60cm base unit with a little bit of extra room. You wouldn't have enough room for a separate washer and dryer and a double sink as they have shown.

A normal bed is 2m long so in Bedroom 4, it would just about fit down the shorter wall but with no space at the head or foot. That should give you an idea.

@Africa2go

Thats quite a standard layout for new build homes and yes, they're OK room sizes. I would trawl Rightmove to see if you can see any similar-ish properties being sold kind of second hand (so real homes with real furniture etc - show homes tend to have all sorts of tricks to make the rooms look bigger - slightly smaller furniture than standard, no doors etc) so you can compare the layout in "real life".

I think the kitchen looks narrow to have that kind of breakfast bar - the sink and hob are not to scale so as to make the scale look bigger. The kitchen width for example at 3m with a row of cabinets along the right hand side means its wide enough for 2 double cabinets, or 4 single cabinets. The utility run of cabinets would be wide enough for a washer, dryer, and one single 60cm base unit with a little bit of extra room. You wouldn't have enough room for a separate washer and dryer and a double sink as they have shown.

A normal bed is 2m long so in Bedroom 4, it would just about fit down the shorter wall but with no space at the head or foot. That should give you an idea.

Definitely no way the utility would fit a separate washer and dryer? That's an issue for us, we'll have to see about switching to a single sink. Thanks - things like that are my exact worry and I can't wrap my head around figuring it out!

You can stack washers and dryers in a utility room if needed

Ps. I think the room sizes downstairs are fine. Upstairs would be an issue for me. The master bedroom is very small IMO - about 10x11foot? That’s small considering there’s no built in storage. What’s annoying is that bedrooms 2 and 3 are almost the same size which is unnecessary in a family house as the children can have smaller rooms but you an DH effectively are sharing so need more space! I think you will struggle with wardrobes especially if you want drawers as well and your bed will end up having to go against a wall so that only one of you can get out easily. You could use the 4th bedroom as a dressing room though if you don’t need an office.

Eh? There’s plenty of room for a separate washer and dryer, and a large sink with worktop to spare - just stack the washer and dryer! Personally I think you need a 1.5/double sink in either the kitchen or the utility, but not both. Standard base unit is 600mm, and appliances are a similar width - so at 2.1m you’ve got a metre and a half to play with if you stack them.

The upstairs space would be much more usable and efficient as a 3 bed and it would be a really nice size but in new builds they always try to cram in as many rooms as possible, it annoys me. Also there is no built in storage in this house which would be an issue for me too, with the exception of one airing cupboard. I’d look elsewhere to be honest but as I said I’m not a new build person at all.

The utility will fit a separate washer and dryer and a single sink, just not a double sink.
But you could maybe make it a bit of an L shape, depending on door openings.
The bedrooms, picture a double bed 1.5 m with bedside tables 30/40 cm
Bathrooms quite standard. Standard bath 1.7m
Shower tray for en-suite, square 1m is fine

We need a 4 bed really, this is why we're getting a new build as we need to use help to buy to afford that! We've found a good developer so I'm not worried about the build quality, I just want to be realistic about the sizing.

Draw it out on a piece of paper. Room size, where the door is, you can easily make 5cm on the paper equal to 1m in reality (1cm=20cm). Then draw on a bed, wardrobe etc to see how everything fits in the room. The main thing to consider is the depth of the walls to either side of the windows so that bed headboards don't overlap the window and there is space for the curtains when they are open if you are having curtains.

I think your Mum is rude calling your utility small and you can stack the tumble dryer on top of the washing machine.

That en-suite is narrow but functional, only 1m wide. My downstairs WC is 80cm wide as it is under the stairs to give you a comparison for size. I have had an en-suite like that in a previous house.

Also have a look to see if the builder has another site that is near finished or has other show homes to view as they tend to have the same "Waltham" or "Exeter" style houses on another plot. Take note of the show room and measurements for that in terms of kitchen size etc.

The upstairs is almost identical to our house.
Downstairs has a different layout, and our livingroom has the top cut off as it is a study.
I'd say the livingroom will feel thin because of the extra length, but will be fine (we have a 3 seater sofa, a 2 seater, TV, coffee table and bookcase).
We have no sink in the utility, but do have a washer, cupboard for drier, and a large cupboard along the bottom. Boiler plus 3 cupboards on the top.
Our bed4 is slightly smaller- DS has a cabin bed plus a wardrobe. Not much space left. Our master is slightly bigger - king double plus a chair and 2 bedside table across one wall. Fitted wardrobes down one wall.
4 of us (plus a cat) are looking at moving when DS2 has started at secondary next year - with me and DH here all day everyday, plus all DHs work stuff (think 4 computer screens with a PC, plus a laptop), a drum kit and several guitars, we would like (and can afford) more space.

It depends if the utility sink is in a 1200 cabinet you can get a double sink in a 1000 or even a 800 with some kitchen makes which allows for a space for the dryer and a washer at either end even without stacking (I'm doing a kitchen at the moment with a double sink in an 800 cabinet for a client)
I would double check with the developer as it's a key issue for you.
Space is very subjective what may be big enough for you may be far to small for another. If you are having trouble picturing it, as others have said, I would recommend trying to view show houses even on other estates that have a similar size.
Small rooms can be fine if they work well with light and storage but can be awful if poorly laid out or dark.

Why do you need a 4 bed, what do you need to do with the 4th bedroom? If you need an office then it’s worth considering 3 beds that have an extra reception room or a office in the garden etc.
Again I would really think about the master bedroom, measure it all out with furniture to see how it would fit.

Sorry OP, yes, if you stack the washer and dryer, I was just talking about side by side - should have been a bit clearer! I just meant as hopefully others have made clearer, 2 x 60cm for appliances side by side - absolutely where you can't have a sink above - only leaves you with a maximum of 95cm (potentially less depending on how those outside walls/corners affect the internal length) for what the plan shows for a double sink.

Ideally want kids having a room each and a spare room. Neither of us work from home but if that ever changed could rejig the spare room. I'm not fussed on a huge master bedroom, I don't spend much time in my room but would ideally want room for our king size bed, wall mounted tele, dressing table and a wardrobe. I'll have another go with a tape measure and see if I can plan it out. Happy to get built in wardrobes down the line but can't afford them at this stage.

Actually wondering if we'll even get a king size bed in there!