Two Story vs One Story

I'm in a two story now, and while it is nice to have the separation, I hate lugging laundry and toys up and down the stairs all day long. If I could move again, it would be into a big one story that was more spread out.

I live in a one-story condo now, but if I buy a house I would like a 2-story or a 1 1/2 story. I like to have separate spaces.

I've lived in both. I always wanted a two story until I got the electric bill! Man I was shocked. I then had my 2nd baby and they were a nightmare on my knees! If you choose a atwo story make sure there are two seperate ac units or a big enough one to handle both floors! That's the best advice I can give on that one!

One story is much easier to take care of in the long run. Feature piles of this and that at the bottom of the stairs that need to be taken up "eventually".

We didn't like our two story. With our kids, everything that belonged upstairs always ended up downstairs and visa-versa. It was an endless process of lugging things up and down those stairs. We know live in a one story home and it is so much easier to keep it clean and clutter-free.

I've had both two story and one story. I'd much rather have a two story.

We had all the bedrooms and a play room/den up stairs. Our livingroom was at the base of the stairs. We built it from scratch. When I was looking through plans, I'd show promising ones to my wife and she said, "Don't show me any more plans. When you've narowed it down to 4 or 5 then show me so we can decide." So I narrowed down 2000 plans to 4 and we chose it together. It was first choice for both of us.

Why a two story? We kept the down stairs clean and clutter free (well, almost) and let the kids play upstairs in the den. It worked 90% of the time. I had a 12 by 12 entryway that went all the way to the top of the top floor. We'd get an 18 to 19 foot christmas tree and set it up against the stairs so it could be enjoyed from downstairs and upstairs. I counted the lights we put on it one year and it was 1800. We lived on 26 acres at the time and had real nice views from both upstairs and down stairs.

Heating and cooling: if you have two units and two thermostats, a two story is less expensive to heat and cool. We had an attic fan (sometimes called a whole house fan) and ceiling fans in all rooms. It makes a big difference in heating and cooling expensive. We insulated between the floors and between the upstairs bedrooms and the den.

I'm sorry we had to move.

Good luck to you and yours.

According to my boys, a two story is much better. Why you ask? Because you can play with Slinky's on the stairs. I kid you not that was what they complained about at age 2 and 4 when we moved from a two story to a one story. I have heard that one story houses are easier to sell so if you are going to move someday that might be a consideration?

We have a 2 story with the kids' bedrooms upstairs and the master on the main. I didn't think I would like it, but now I love it! It is nice that the kids are in bed up stairs and we don't have to tip toe around. As they get older, I know we will all enjoy them having their own space (small rec. room, 1/2 bath, bedrooms) even more!

We have 6 kids and built a 2 story house. The kids can be upstairs at night and my husband and I can be downstairs entertaining friends with a separation of sound and a sense of privacy. Yes, going up and down the stairs can cumbersome at times, but I am happy with our decision. It's nice to put them to bed at night and not have to worry about waking them up with our voices, the TV, other people, or anything. It's really fun at Christmas time as well.....seeing those little faces walk down the stairs to see what was left under the tree. Priceless.

I grew up in a two-story and have one now. I've heard that, if square footage is equal, one story houses have more livable space than two stories. However, one thing I like with a two story is that we have the square footage without sacrificing lot (yard) space.

I do like that there are separate "public" and "private areas" as well. Makes clean up for entertaining a little more manageable. :) Also, I will say that most of our toys tend to stay downstairs in the play area. So the kids don't have a lot of stuff cluttering up their bedrooms, which is very nice.

Stairs do make the years when the kids are starting to move a little more challenging, but it's very easy to put up a gate at the top and bottom of the stairs. I don't worry excessively about fire. Disasters can occur at any time, and I feel that there's no point in planning your entire life around the remote possibility that something awful will happen.

I think kids like the idea of living in two-story homes. I remember being so excited when we moved into ours when I was a kid. Our children's friends who have one stories always say they want "a house with stairs," and my son gets a kick out of having a two-story home.

If I could by a house, it would be a one story house.
I hate that we can't easily clean out the gutters or paint the house without renting the equipment.

Repairs and up keep would be so much easier.

