Is open-plan living right for you?

Open-plan living is often billed as the perfect floor plan, bringing family together in a single room where cooking, conversation and the screen share the same space. 

It has been a popular feature of a home for two decades and more. However, a small but noisy school of thought now suggests it’s time to revert to the old formula in which rooms have a specific purpose.

As an experienced agent, I have seen real estate fashions come and go and come again. Perhaps you’re seeking an open-plan layout for your dream home, or maybe thinking that smaller rooms are easier to maintain, and heat and cool.

If you’re searching for a home right now, I’ve pulled together a list of benefits and drawbacks to open-plan living. It might help you consider a broader range of properties if you’re aware of all the pros and cons of various designs and floor plans.

Open-plan benefits:  

• A living area where no boundaries lie between leisure and the kitchen will be a magnet for the entire family at least twice a day. Interaction is essential for a harmonious household – especially if you have teenagers – and open plan living helps you achieve this.

• Young families will benefit because it is far easier for mom or dad to keep an eye on young children. It also avoids the temptation to pack them off to their bedroom or playroom, where they won’t see you or talk to you.

• For anyone who loves entertaining, open-plan living is essential. You can slave over your stove while not being excluded from your guests or supervise homework while cooking the evening meal.

Open-plan drawbacks:

• It’s usually the highest maintenance area of the home. With so many activities going on, there’ll inevitably be a mess at the end of the day. For example, folks often use the island bench as a dumping ground for bags and keys. If you love a tidy home, you might find yourself continually cleaning.

• It’s a privacy killer. Without a sound barrier, it’s hard to read a book when the TV is on or there’s a conversation in the kitchen. When the phone rings, everyone else in the room is asked to keep quiet, or you’ll need to take the call elsewhere.

• Decorating an open-plan area can be tricky. Furniture needs to match and be of a similar size. The visual balance of an open plan area can be ruined if your couch is far larger than your dining table.