Many people dream of building a home in the country, perhaps after they retire and are no longer tied to a place of work.  Whether looking for a quieter, simpler lifestyle or wanting to move to a location with a lower cost of living, anyone contemplating such a move should be aware of some differences between living in the country and living in a city or suburb.  Here are some things to think about if you are considering building a home in a rural area.

LIFESTYLE
Many rural townships require a minimum lot size in order to maintain the rural character of the area by preventing the development of farmland into subdivisions.  A common minimum lot size is 40 acres, and many townships allow only one home on a property, with the exception of additional homes that will be used by family members who are helping to farm the land.  There may be a requirement that part of your land by preserved as farmland.

If you are building in an area with farms, think about how you will feel about normal farming activities that may occur on your neighbors' property.  During the spring, summer and fall, farmers may start planting or harvesting early in the morning or continue late into the night, in order to beat the weather.  In addition to noise, there may be smells associated with farms, particularly those that raise livestock. 

Many rural citizens like to hunt or allow other people to hunt on their land.  How do you feel about hearing gunshots from your home?  Rural land (and roads) may be used by snowmobilers in the winter and by owners of 4 wheelers the rest of the year.


BUILDING COSTS
Depending on how close to the road you build your home, you may need a much longer driveway than you would require in the city or suburbs, which can add tens of thousands of dollars to the cost of building your home.  Someone will have to plow the driveway as well, meaning you may need to purchase a plow attachment for your pickup truck or hire someone to plow for you.  

Most rural sites need to have a septic system and well, since they are not hooked up to a city's sanitary sewer and water supply.  Electricity may need to be brought from quite a distance to get to your home, depending on where on your property you plan to build.  These things generally add tens of thousands of dollars to the cost of construction.

There will likely be fewer general contractors to choose from to build your home, especially if you are far from a city.  Materials may need to be brought from a longer distance, increasing delivery costs, especially for unusual materials or products.  If you're building on a challenging site or in a hard-to-reach spot, that could increase costs for labor and equipment.


COMMUNICATION AND TRAVEL
Unfortunately there are still many rural places in the United States that do not have good wifi or cellular coverage (or the wifi may be very expensive).  This may be of particular concern if you are planning to work from your home and need to be able to reliably communicate with others.

Running to the grocery store to pick up a few things may require a long drive there and back.  If you have children, they may have a long bus ride to get to school, or you may choose to drive them to school and pick them up at the end of the day.  


VACATION HOME
If you're building a vacation home in the country, you may want to consider a security system that will alert you of intruders or burst plumbing pipes.  Some people hire a caretaker to check on their property regularly and take care of any problems.  If you won't be living in the home over the winter, you will need to either drain the water in your house, or keep the heat turned up high enough that the pipes won't freeze.
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LIVING NEAR THE WATER
Lakes, rivers and wetlands can be beautiful features on a site, but they also come with restrictions determining how close you can build, both to protect your home from flooding and to protect the water quality, habitat and scenic beauty of the area.  In Wisconsin, buildings are generally not allowed within 75 feet of the water.  Sites that are downriver from a dam may have a "dam shadow" that they cannot build within.  This is an area that is expected to become flooded if the dam breaks or is opened.    

In addition, water may affect where you can place your septic system and well.  High groundwater may determine whether or not you can build a basement under your home.  In order to limit runoff from your site into a lake, there will likely be a limit to the amount of "impervious surface", such as buildings, patios or driveways, that you're allowed to build on your lot.  Your county zoning office will be able to tell you whether a property is located within a "shoreland/wetland" or "floodplain" district.


Owning a house in the country can be incredibly enjoyable, but it's important to know the tradeoffs before buying land and starting the process of building.

It's been a while since I've posted to my blog.  It's been a very busy spring and summer, and I only had the chance to photograph one of my completed projects.  The home was designed as a second residence for a couple living in Waukesha, who own property in a beautiful valley between Soldiers Grove and Gays Mills in Crawford County, Wisconsin.  It was important to my clients to have outdoor spaces where they could enjoy their beautiful property, and so there is a large deck and a screen porch on the main level.  Also on the main level are the great room and master bedroom suite.

The walkout basement contains utilities, a guest bedroom, office, exercise room and additional bathroom.  Unfortunately my photos don't do it justice.

Not long after the house was finished, my clients decided to sell their Waukesha home and make this their full time residence.

The general contractor for the home was Kickapoo Homes, Inc. of Viroqua.

This current project in Madison, Wisconsin, involves a huge transformation in the way a house connects to and makes use of its back yard.  The existing home, built in 1956, is a ranch with a walkout basement.  The homeowners requested a small deck off of the dining room on the main level, and a three-season room on the walkout basement level, so that they could make better use of their backyard and have more room for outdoor entertaining.  

