Architecture's contribution to selling your home - architects in Westchester, architects in Westchester county

A client was looking to sell his home in a very desirable section of Bronxville, NY. The home had been renovated several times, including a large great room/family room, kitchen, cabana in the basement opening up to the backyard and pool area, and master bedroom. But the owner was having difficulty getting offers near the asking price. In discussing this with the owner/client I pointed out that I thought the foyer, with its tiny entrance to the living room was dark and closed -in feeling. The house had a cotswold sensibility originally, but the entry hall was unimposing. In addition, the doorway to the living room was small and did not afford an expansive view of the room and beyond., which also included a glimpse of the great room. At my suggestion, I proposed to the owner/client to open up the doorway to the living room, adding classical details such as columns and moulding that you can see in this picture. This change opened up the entire foyer, bringing much needed light into the entry hall and presenting a gracious introduction to the rest of the home. Up until this point, the owner had received offers several hundred thousand dollars below asking. After renovating the foyer as I suggested, the owner received an offer close to asking price, which produced a handsome return on his entryway investment.

Good Residential Architecture, architects in Westchester, Westchester architects, residential architects Westchester

The Emotional component of good Residential Architecture

Often, when planning a renovation or a new home, clients neglects to consider the idea of how the architecture relates psychologically to "human scale."

For example, a couple had lived for several years in a Bronxville home that was filled with what most people would call charm - interesting cozy nooks and spaces with lots of beautiful crown moulding. For business reasons, they sold this house and moved to a very large brand new home in Connecticut. this new residence has very substantial expansive rooms with soaring spaces including a cavernous two story entry hall, a huge master bedroom and other enormous rooms. After living in this new residence a couple of years, the owners are looking to sell. Why, when this new residence seems to be so impressive? The family reports that they missed the feeling of coziness that they had experienced in their old home. this house, while beautiful on a grand scale, made them feel like they were bouncing around in a huge box and it lacked the sense of comfortable hominess that had existed in their former residence. In other words, this current house was missing human scale. Instead of a warm, welcoming feeling, the house had rooms that almost echoed and no amount of decorating could soften the edges.

There is almost an emotional and psychological aspect to architecture, especially in residential design, which many people fail to take into account. Successful residential architectural design is actually a melding of art, functionality, and psychology. some architectural features, like huge foyers, while initially imposing, do not deliver the sensation of ease and relaxation that most people seek as a respite from the stresses of everyday life. While difficult to articulate, owners sometimes don't even understand why the perception of coziness is missing. Architecture in one's home should contribute to that sense of refuge. More and more families are seeking a space to return to that restores the spirit, away from a hectic world. Residential architecture that is devoid of detail and incorporates architectural features such as soaring open spaces is frequently out of human scale and can covey a sense of discomfort and uneasiness for the occupants.
An architect must endeavor to be more than an artist capable of understanding the methods of construction when designing a residence. an architect must also be a skilled listener, actively questioning the clients as to how they envision using the proposed space. the architect must also understand the client's lifestyle to successfully design a space where the clients and their family will experience comfortable surroundings. Even if the client is requesting a grand impressive space, the architect must be able to translate that concept into good design and still leave the client with a space where they feel a sense of contentment and have a place that can restore the spirit. Architectural details, such as scale of the doors, the height of the ceilings, the height and span of the arches and the hierarchy of moulding must be aligned in good residential design to achieve a beautiful space while giving the owners the awareness that their home is a restful sanctuary.

Practicing residential architecture, architects Weschester county ny, architects in Westchester cty, ny, residential architects in Westchester

The Emotional Component of good Residential Architecture

Often, when planning a renovation or anew home, clients

Architect, residential architecture, Westchester County, NY, Fairfield County,Ct. Westchester county architects, architects Westchester county ny

The Emotional Component of Good Residential Architecture

Often, when planning a renovation or a new home, clients sometimes neglect to consider the idea of how the architecture relates psychologically to human scale.

