When I Buy a House Plan, What Will The Blueprint Package Include?

These plans show the layout of each floor of the house. Rooms and interior spaces are carefully dimensioned, doors and windows located, and keys are given for cross-section details provided elsewhere in the plans. You can make changes to any house plan, as described in our Modification Guide.

In addition to the front exterior, your blueprint set will include 4 elevation drawings of your house--front, rear, left side and right side. These drawings give notes on exterior materials and finishes. Particular attention is given to cornice detail, brick and stone accents, or other finish items that make your home unique. Sometimes a house plan set will include drawings that show choices in siding treatments, or two very similar plans will have different façade treatments, as in brick-faced House Plan 56-149 and stone-faced House Plan 56-687.

This artist's sketch of the exterior of the house gives you an idea of how the house will look when built and landscaped. Check out House Plan 120-187 to see another example of a strong, photorealistic residential front perspective.

This sheet shows the foundation layout including concrete walls, footings, pads, posts, beams, bearing walls, and foundation notes. If the home features a basement, the first-floor framing details may also be included on this plan. If your plan features slab construction rather than a basement, the plan shows footings and details for a monolithic slab. This page, or another in the house plan set, may include a sample plot plan for locating your house on a building site. Additional sheets focus on foundation cross-sections and other details. To browse a collection of Walkout Basement.

Large-scale views show sections or cutaways of the foundation, interior walls, exterior walls, floors, stairways, and roof details. Additional cross-sections may show important changes in floor, ceiling, or roof heights, or the relationship of one level to another. Among the most detailed house plans, the sections show exactly how the various parts of the house fit together and are very valuable during construction. Additional sheets in a house plan set may include enlarged wall, floor and roof construction details.

The floor framing plans provide detail for these crucial elements of your home. Each of these detailed house plans includes floor joist, ceiling joist, spacing, direction, span, and specifications. Beam and window headers, along with necessary details for framing connections, stairways, or dormers are also included.

The electrical plan offers suggested locations with notes for all lighting, outlets, switches, and circuits. A layout is provided for each level, as well as basements, garages, or other structures. This plan does not contain diagrams detailing how all wiring should be run, or how circuits should be engineered. These details should be designed by your electrician.

Some plans contain roof framing plans; however because of the wide variation in local requirements, many plans do not. If you buy a plan without a roof framing plan, you will need an engineer familiar with local building codes to create a plan to build your roof. Even if your plan does contain a roof framing plan, we recommend that a local engineer review the plan to verify that it will meet local codes.