This week we launched the first issue of Dream Savings, a monthly e-newsletter featuring the latest money savings coupons and rebates to help you save money on building or remodeling your new home. You don’t have to wait each month to learn about the latest savings, because we’ve added a new section to our website where you’ll find ALL the latest rebates, including kitchen appliances, garage doors, tax credits, house plan modifications and much more. We understand the challenges of building a new home in today’s economy and wanted to make it easy for you by finding the best savings and rebates on all home building products and services, particularly eco-friendly products offered by residential manufacturers dedicated to promoting sustainable products so you can live better and enjoy huge energy savings for the life of your home.

I’m always look forward to receiving my Dream Designs each week, because I have yet to find the best house design. I am of the mindset that with all the house plan companies online, there is no reason I should have to incur the added expense of hiring my own architect and worrying that the builder doesn’t run into lots of problems building this brand new, never-been-built house. I find it kind of funny that this week’s issue with a Halloween theme featured my dream home. The Siena was so unique looking that it immediately drew my attention. I knew I wanted a stone exterior with lots of different textures and earth tones, but this was such a treat with its cedar beams and accents, which give it a very warm, rustic appeal.

I love to cook and this kitchen design has everything I could ever ask for, including a gorgeous kitchen island and large walk-in pantry to store all by cooking supplies – and let me say I like to be very well stocked when it comes to food. The dining room was large enough for me to host holiday dinners. My current house doesn’t have a dining room so I actually have to rent a table for my kitchen area to fit the whole family.

It was so nice to actually be able to see photographs of the interior of this home. I couldn’t call my husband fast enough to tell him I was ordering this house plan.

The rustic feel of this cook's kitchen has great appeal.

I finally found the perfect house plan on your website, plan 6881. There were lots of things I was looking for in my new home, but a really awesome laundry room was at the top of my list as strange as that may sound. In our first home the laundry room was in the basement and a complete pain to get to. In our second home, the laundry was on the main floor but in a little closet off the kitchen with no storage room. I was looking for a really cool laundry room, just not a space, but a place where I could iron and store items. I’m sick of losing socks and feeling like the maid. We’re breaking ground before the snow comes, and by the beginning of next summer we should be all moved in. I’ll send you pictures of my decked out laundry room when it’s finished!

Great two-story with flexible living spaces.

There are plenty of amenities in this floor plan, including a large laundry room.

I was delighted to see your article “What Women Want in Home Designs.” We will soon be calling on an architect to help us plan our home and the ideas you mentioned in the article agree with what I’ve been telling my husband. In addition to those mentioned, we will also have drawers in the kitchen as opposed to lower cabinets. They’re much easier to get to the back without having to stand on one’s head! In Texas we must store things in the house because the heat in the attic or garage breaks down plastics, papers and other materials. The house we build will have a large utility room with a lot of storage as well as washer and dryer, utility sink and long counter for crafts, sorting recyclables and folding clothes.

I hadn’t thought about the space to set groceries near the pantry, but I know the driveway or garage where I unload my car will be closer to the kitchen than it is now!

Thanks again for your articles and inspiring collection of house plans.

Designing a small bathroom in a small house plan can be tricky, but I found lots of ideas in this great article.

I only have eight foot ceilings, but I ordered a mirror that goes from the sink all the way to the ceiling and painted vertical wide four inch stripes on the walls in off white and light tan and my small bathroom looks amazing. Thanks House Designers for helping make my small space look great and with a minimum budget.

I recommend checking out their Product Ideas section for great articles on everything related to building your new home.

You have started a very interesting discussion on kitchen design. I’m a cabinetmaker who really does not want to make kitchens for a living, because the most of what is done in the US is just boxes with a “choice of doors and drawer fronts,” the most of which are made in a factory somewhere. Boring. I want to do something else if I can, but what?

European design just absolutely blows my mind, and I find myself reading quite a bit on it, even though these are often modular kitchens that one would simply send away for and have installed by a local craftsman. But what fascinates me is the utter innovation of those designs, so I find myself returning to them quite a bit.

I am also looking to design a kitchen for my wife in a too small space in a tract home, which necessarily lets out those wonderful European designs that excite me so. And whenever I find myself going out on a limb with some idea or another for our kitchen, my wife always grounds me by saying, “If you stick with the classics, you won’t grow tired of them.”

So, what do you do that is different and yet timeless and practical and stimulating to make if you’re a cabinetmaker? Damned if I know, but if I ever figure it out, I mean to make it for us and splash that baby all over the Internet!

What you’ve written, though, has given me quite a bit to think about, and I thank you for sharing your concepts.

You'll find great cabinetry used throughout this design.

I have been searching for over a year for a flexible home plan that had around 2,000 square feet, but included a bonus room in the design so that I could add on to my new home down the road without having to pay extra to have my blueprints modified. I’m going to be married in the spring and we didn’t want to build a “starter” home – we wanted something we could grow into so we can have room for children and probably a home office. I receive many newsletters from house plan companies and I must say that Dream Designs from The House Designers is one of my favorites.

This week focused on flexible living spaces and I can’t tell you how happy I was when I clicked on the DeStio House Plan. It was a little bigger than we had been looking for – 2,253 square feet – but after speaking with our builder and visiting our lot again we were assured that this home would fit perfectly. All of the rooms are spacious and flexible so we can change the interior as often as we like. One of the best parts about this plan is that it comes with a bonus room above the two-car garage that is 247 square feet and an option for a three-car garage.

I must say, outside of purchasing my wedding gown this is the best purchase I’ve made all year.

This two-story house plan offers a bonus room and flexible living spaces.