For example, a couple had lived for several years in a Bronxville home that was filled with what most people would call charm – interesting cozy nooks and spaces. For business reasons they sold this house and moved to a very large brand new home in Connecticut. This new residence had very substantial expansive rooms with soaring spaces including a cavernous two story entry hall, a huge master bedroom and other enormous rooms. After living in this new residence a couple of years the owners are looking to sell. Why, when this new residence seems to be so impressive? The family reports that they missed the feeling of coziness that they had experienced in their old home. This house, while beautiful on a grand scale, made them feel like they were bouncing around in a huge box and it lacked the sense of hominess and comfort that had existed in their former residence. In other words, this current house was missing human scale. Instead of a warm, welcoming feeling, the house had rooms that almost echoed and no amount of decorating could soften the edges.

There is almost an emotional and psychological aspect to architecture, especially in residential design, which many people fail to take into account. Successful residential architectural design is actually a melding of art, functionality and psychology. Some architectural features, like huge foyers, while initially imposing, do not deliver the sensation of ease and relaxation that most people seek as a respite from the stresses of everyday life. While difficult to articulate, owners sometimes don’t even understand why the perception of coziness is missing. Architecture in one’s home should contribute to that sense of refuge. More and more families are seeking a space to return to that restores the spirit, away from a hectic world. Residential architecture that is devoid of detail and incorporates architectural features such as soaring open spaces is frequently out of human scale and can convey a sense of discomfort and uneasiness for the occupants.

An architect must endeavor to be more than an artist capable of understanding the methods of construction when designing a residence. An architect must also be a skilled listener, actively questioning the clients as to how they envision using the proposed space. The architect must also understand the client’s lifestyle to successfully design a space where the clients and their family will experience comfortable surroundings. Even if the client is requesting a grand impressive space, the architect must be able to translate that concept into good design and still leave the client with a space where they feel a sense of contentment and have a place that can restore the spirit. Architectural details, such as the scale of the doors, the height of the ceilings, the arches and the hierarchy of moulding must be aligned in good residential design to achieve a beautiful space while giving the occupants the awareness that their home is a restful sanctuary.

Homes in Scarsdale without original plans, architects in Westchester county ny, home architects in Westchester county ny, residential architects

The Village of Scarsdale has instituted a ruling requiring any home without original plans on file with the town to have plans drawn up before a home can be sold or refinanced. Many older homes in Scarsdale were build decades ago without ever have house plans drawn up and on file with the Scarsdale building department. Owners looking to sell their properties must now have complete plans drawn up of their homes showing all pertinent details.

Architectural Scale, architecture Westchester cty and Fairfield cty

Sometimes when planning a renovation to an existing residence or choosing a new home, people believe that soaring spaces create a feeling of openness and grandure. But I have found that these huge spaces with extremely high ceilings lack the feeling of coziness that people innately crave. There is a sense in most people of human scale. While on paper, designs that incorporate large open indoor spaces, whether residential or commercial, have the occupant feeling somewhat lost and uncomfortable and unable to relate to their surroundings. This is especially true in a residential setting. After dealing with the pressures of daily life outside the home, most people want to come home to a comforting living space which gives a peaceful feeling. Hard surfaces and high ceilings with no architectural detailing and a perception of being out of human scale often do not provide a relaxing setting for the occupant. It is important for anyone considering a renovation or new home to remember that someone's artistic vision for your space or the latest architectural fad must translate to the homeowner's sensibilities and how they want the space to serve them.

Decorative Millwork,Architect, residential architecture, Westchester County, NY, Fairfield County, Ct

In creating a beautifully designed millwork project, I have had the good fortune of dealing with a master craftsperson, Frank Colagero or Larchmont Millwork, Larchmont, New York. He has been able to execute all my details with precision. An outstanding examples of his work can be seen on my website, Mccann-craftinc.com. In both the Bronxville client's great room and the New Canaan client's great room, Frank produced exacting moulding which resulted in spectacular rooms. Every piece of moulding was designed by me and made in Larchmont Millwork's workshop.

