When searching for a home in the West Island, you’ll quickly notice that most of the older houses built in the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s have traditional floor plans with walls dividing each room into separate living spaces. In more recent construction, the trend has been to create more open spaces with fewer interior walls. Therefore, many owners considering renovating their older homes explore the option of creating an open-concept floor plan.

The older and newer styles have their pros and cons, depending on your lifestyle and preferences.


Here are some of the many benefits of an open floor plan:

-Open floor plans create a sense of spaciousness by removing barriers such as walls and doors between living areas. This can make a home feel larger and more inviting.

-With fewer walls to block sunlight, an open floor plan allows more natural light to flow through the space, which can make a home feel airy and bright.

-Open floor plans facilitate better communication and interaction between family members and guests. This allows people to interact easily from different spaces, such as between the kitchen, dining room, and living room. This is an attractive feature for those who enjoy hosting gatherings, or for parents wanting to keep an eye on their children. 

-It offers greater flexibility in terms of furniture arrangement and interior design. Homeowners can easily change a space’s layout or purpose to suit their needs or preferences.

-Open-concept homes are often associated with contemporary design, which can make a property feel more up-to-date and appealing.

Some of the drawbacks of an open concept include:

-Open-concept designs allow little opportunity for escape. If you require a bit of peace and quiet or some degree of privacy, you probably won’t find it unless you move to another floor of the house.

-With the increased popularity of work-from-home routines, many homeowners are longing for the return of that closed room that they eliminated during renovations. 

-Clutter and mess tend to spread everywhere in an open environment, rather than being contained to the one or two rooms that get the most traffic. Remember your parents’ living room that was only used twice a year and still had the perfect lines in the plush wall-to-wall carpet from the vacuum cleaner? You’d never find a kid’s toy in there!

-Those who have taken walls down to create a more open space can testify to the fact that losing wall space can be inconvenient. There are fewer places to hang your favourite paintings or that big-screen TV. 

-Heating an open space can use more energy, adding costs and preventing you from controlling the temperature in certain rooms.

 

When considering a renovation, it’s important to think about all these pros and cons before you go all the way with an open-concept floor plan. Opening up the kitchen to either the family room or dining room might be ideal, while still maintaining at least one other separate, closed-off room on your main floor. 

At TEAM BROADY, we have first-hand experience in this department, having renovated our own homes while knocking a few walls down in the process! We acknowledge the pros and cons of both styles and admit we might even do things differently the next time around. If you could use some helpful guidance before planning a big renovation project, or before buying your next home, our dedicated team will assure you are provided with the best advice. Contact us today at 514-613-2988 or by email at info@teambroady.ca.