Our home is the Pennington plan by Lennar. It is one of the builder’s standard plans offered in many communities and in our neighborhood at least every 5th home is this model. When we first started looking at homes we thought we wanted a custom one-of-a-kind home, but could not find the perfect one (probably because they had all been customized for someone else). Finally our realtor lured us out of our desired custom neighborhoods to look at this home and WE. FELL. IN. LOVE. Somehow this “builder standard” house felt very custom. It had unique features that many builder homes do not. It also came in several elevations so it is nearly impossible to tell that every 5th house in our neighborhood is the same plan.
So what were those unique features that had us convinced this was the one? One of the most noticeable is the central staircase turned on a 45 degree angle. In fact the staircase, kitchen, and eating area are all turned on a 45 degree angle. Although the gorgeous wood flooring runs parallel to the front of the house, it appears to be at a 45 degree angle in those rooms. This little twist gives the home a lot of character, interest, and movement. Other things to love include the giant laundry and craft room, the jack-and-jill (or in our case, jack-and-jack) bathroom between the kid’s rooms, the huge master closet and bath…okay I could go on forever, because I seriously love every part of this house.
Here is the main level floor plan and a few before pics of this level from when we first toured the home:
Here is the second level floor plan and a few before pics:
The total finished living area is approximately 3100 sq. ft. There is an additional 1000 sq. ft. in the unfinished full walkout basement. Someday the basement will have a family room, kitchenette, bedroom, workshop/storage room, playroom, and another bathroom. I hope you will stick around to read all about those projects.
Another bonus to this home when we bought it…it was already built. It was a spec home the builder had already completed and it was ready to move in. The downside to a spec home that is “ready to move in”…did you notice it is TAN from floor to ceiling? Tan flat paint on every wall surface including kitchen backsplash and all the bathrooms…even inside every closet. The builder used a “safe” paint color that we knew we would have to remedy with our whole house color scheme.
So how do we get past the it’s not custom…we are worried about resale…we want to be original…blah, blah, blah? When you are in love, you are in love and nothing else matters. We knew we could make this house our home. After touring lots of homes, we realized custom isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. A lot of times the custom homes have been designed with a lot of input from the original homeowner. This customization leads to a great home for them, but it just feels quirky to other people. We found that the builder plan was very well thought out and could appeal to a lot of different buyers…which would help with resale later on. It was a tried and true plan, which made it one of Lennar’s most popular. As far as being original, I think you can make any home original by simply putting you in it. That is what Teal & Lime is all about…injecting what you love to make your home yours!
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I love this floor plan. However, when I went to the Lennar website and found the Pennington house plan, it looked nothing like yours: http://www.lennar.com/New-Homes/Colorado/Denver/Aurora/Blackstone/Pennington-4824
Any hints where I can find your specific plan at their website?
Hi Sara. Our model is the Pennington from the American Heartland Series by Lennar. We have a friend who purchased the same plan in another neighborhood shortly after us. Their salesman told them they discontinued this floor plan. Something about going to more energy efficient floor plans (two story great rooms are not the most energy efficient). If you are looking at a Lennar neighborhood, you may want to ask about the American Heartland Series Pennington or if they have a new plan that is similar.