Ladies & Gents, am looking at different house plans, from small ones 160sqm to the highs of 400sqm. What is the ideal size of a mansion, forget about the budget for now, that can accomodate a family of 6 by the time I hit the big 4? Any pros and cons of owning a big house, like 400 sqm?
400 square meters is overkill in this Kenya of ours. I can only assume that half of that is for parking your fleet of luxury cars, because anything over 200 square metres is dead space. Here’s my take though.
Pros
- More space for the whole extended family
- Privacy for each and everyone
- Specialization of rooms, multiple use rooms will be a thing of the past.
- Hosting parties will be awesome, socialization will be great
- Enough room for a covered garage, ndio magari yako yasichomwe na jua yapate kihara
- Enough room for kids to play hockey, ride scooters, slide in socks indoors
- Weird smells will be a thing of the past
Cons
- Buying enough furniture for all those rooms is expensive.
- Doing fixtures in all those rooms is even more expensive. More toilets, more problems.
- Your kids won’t bond as well as those in shared rooms, assuming each will have their own space.
- Your house will be the landing pad for relatives and friends, who will relay the ongoings of your home to the village
- Your house will be a parachute for those who have fallen on hard times, so you will have a refugee camp
- You might even have people living in your house that you don’t know
- Unless you are in a gated community with tight security, you will be a big target for thieves
- Hope you’re also right with taxes.
- You will need a full staff to manage the house. A staff manager (butler), a cleaner, a gardener and a cook
Good points, am torn between going all out once for all (make it a retirement home), in my mid 30s, or building a livable house for now with the target of building another in my 40s as a retirement home.
Functional design ensures that your usability and utility are met…
It should be Aesthetically pleasing and Structurally sound…
Giving you satisfaction.
Overkill (400m^2) or underkill (200m^2) will lead to regrets somewhere down the line…
Especially when the brood has left the nest and you’re alone with the Madam, and you’re using one room for sleeping, cooking, entertainment and resting…
The size of the land of a retirement home is more important than a big house.
Build an aesthetically appealing (on the inside!) 3 bedroom house with quality fittings and finish on an acre or more.
Keep the exterior deceivingly simple and a premium yet not overdone (Naija style) interior.
On the big lot size you can do evening walks, yoga or read the newspaper under a mango tree dressed in a sweater and a jacket in the sunset while watching your grandchildren play.
Big land not big house.