Everything You Need To Know about House Plans Over 5,000 Square Feet

Check Out These Large Homes!

 

Whether youre simply dreaming of your perfect mansion or you’re ready to build it, homes over 5,000 square feet give you plenty of space to do so.

One of the best parts about 5000 square foot house plans is that there is no typical layout or style for them. If you would like to build a custom home, you truly do have free range over every single artistic detail.

Sometimes homes in this size are modern and chic. Sometimes they come with a more tropical vibe. And finally, a classic cottage isn’t out of reach either.

Whatever you want – you can have it.

 

Top 6 Features of Homes over 5,000 Square Feet

Most homes that are at least 5,000 square feet have a few standard features. For other ideas, read this article to get ideas for rooms and/or features you might want to add to your wish list.

 

1.  Large Kitchens and Entertaining Spaces

The kitchen is the lifeblood of the home. So homes this size tend to have nice, large kitchens – sometimes even with more industrial appliances like six-or-more-burner commercial cooktops, multiple ovens, oversize refrigerators, and two dishwashers should the homeowner prefer these options.

They also have large, open kitchen breakfast nooks and formal dining rooms – so there is always plenty of space for everyone at the table – and family rooms, often with fireplaces, as part of a Great Room open floor plan.

 

2.  Multiple Master Suites

While most homes over 5,000 square feet follow the “split bedroom layout” plan (meaning that the master bedroom is separated from the other bedrooms by either an entire story or at least living space), they also tend to have more than one master suite.

However, this second master suite may be in a less ideal location of the home and is usually meant for making guests more comfortable with more amenities or hosting family members (like parents or in-laws) for longer periods of time.

 

3.  High and/or Vaulted Ceilings

It’s quite common for mansion and manor type homes to have ceilings at least 9 feet – and often 10, 12, or more feet – high. Higher ceilings make the interior seem more voluminous and complement the larger room scale that common in these homes.

Vaulted ceilings that may soar two stories or so are also often standard features. These ceilings may be in a Great Room (the most common place for a 2-story ceiling), a master suite, or even a kitchen or screened-in or covered porch.

 

4.  3-or-More-Car Garage

The 5000 sq ft house plans you’ll search usually have a garage that accommodates more than two cars. Why? Those in the market for a large luxury home may be able to afford more than two cars (his, hers, and one or two for fun?). Or the home may be intended to house a large, grown-up family in which multiple family members have cars and would like to shelter them. Or the owners may just want extra garage space to be able to have a workshop or convenient storage for bulky items other than cars.

 

5.  Outdoor Living Space

Large homes almost invariably have expansive or multiple outdoor living spaces like

•  covered porches

•  screened and/or sun rooms

•  patios

•  grilling decks

•  sun decks

These “outdoor rooms” may be fitted with outdoor furniture, area rugs, fire pits, and/or stone or brick fireplaces.

The skys the limit when entertaining guests on this covered patio space that wraps around the swimming pool of an exceptional Mediterranean style home (Plan #107-1073).

 

6.  Media and Game/Recreation Areas

It’s not unusual in 5000 sq ft house to find square footage dedicated to all types of recreation and pastimes, including

•  billiards/pool

•  in-home theater and other media

•  board games

•  card playing

•  sports on TV

•  video games of all descriptions

•  sports courts

•  even indoor swimming pools

Some of these areas may even include a built-in bar or wet bar as part of the ambiance.

 

What to Like

Having a home this large can be a real treat.

Here are the things that most homeowners tend to enjoy about building and living in homes that are at least 5,000 square feet:

 

Space for a Gowing – or Extended – Family

Photo by Alexander Dummer on Unsplash

 

The main reason that anyone would want to build a home this size (or larger!) is the rather obvious one – space! There is plenty of it in a 5000 square feet house.

Whether you have a large family, enjoy hosting others, or simply want more privacy in your day-to-day life, the larger your home, the more space you have available to use for whatever you would like.

Homes this size also do well on larger lots, ideally at least a few acres, which only adds to the allure of privacy that they offer.