Architects in Westchester county NY, architects in Fairfield county CT, Ct architects in Fairfield Ct, home architects in Westchester county ny, interior designers in Westchester NY, architectural design in Westchester county, ny, architects residential design.

Building in a Flood Plain - architect Westchester county NY, architects in Fairfield county

Architects in Westchester County NY, Fairfield county architects - Residential Legalization and Building permits

Residential Legalization and Building Permit Issues Take Homeowners by Surprise

You've finally decided to take the plunge and refinance your house to get that dream kitchen. the process is going smoothly when, out of nowhere, the title company picks up that certain improvements in the house, for example an added powder room or deck, are not recorded on your property card at the town hall. No Certificate of Occupancy, also called a Certificate of Compliance, exists for the improvements. The title company will not give clear title so you can't get financing. Now what do you do?
Or you've decided to sell your house and finally have a buyer yet, right before the closing, the purchaser's title company, during a search of records, notices that your enclosed porch doesn't have a Certificate of Compliance. In today's tighter lending environment, title companies and banks have become much stricter about these issues. the closing is put on hold as you scramble to clear up the problem, potentially risking losing your buyer.
Architect Michael McCann, AIA, a licensed architect in New York and Connecticut, of McCann-craft, Inc. has received many frantic calls from homeowners and realtors looking to quickly clear up legalizations issues, especially if a closing hangs in the balance. Frequently these unrecorded improvements were done prior to the purchase of the home by the current owner. Regardless of when these changes were performed to the house, title and mortgage banks and companies want C.O.'s before awarding clear title.
In the course of making presentations to almost forty real estate offices throughout Westchester. McCann reports that he has heard plenty legalization tales of woe. Village of Pelham Building Inspectro Len Russo said that he has even received calls from attorneys present at actual closings asking legalization or open building permit questions that were just discovered by the title company.
Fortunately, some of these problems can be solved simply by having an architect , familiar with the legalization issues, render and submit plans for the existing work. Occasionally, minor alterations are necessary and sometimes more extensive work is needed to bring the improvement into compliance with the building code.
Every home has a file at their town hall which records, for example, the dimension of the house, number of rooms, bathrooms, square footage, lot size, closed or open porches and finished or unfinished basements. Many towns are now making it possible for owners to view these records online.
When improvements are planned for a property, the owner must file a building permit application available from the building department, submit plans from a licensed architect or engineer and get town approval and variances if applicable, before beginning construction. the plans are then reviewed by the town's building department for compliance with the Residential Code of New York State or Ct. and any additional zoning laws enacted by the localities.
Dealing with the local building department often invokes fear in homeowners, but building officials and inspectors only want town records to be accurate and up to date in addition to the improvements being built in a safe and legal manner. Building Inspector Russo reinforced the importance of accurate records for the homeowner. "People don't realize that we maintain permanent records regarding their properties and having that information current can be vital if a property catastrophe strikes, such as a fire."
Bottom line, it's the law. Always make sure building permits are property obtained when contemplating any building project, and closed out when the project is completed. that way you can avoid the inevitable problems that will occur when the property is sold or refinanced, especially in today's lending environment. After all, not one wants to get stuck at a closing that won't close.

Michael McCann AIA is a licensed architect and builder in New York and Ct. He has extensive experience as a residential architect in Westchester County, NY, Fairfield county, Ct and the Hamptons. Michael McCann, president of McCann-craft, Inc. is also a builder licensed in Westchester county, NY and Ct.

Architect, residential architecture, Westchester County, NY, Fairfield County, Ct architect, architectural design Interlocking Barrel Ceiling

This is an example of an intersecting elliptical arches make out of terracotta tile on the ceiling of outdoor porch similar to the ceiling of the Oyster Bar in Grand Central Station.