Home Design Software
Planning your dream home is a snap
You've come to the realization that the only way to get your dream home is to build it yourself. But how do you get that fantasy out of your head and into reality? Whether you're renovating one room or planning an entire house, house design software makes it easy.
A good home design program will help you with your project from start to finish. Begin by drawing your floor plan, and then continue customizing, from staircases to roof pitch to window placement.
The software often includes plumbing, electrical and HVAC planning tools, so you can be sure your house is properly serviced. Select the perfect fireplace for your living room, and experiment with tub styles for your bathroom. Kitchen design software allows you to customize your cabinetry. Finally, you can play with décor and furniture arrangement before committing yourself to the design.
If you have DIY building know-how, you can then follow these plans yourself. If you decide to hire a contractor, the plans created by home design software will communicate your desires clearly. This is a classic example of a picture being worth a thousand words, and it may save you money and headaches, besides.
Features and Benefits
- No need for an architecture degree: Easy-to-use graphical interfaces allow you to lay out your designs, and the computer draws out the plans for you.
- Design templates: The software provides many floor plans you can use as-is or tweak to your taste, or you can draw your own plan from scratch.
- Multiple viewing options: A good software package will show you your plans in 2D or 3D, night time or day time, and will offer cutaway views and virtual walkthroughs as well as traditional blueprints.
- Material estimates: Based on your plans, the program can estimate how much tile, paint, pipe or lumber you will need for a project.
Top Choices
These suggestions are ordered from most to least expensive. Your choice will depend on how ambitious a designer you are and how many features you need.
- Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer
- Punch Professional Home Design Suite
- Instant Architect
- Your Custom Home
Major Considerations
- How much design experience and knowledge do I have?
- How big is the project I am planning?
- Do I need tutorials to help me use the software?
- Do I want just home improvement software, or landscaping and interior design software as well?
- What file format does my architect or building contractor require?
Price Range
There is a wide variety of home design software packages available, ranging in price from as low as $20 to as high as $100. Offerings at the lower end may be more "idiot-proof," but at the expense of flexibility and advanced features. The bigger packages allow more creativity and often have extras like landscape design software or deck design software thrown in.
Summary
Planning a building or renovation project can be fun and easy with the right software. Now it's possible to design your home exactly to suit your tastes, limited only by your imagination and the local building code.
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