 

Event Hosting

Photo by Aranxa Esteve on Unsplash

 

Another amazing perk of having a home over 5,000 sq ft is that you can host lots of events in your home. So, larger homes like this are perfect for those who enjoy entertaining.

Yes, family Thanksgiving and other holiday dinners are now a breeze, as you have plenty of cooking and entertaining spaces, as well as guest bedrooms. But it’s also important to consider other more corporate-like possibilities.

It’s possible to host the winter gala for your favorite charity, cutting down on the costs of renting a space, or even a family wedding, giving it a more intimate appeal.

Customization

Another perfect reason to choose to build a home that’s over 5,000 sq ft is the ability to customize a home that fits your needs perfectly.

With this much square footage to play with, you can really tweak things so that they are just right. This could mean adding two master suites (perhaps putting one upstairs as a “mother in law suite”), adding extensive dining space for a larger family, or large, walk-in pantries.

 

Amenities

When asked, this is usually a homeowner’s favorite part of building a larger home. Yes, you can customize a typical home’s standard features to suit your needs when building a 5,000 square foot home, but you can also start to add the “fun stuff.”

Whether that’s a massive library with beautiful built-ins, a movie theater or media room with reclining seats, an indoor swimming pool, or simply more guest rooms, you can have your pick of the things that matter to you when building this big.

 

What Not to Like

Of course, there are always cons as well.

Here are the main things that homeowners of houses 5,000 square feet of larger tend to not enjoy about their homes:

 

Maintenance

Maintenance is one of the main issues with a 500-square-foot house. This is because it’s nearly impossible to keep up with everything that needs to be done all alone.

It’s likely that with a house this big, the lawn needs to be kept up by a lawn crew and the interior maintained by a cleaning staff (at least part time) – and it’s also likely that there will be a hoard of other household support staff coming and going: au pairs, tutors, chefs, dog walkers, etc.

While those who can afford to build a home this size can often also budget for these expenses, it’s also important to keep in mind that in order to run a home like this effectively, it can sometimes take a small army.

In fact, once your square footage soars north of 5,000 square feet, some homeowners even find it necessary to hire a home manager to ensure everything remains safe and in shape.

 

Privacy

The very reason that so many people choose to build a large luxury home can become compromised by its size, however. This is because, as we’ve mentioned, a typical homeowner will need the help of at least a few other people to properly maintain his or her home.

So, it’s possible that you won’t ever get to truly feel like you have the home to yourself amidst all the buzz surrounding its daily upkeep.

 

Security

Homes that are larger than 5,000 square feet have more than just your typical front door and back door. There are multiple entrances to your home, and as we mentioned, a constant stream of people coming and going throughout the day.

This could raise security concerns, especially if you are not careful. Many homeowners choose to have not only an alarm system but also key cards or specific alarm codes for each household member so that the owners can keep track of who is where throughout the day.

 

Connectivity

Wi-Fi. It makes the world go around, and in a 5,000 square foot house, there might not be enough signal to go around.

All this means is that once you get north of 5,000 square feet, you might need to start thinking of your home as more of a small campus and less of a residential space.

Often, homes that are this size have multiple routers – or even more than one Wi-Fi system – to ensure that coverage is the fastest that it can be throughout the entire home. For privacy purposes, homes this size or larger may have separate Wi-Fi networks for staff and residents as well.

So that’s a lot of wiring and quite a few routers for just one home!

 

Resale Value

Another problem that homeowners with houses over 5,000 square feet might run into is the potential for a low resale value.

Yes, the size of the house and all of its features make it quite the catch and extremely desirable; however, one must understand that the market pool for such large houses is simply inherently smaller than a more average-size home.

In addition, these homes, especially if custom built, are often built with the specific needs of the homeowners in mind. So another buyer might not be able to truly come in and imagine themselves or their family living in the space – which is a key part of making a successful sale.

So, if you plan on building a large home, you might consider that this is your home for life. It may be a perfect fit for you and your family, but should you decide to sell it, you might have a harder time than you might think.

Footnote: The photos in the lead image are of a 9369-sq.-ft. Colonial style home with 6 bedrooms, 6 baths, and 2 half baths. For more information, click on Plan #120-2531.