We have lived in both and we prefer the one-story we are in now. I agree with you about fear of what to do in a fire, it's a lot easier to handle in a one-story. In a two-story house, even though it was only around 1900 square feet, it STILL felt like a loooong walk to kitchen if we wanted something cold to drink, or that first cup of coffee. We eventually put a mini-fridge and coffemaker in our master at the two-story house!! Now, in our ranch, we feel like we use our whole house every day--no formal living room that sits unused for weeks at a time, no schlepping stuff up and down the stairs. So even though the square footage of our ranch is about the same, it feels like a larger home because we actually use all the square footage.

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I grew up in a ranch and decided I never would want to own one. If I wanted to stay up later than my parents watching TV my mother always complained that the TV woke her up. I'm sure it was partially because she was a lighter sleeper but it just seemed like you were more on top of one another and no room to spread out.

While a one story has an advantage when you're older and not as limber, the house we purchased is a two story but the former owners added a bedroom onto the back. So we have the best of both worlds. Maybe that is something to consider.

I grew up in a very big home (7 bedroom, 5 bathroom, it was ancient and had separate entrances for the 'servants' back in the day) (not that we were wealthy, it was a modest hard-working neighborhood with great old homes). I've lived in other states for a while, 11yrs in South Florida where everything was a ranch and we had to teach preschool kids what stairs were :) I just can't imagine living in a ranch if I don't have to (because of physical inabilities, age, etc). We live in a Cape Cod and its perfect for us. Lots of running up/down (but our laundry is upstairs, which is a bonus), with our master suite and one bedroom upstairs and the other 2 bedrooms downstairs (one is a guest, the other is an office). But the rooms are smaller and more quaint, almost cottage-like. This style doesn't require diff hvac systems, but we have them because that's what my husband does (even our mudroom and garage are heated, haha).

I can't say one is better than the other, just whatever fits you best. I wouldn't purposely look for a house with only one or the other. In fact, when looking for this house, we looked at everything from ranch to Victorian to townhome. Good luck!

I have to laugh at your question because I am kind-of obsessed with houses and have given this alot (too much) thought.

I have lived in both, but I prefer one stories. Positives of a one story are that you don't have to deal with things like the best place to keep things, like shoes (you take them off at the front door, but you have to remember to take them upstairs, or just keep all of them downstairs, but where?). It seems like whatever you need is not on the level where you are at the time. Also, I like being in close proximity to my kids, but they are young and I am told that will change:) Mostly, I just hated dealing with the stairs. There is also the thought of if there is a fire it will be easier to escape a one-story, but in all reality you will probably not have a fire. And they do make ladders for escaping out of 2nd story windows. Oh, and my son fell down the stairs twice, but he was fine. Also, if you have older parents that come to stay with you, that is something to consider. Cleaning the house is easier because you don't have to lug the vacuum cleaner up and down the stairs, not to mention cleaning the stairs themselves. Having hardwood stairs does make it a little easier, though. The positives of a two story are that you definitely get more for your money (one stories generally cost more per square foot, all other things being equal), you will end up with a bigger yard (compared to a house with the same square footage and same size lot), and I find 2 stories just to be more interesting architecturally. Also, an upstairs would be nice for entertaining if you wanted the kids in a separate area. We used to have New Years parties and hire babysitters to watch the kids upstairs while we were downstairs (our kids were on the younger side).

But all in all, I would rather live in a one story just for the convenience. To me, the ideal house is a 1 1/2 story where everything is on the ground level except for a bonus room upstairs and maybe a bathroom.

This is probably weird and paranoid, but I prefer two-story. My dad traveled a lot for work when I was young and I remember him walking us through scenarios if something happened when he wasn't home. His instructions were to get ourselves upstairs (for starters). I think that has influenced the fact that I feel very unnerved about the idea of sleeping on the entrance level of the house. I'd like a little more distance between me (and my family) and any intruder.

I grew up in a one story and didn't like it. My bedroom was closest to the living areas of the house and it was difficult for me to sleep when my M. was banging things around in the kitchen or if the tv was on. I felt like I never got a good night's sleep.

We've been in 2 stories for 25+ years now. Yes...there's a lot of lugging stuff up and down the stairs, but we can watch tv @ night and not keep the kids awake, and I can empty the dishwasher when the kids are sleeping...also lets me have some quiet space upstairs if everyone else is downstairs making noise.