Square footage of a home is very important to help determine if the size of the home will meet your needs. It is also used in when comparing one home plan against another and assessing a property for tax purposes. One way square footage is often used incorrectly is to estimate the cost of a home. The fallacy here is price per square foot does not take into consideration the actual design of the home which may include varied roof lines, numerous bump outs and offsets and open areas on the second floor. The open areas create dramatic volume space and while there is cost to build including drywall, paint and heat, the open area is not typically included in the square footage calculation.
At Fine Line Homes, we calculate square footage by using the outside dimensions less any open space on the second floor such as a foyer or above a family room for finished living area. Basement, garages and porches would be in addition to the living area calculation. Square footage is listed on each of our plans and can be viewed on the home plans page of our website.