My recent issue of Home Ideas was all about great home lighting designs and big savings from LAMPS PLUS®. Particularly interesting was the article on Lighting Up Your Home, which helped me decide what kind of lighting to use in each room based on my budget, usage and style. I didn’t realize that the lighting in my house plan wasn’t very specific about the type of fixtures and technology my builder should use.

I also wasn’t planning on adding a lot of ceiling fans until I read the design tip. Now I plan on talking to my builder and designer to make sure that they include one in every room, so I can benefit from cooling my house in the summer and circulating warm air in the winter to save money on my energy bills. LAMPS PLUS® has many great coupons and savings that they offer online and in their stores, as well as a $20 off $100 for all new homeowners.

This house plan features plenty of recessed lighting to control ambience and save energy.

I have been building homes for over 27 years and am always looking for ways to save money on high-quality, energy efficient products. This week I received an email from The House Designers about the LAMPS PLUS® Professional trade program, which is a free online trade pricing program for home lighting products. In addition to the great discounts on over 1,000 of name brand items, they offer free, on-site delivery and access to their design lighting experts. I know I’m guilty of not specifying engineering requirements, products or technology in my electrical house plan when I begin construction on a new home. It would certainly expedite the home building process to have one of their lighting professionals provide lighting design and engineering to my projects. From one trade professional to another, I highly recommend checking out this trade program from LAMPS PLUS® and joining The House Designers Preferred Builder Program.

I was looking for a unique mountain house plan so I could finally start building on my Vermont property and came across the Candlewood. It had everything I was looking for and more. I definitely wanted a 2 bedroom house and couldn’t believe this floor plan, which had 3 bedrooms and 3 baths…AND a private master suite on the top floor. My husband and I were so excited to know that we would enjoy our privacy while entertaining family and friends. Other great features to this home are the two-story great room and wrap-a-round deck. And did I mention the master suite has a balcony. When I called to order this plan, I was told that it was an exclusive design to THD and that I would be receiving a $50 discount off the house plan. Thanks THD!!! I’ll send photos when it’s finished.

This spacious two-story is the perfect mountain getaway.

Every week I look forward to getting my Home Ideas e-newsletter from The House Designers, because it always features two or three great articles about home building. I’m amazed how each week they come up with new and exciting topics about building a new home. The construction of my new home is almost complete and with winter around the corner it was great to read “Tips for Proper Weatherization.”, and learn how to rate my home’s energy performance and how to insulate your home. Whether you’re building a new home, planning on remodeling or simply enjoy learning about the latest trends and tips in home building you’ll want to sign up for this free e-newsletter. It also comes with some great editor picks for house plans.

The master suite is your own private retreat so you’ll want to pay close attention to the details that make up its floor plan so it fits your needs and lifestyle, after all you spend a third of your life in your bedroom and no room in your home is more personal.

Many of our master suites feature sitting area, large master baths with spa tubs, private showers and dual sink, walk-in closets, large windows and private access to the outdoors. Keep in mind, if you find a house plan that you really like but want to add some amenities to the master suite, our designers offer free modification quotes on all their house plans. Gone are the days when a master bedroom was designed simply for sleeping – it’s all about pampering and a place to enjoy some private time. Check out this week’s issue of Dream Designs featuring our best-selling master suite house plans.

Affordable floor plan that has it all, including four oversized bedrooms.

If you’re in the market to build a new home in a rural area of the United States, you may be surprised to know that the federal government has made available a very attractive mortgage loan program which allows qualified homebuyers to obtain loans to build their new homes with minimal closing costs and no down payment.

In case you are unfamiliar with the FHA Rural Development housing project, Rural Housing Service (RHS) was created in 1994 as a result of the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act to meet housing and community development needs of rural America.

More rural families and individuals may be able to become homeowners with the help of the Rural Housing Service Programs. The USDA Rural Housing Service has various programs available to aid low to moderate income rural residents to purchase, construct, repair, or relocate a dwelling and related facilities.

This federal program has become extremely popular over the last few years and is only increasing in prevalence…especially in the Southeastern United States where the vast majority of stock plans are sold.

If you’re looking to build a new home, one of the most critical requirements is to have your house plans certified by a Certified Professional Building Designer (CPBD) who specializes in affordable residential designs.

There are only a few home designers in the United States who are FHA approved and have the required design background and professional certifications to offer this review and approval service. The House Designers offers this service for all of its house plans.

This Rural Development home loan program provides an extremely valuable service to all of us, and if eligible, it would be an excellent idea to take a look into the program further when you begin looking for your house plans.

For additional information on this loan program, visit USDA.

Builders may not be putting up as many houses this year, but what they are building – they’re building better. This is due to better and more eco-friendly building products and practices, as well as working from better and more detailed home plans to satisfy consumers request for smaller more efficient homes. You’d be amazed how many amenities architects and designers can pack into a tiny house plan.

I recently read an interesting article about the J.D. Power and Associates 2009 U.S. New Home Builder Customer Satisfaction Study, overall customer satisfaction with newly built, single-family homes is up 32 points to 811 on a 1,000 point scale from last year.

“Fierce competition among home builders has led to a market where only the strongest companies have survived,” said Paula Sonkin, vice president of the real estate and construction industries practice at J.D. Power and Associates. “This is great news for new home buyers – particularly first-time buyers – since builders are offering unprecedented high levels of quality, value and service at relatively low prices.”

And don’t forget that the $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit is set to expire on Nov. 30.

Great floor plan layout and plenty of amenities packed in this small house plan.

I’m a builder in North Carolina and I just bought a plan from your Tiny House Plan collection. Hard to believe I could get a two bedroom house with only 864 square feet. Thanks for adding this collection to your site and tell the architect of Plan-6645 that my wife and mother-in-law will stop bugging me about building a house for the in-law!

This delightful cottage packs lots of living into its modest 864 sq. ft.