We have been discussing the different home styles that you might find when you are seeking your Allen Texas area home. We have talked about Ranch Style Homes and about Mediterranean to name a few, today we are going to wrap up this discussion with a few more of the most popular styles you may find as you search for your next home.
Bungalow - the name originates from India where it indicated a small, thatched home. In the United States what we call bungalows became popular during the 1880's in California, in-part as a reaction to the elaborate nature of the Victorian style. You may also see it called the Craftsman style. The structure and elements rely heavily on simple, elegant design. The style grew in popularity throughout the 20th centry.
Common Elements:
Wide front porches
Low-pitched roofs
Wood, stone, or brick exteriors
Open floor plan; all rooms laid around central living room
Built-ins throughout the house
One or one and a half stories
Rectangular building with low profile
Colonial - a distinct appearance with symmetry playing a big part of the design. The most common in the United States is the Georgian Colonial which characterized by its strict symmetry, box shape, paneled front door below a decorative crown with the most notable feature of 5 shuttered windows. This style began in Europe and was adapted in the Americas as people migrated here and wanted to build homes that reminded them of their homeland.
Common Elements:
Brick or wood exterior
Small front porch with white rectangular columns topped by a triangular gable or pediment leading up to the front door
Rectangular building
Symmetrical facade - same number of windows on either side of the front door
Two or more stories
Relatively steep roof pitch
Interior characteristics: living rooms on the first floor and bedrooms on upper floors
Modern or Contemporary - these homes often have a "futuristic" look to them, they embrace industrialism and put an emphasis on the use of efficient and affordable materials and highlight the importance of combining materials such as steel, glass, wood, stone, etc. to create a fluid space.
Common Elements:
Flat roofs
Horizontal and perpendicular lines
Large and numberous windows
Open living spaces - often you will find living, dining and kitchen open to each other.
The autumn colors and natures decorations are perfect tools for staging your home this time of year. There are so many easy ways to create a warm and inviting ambiance in your home and selling your Plano area home in the fall is a breeze! You want to create a scene where buyers can envision their families celebrating the holidays.
Let's start outside - curb appeal is so important, it is the first impression buyers get of your home.
Be sure to clean up the flower beds and rake the leaves often. Buyers should notice the colors of your leaves not the muddled mess they can create in your front yard.
Use pumpkins, gourds and fall flowers to decorate the front door and porch.
Don't carve the pumpkin as it will not last as long - or be prepared to change it out often
A fall leave or colored wreath on the front door
A friendly scarecrow to decorate the yard
Change the cushions to fall colors on your outdoor furniture
Create a firepit sitting area in the backyard
Inside there are so many possibilities, but remember that you want to be subtle and not over-powering.
Fill vases with red, orange and deep yellow flowers
Add vases of flowers to mantels, bedrooms and dining room
Add throws or pillows in fall colors to create cozy and warm scenes
Dried decorations, such as wheat or cornstalks to fill empty spaces
A cornucopia center-piece
A collection of mini-pumpkins and gourds
A Trick or Treat bag for your guests/buyers
Use fall scents - apple pie, fresh baked cookies, fresh baked bread, pumpkin pie, with candles or the actual baked items
In our last blog we discussed Victorian, Ranch and Spanish style homes and today we have a few other styles to share with you:
Tudor
Tudors are very distinct and based on English building traditions during the Tudor Era (1485 - 1603). Tudors are characterized by their asymmetrical exteriors with windows playing a large part in the design. Half-timbering on bay windows and upper floors and facades dominated by steep cross gables are a few of the distinctive features you notice most frequently. These homes generally have stone and stucco walls with wood accents/framing, and Tudor roofs are steep-pitched. Tudor homes are one of the most recognizable styles in the United States due to their specific architectural components.
Common Elements:
Steeply pitched roof, sometimes with mock thatch
Large rectangular chimney with an ornate, cylindrical pipe-or "chimney pot"-on top
Patterned brick or stone exterior, or plaster with half-timbers
Decorative exposed wood framing known as "half-timbered" construction
Asymmetrical façade
Entryways are often arched and outlined with decorative brick or stonework.
Windows placed in groups of two, three or four.
Tall or narrow windows, multi-paned, with panes sometimes arranged in a diamond pattern.
