5 Site Factors That Will Affect Your Custom Home Design
When building a home from scratch, best practice dictates that you match the landscape and environment surrounding your building with appropriate colours and features. A house which complements its surroundings is far more visually appealing and may be more ergonomic if it takes advantage of the surrounding landscape. Access via front and back doors can become a truly delightful experience if front and back gardens are shaped to take advantage of the natural environment surrounding the house. When you choose UHomes custom home builders to build your house, you can enjoy peace of mind knowing that we will take every step possible to ensure maximum compatibility between your site and your home design. In this blog edition, we discuss the top 5 site factors that will affect your custom home design.
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Sloping Sites
During construction of your custom-built home, the goal of our builders is to work with the land, not against it. If your land includes a slope, it is usually a good idea to design a split-level house which accommodates the landscape. By adding multiple storeys, you can take advantage of the view on top of your slope and maximise internal space. There are some infrastructural challenges that must be considered when designing for a sloping landscape, however UHomes has much practice catering to these site requirements and will plan foundations and retaining structures accordingly if your project calls for it.
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Solar Orientation
Solar orientation is defined as the direction your house faces in relation to the sun’s path through the sky. Consideration of the sun’s rise and fall each day is a factor which determines how much natural light will be allowed into your house in the morning and evening. The position of your house relative to the sun also has an impact on how easy it is to heat and cool your indoor spaces. Where possible, UHomes designs homes to take advantage of sunlight in the morning and cooler climates in the evening. This enables you to keep cool in Summer when the sun is at its highest and maximises the heat available in Winter when the sun is at its lowest.
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Trees and Other Flora
Trees can add visual benefit to your property as well as protection from the weather, however they can pose challenges if they block too much sunlight or obstruct views. With this in mind, UHomes will plan your home strategically in order to keep obstruction to a minimum. We have relationships with local councils all across Melbourne too, so, if it’s absolutely necessary, we can expedite the process of removing trees from your property before or after we finish construction.
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Natural Views
If your home is built on a hill or in a valley it’s probable that there are natural landscapes which you would typically desire as a view from within your home. Whether you want a view of the neighbouring area, to observe fog rolling in in the morning or capture views of the ocean, UHomes will design your house to take advantage of these natural phenomenon wherever possible.
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Regulatory Compliance
Before the UHomes team start building your custom home, there are a few planning requirements which need to be considered. These include: general/neighbourhood residential zones, design and development overlays, landscape/vegetation protection, bushfire compliance, environmental management and heritage limitations. These council standards may define house height limitations, make it difficult to modify the landscape, remove trees or vegetation or otherwise make it difficult to design specific features of the home you want. Regardless of the restrictions imposed by the council in your local area, UHomes will make sure your home is totally compliant before completely finishing construction work and tidying up your site to prepare for your move.
Contact U Homes
If you are interested in building a life in Melbourne, contact U Homes today for a professional consultation. We have been building and selling custom homes in Melbourne for more than 10 years now and offer a wide range of tailor-made solutions for first home buyers looking to enter the market. We are available to speak to you from Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:00pm. Contact our friendly consultants on 03 9048 5737 today or reach out via our contact page to ask about how we can help you build the home of your dreams.