The home currently has a very poor connection between the main living spaces and the back yard.  The addition, as envisioned, will not only provide a private outdoor sitting area adjacent to the dining room but also connect the two levels on the outside with a stair.  The upper level deck is nestled into the roof of the three-season room, giving it a sense of privacy and shelter.  The three-season room on the lower level includes an indoor/outdoor fireplace and and a large patio.  

In addition, all of the windows in the existing house will be replaced, and the materials and color palette will be updated. 

I'm currently working on this remodel of an existing ranch-style home near Madison.  The three additions - a family room and a laundry room on the back side of the house, and the addition of a second story containing three bedrooms and a bathroom - will almost double the floor space and completely transform the exterior appearance of the house.

The laundry room sits directly behind the existing garage and serves as a mud room as well as a laundry.  The family room will have a vaulted ceiling, a large sliding door facing south toward the new patio, and a gas fireplace as a focal point at the east end.

The second story addition will be located above the existing kitchen, dining room and living room, and will contain three bedrooms plus a full bath.

I'm illustrating three alternatives for the new second story roof.  The first has a relatively low pitched gable facing the street, and reflects the mid-century vibe of the existing neighborhood.

The second has a steeper-pitched roof running parallel to the length of the house and gives it a more traditional appearance.

The third has a steep roof with shed dormers on the front and back to create head room for the bedrooms and bathroom.

All three versions make a dramatic change to the look of the house.

Before even beginning design of a new project, it's important to know what the legal limitations of your site are.

• What zoning district is your property located in?
• What are the required setbacks for your zoning district?  Height limitations?
• How many accessory structures (such as sheds or detached garages) are you allowed, and what are their location and size limitations?
• Are you allowed to have more than one dwelling unit (house) on your property?
• Is your site property on the lakefront or contain another navigable body of water?  If so, you will need to build at least 75 feet from the ordinary high water mark (in Wisconsin).  Lakefront property can be tricky because it is also limited in how much of the property can be covered by "impervious surfaces" such as paving or decks.
• Is your property located within a flood plain?
• What type of road is your property adjacent to / accessed from? Required setbacks from state and federal highways are greater than required setbacks from county highways, which are greater than required setbacks from local roads.

Here are some examples of important site information that was uncovered during zoning research for my projects:

• Clients planned to build a second residence on their lot.  Zoning research revealed that their property was limited to one dwelling, and they would have to subdivide their property in order to build a second building.
• Clients planned to turn their walkout basement into a separate rental unit.  It was found that the zoning ordinance allowed them to take in boarders (who would share their living space) but not to have a separate rental unit.  
• The Owner wanted to build a duplex on their lot, but the zoning ordinance only allowed single family homes as a permitted use.  They were able to get a duplex approved as a conditional use.
• The property was located in a large-lot subdivision, near the intersection of two streets.  For safety and visibility, the driveway needed to be located a certain distance from the intersecting road, which impacted the approach to the house and therefore the layout.
• A previous owner had built an addition that was partially in the required setback.  The lot was therefore nonconforming and the owner would need a variance in order to make any changes to the exterior of the house.  I was informed that it was unlikely that the variance would be granted, and the current owners decided not to pursue changes to the existing house.
• A vacation home located on the shore of Lake Wisconsin had a small narrow lot, and the existing house and deck covered the maximum allowable amount of impermeable surface area.  Any remodeling to the exterior, including adding a deck, patio, sidewalk or driveway, could not increase the amount of impermeable surface.
• Research uncovered that the site was affected by the "hydraulic shadow" of a dam which was located miles away from the property.  Any addition built within the hydraulic shadow would need to be at a high enough elevation that it would not get flooded if the dam should fail.
• In the process of zoning research, I discovered that a property sale had not been properly processed, and my clients were not legally the owner of the property, even though the deed said that they were.  I recommended that they contact their attorney to correct the situation.

It's good to know what types of structures and how many are allowed on your site, preferably before you even buy the property.
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If any new construction (new home or addition) will take place close to any of your property lines, it would be a good idea to have a survey of your property done.  It sometimes happens that property lines are not located where owners think that they are, and it's better to find this out early in the design process.

Your municipality (city, village, or town) can be very helpful in providing information about your property.  It's good to contact them early when you are considering a building project.  If your property is in a village or township, the county zoning office may be the first one you should contact.

I was very pleased when the new owners of "Black Earth Studio", a country residence that I designed in 2011, asked me to design an addition to the home.  The original building was designed for use as a second home by my original clients, but the new owners planned to use it as their full-time residence and wanted to expand it.  

The addition adds two bedrooms, a second bathroom and a laundry room.  Set further back in the hill, the addition steps up one level, creating a third story.  

Following the lead of the original design, the straight stair to the new third level is stretched along the north side of the addition, leaving the sunny south side free for the bedrooms and new bathroom.  The new laundry room is back-to-back with the existing bathroom, with the new bathroom above it, consolidating the plumbing in one area.

​It worked nicely to stack the south-facing windows one atop the other, creating a pleasing south facade.

The addition is currently under construction by JG Development of Blue Mounds, who also built the original home.