Front door of vertical wood planks
Cape Cod
Cape Cods were first built in the 1600s and took inspiration from Britain's thatched cottages. Cape Cods have steep roofs, dormer windows and large chimneys -- elements that helped the homes withstand harsh Northeastern winters. The Cape Cod style is most recognized for its dormer windows, which play a large part in the design of the home. . Many of the Cape Cod homes on the market today were built after World War II, when thousands of returning soldiers and their young families needed inexpensive housing. A 20th-century Cape Cod is square or rectangular with one or one-and-a-half stories and steeply pitched, gabled roofs.The siding is usually clapboard or brick.
Common Elements:
Large, central chimney. The large, central chimney is located directly behind the front door, with the rooms clustered around it in a rectangular shape.
Steep roof. Cape Cods have steep roofs to quickly shed rain and snow, and a shallow roof overhang.
Windows and dormers. Two windows on each side of the door, and often a dormer on each side of the chimney to open up the attic.
Captain's stairway. "The second floor, often kept for boarders or 'seafaring' men, was accessed by a narrow stair, or 'captain's stairway,' which has incredibly steep risers and shallow treads to minimize the use of the first-floor space," explains David Karam, an architect and builder from Brewster, Mass.
Shingle siding. Weathered gray shingles are one of the most recognizable elements of a classic Cape Cod, but newer homes are built of brick, stucco and stone.
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean style became very popular in the United States in 1918 to 1940. This style is modeled after the hacienda style, where red tile roofs, arches, and plaster surfaces play a large part in the exterior of the house. Mediterranean style homes have become popular again, but the style has adopted more design elements like porticoes, balconies, and ornamental details that include heavy wood doors, tiles in multiple colors or designs, and balconies with ornate iron railings and embellishments.
We will continue this theme in our next blog post, however in the meantime let us know which styles you like and why. We love hearing from you!
Many homebuyers know they want a home, and some know they like - or dislike - certain types of homes, there are features they really want or totally can't stand. As a realtor it is our job to help buyers sort through the wants and needs - many times some of the things buyers desire has to do with the style of the home. We have also learned that realizing the style they like or don't like is one of those things that doesn't always come with a description or name of the style. We are so often told, we want one floor living! And then later in the same conversation the buyer may say "I don't want a ranch!". This is when realize that knowing the names of the different styles of homes can be one of those "realtor lingo" situations. So we thought we explore and explain the different styles of homes.
Victorian
Victorian homes give off a certain air and possess a very stately feel. Victorians are more about beauty than functionality, with complex designs, ornate trim, and large wraparound porches. The Victorian exterior is seen as a medium for decoration. These homes generally have gables, bay windows, towers, overhangs and many are known as 'Painted Ladies.' The Victorian style also has sub styles, the most notable being Gothic Revival, Italianate, Second Empire, Queen Anne and the Romanesque style.
Ranch
Ranches are also known as 'Ramblers.' The ranch style home emerged in the 1930s and grew in popularity during the 1950s and 1960s, coinciding with the growing role of the automobile in American lifestyle. The style draws on elements of Spanish Colonial and Prairie and Craftsman homes, and is characterized by its one-story, pitched-roof construction, built-in garage, wood or brick exterior walls, sliding and picture windows, and sliding doors leading to patios.
Common Elements:
Exterior finished in stucco, wood, brick or some combination thereof
Low-pitched roof with medium to wide overhanging eaves
Side or rear glass doors which slide open to a porch or patio area
Attached garage
Spanish
Spanish style homes incorporate a fusion of design elements from European and Native American architecture. The Mission Revival style is the most popular, which has its roots in Spanish churches built by missionaries. Spanish style homes tend to have clay roof tiles, arcaded porches, arched corridors, bell towers, square pillars and quatrefoil windows (these windows resemble flowers).
Common Elements:
Stucco exterior finish (usually in earthy, cream, or pinkish tones)
Flat, red-tiled roof
Small, circular accent windows
Wide, square pillars on front facade
Arches over doors, large windows and porch
Square or polygonal towers
Interior Characteristics: Tile floors, arches, wrought iron light fixtures
We will continue this theme of different home styles in our next couple of blog articles, we hope you will follow along. We would love hear from you - which style do you like or don't like and why?
emphasis on the use of efficient and affordable materials and highlight the importance of combining materials such as steel, glass, wood, stone, etc. to create a fluid space. 
Let's start outside - curb appeal is so important, it is the first impression buyers get of your home. 
. Many of the Cape Cod homes on the market today were built after World War II, when thousands of returning soldiers and their young families needed inexpensive housing. A 20th-century Cape Cod is square or rectangular with one or one-and-a-half stories and steeply pitched, gabled roofs.The siding is usually clapboard or brick. 