Sometimes clients plan to remodel or build their home in phases, so that they can pay for the work in smaller increments as they're able to save for it.  The smart thing to do, if you know that you're going this route, is to have a master plan that shows all of the work that will be done.  By looking ahead to future work, you can make sure that the changes you're making now won't throw off your plans for the future.  It can also help you see the best "packages" of work.  

I recommend starting with a schematic design of all the changes you're planning.  Then consider how many phases to divide the entire project into.  Ideally the work can be broken up so that you're not having to un-do work that was previously done.

Once the phases have been determined, you can move ahead with construction drawings for the first phase.  The construction drawings are the more detailed drawings that will be used to get your building permit and that the contractors will use to construct the project.  

You could have construction drawings done for all of the remaining phases of the project right away, but I think that it usually makes sense to wait until you're closer to the time when those additional phases will be constructed.  You may find that your thoughts about what you need change over time or as you live with the results of the first phase of work.  Additionally, the building codes change over time, and construction drawings done now may need to be changed down the road to reflect the code in effect at the time of construction.

Here is a recent project that is currently under construction.  This vacation home sits on the south side of Lake Wisconsin near Lodi, and was purchased last spring by a family from the Madison area.  The home had some quirky features - such as cedar roof shingles and rock walls used in the living room, and second-floor decks on the front and back that continued as narrow overhangs on the sides of the house. 

The first floor was divided from front to back by a central bearing wall which created a long and narrow living room.  The kitchen had little connection to the living room, and the space opposite the kitchen was poorly utilized as a dining area, with a lot of wasted space.

The new owners chose to move the kitchen to the north (lake) side of the house, where it would be adjacent to the living area, and a dining area was incorporated into the new kitchen.  The shape of the new great room has nicer proportions and gives the public spaces of the house better views of the lake.  

The master bedroom moved to the south (street) side of the house and gained a walk-through closet and private bathroom.  The space previously utilized for the dining table and basement stair became a laundry room and 1/2 bath.  

On the second level, the three bedrooms were re-configured and expanded to include part of the lake-facing balcony.

The existing low-slope roofs were replaced with steeper ones to give the home a less squat appearance, transforming the exterior look of the house.

So you're going to build a new home - how exciting!  Before you get to work planning that new home, it's important to consider your site and how it will affect the design of the home.  Below are eleven questions to ask yourself as you consider the design of your home and how it will fit on your property.  

These questions apply whether you've already purchased a lot or are just starting to look at properties.  If you already have a property, then these questions should help to determine the location of the home on the site and its layout.  If you're looking for property to buy, use these questions as you evaluate whether a given piece of land would suit your needs, particularly if you already have a floor plan that you would like to use.  

• Where is the sun - in summer and winter? This is especially important if you plan to build a passive solar home or use roof-mounted solar panels but also affects how much sun - good or bad - you'll get in the house throughout the day.
• Which direction do the winter winds come from? The summer breezes?  
• Where are the views you want to enjoy and those you want to exclude? 
• Are your neighbors’ homes visible? 
• What other buildings or features do you plan to build on your site? 
• Which parts of the site are most/least noisy? 
• Are there any features of the site, such as vegetation or rock outcroppings, that you want to preserve?
• How will you access the building site from the road, and what will you see as you drive along your driveway?  
• Are there areas of the site that tend to be wet or carry surface drainage, or that should be avoided for other reasons?  
• Is your site flat or sloping?  If sloping, is it a gentle or steep slope?  A flat site is ideal for slab on grade construction or an unexposed basement, or if you want a home that spreads out horizontally.  A moderately sloping site works well with a walkout basement.  A steeply sloping site works well with multiple levels and calls for a more vertical arrangement of levels and spaces (although keep in mind that there can be additional expenses related to site work that come with a steep site).  
• Does the house size that you’re considering - including driveways, parking areas and outdoor living areas - fit well on your lot?

These questions and others are part of my Home Planning Guide, which is available for free download.

Here are photos from a home I designed for a recently retired couple who relocated from Omaha, Nebraska.  Their beautiful 80 acre site is situated in the Town of Moscow near Hollandale, Wisconsin.  

The living room, kitchen, sun room and master bedroom suite are located on the first floor, and the floor joists were recessed so that there are no steps from the garage or the entry porch into the house.  There is also an elevator which connects all three floors, in order to make it easier for the homeowners to "age in place."

The walkout basement is currently unfinished, but there are plans for additional bedrooms there in the future.

The second floor is dedicated to a hobby room, which has windows in all four directions and a balcony for viewing the landscape and wildlife.  There is an additional balcony located off of the kitchen as well.

The sun room is spacious and well-suited to taking in the views as well as entertaining, and it can be closed off from the rest of the house with french doors.  The living room feels cozier and more intimate.

The gently sloping site works well for a walkout basement, and the house is nicely integrated with numerous retaining walls and plantings, which the homeowners are in the process of installing.