About Home Design Software

Exciting home design software products available today make it possible for you to set up a home, a kitchen, a room, an addition or even landscaping online. You can see your project in 3D, like a dollhouse, or as a blueprint. No more guessing about what will fit in the room you're designing, decorating or furnishing. In some programs, you can actually "walk around" in your home.

Benefits

Add walls and move them. Put in cabinets and countertops in the kitchen, place windows and doors and then change your mind. These beneficial programs have libraries of cabinets, appliances and even furniture, so you can just click and drag them into the room you're planning. Put in a toilet, a shower, a tub and a double sink in your bathroom model, then rethink it and change to a spa or Jacuzzi.
No more wondering where you want to put that queen-size bed in the master bedroom. Some programs let you click on an entire bedroom suite and plop it into your dollhouse room, then select individual pieces in the suite and move them around where you want them. You'll even be able to visualize traffic patterns.
How helpful will it be to design a deck and then see it in 3D form? You'll even have the ability to add and subtract stairs and railings. Not only that, but there may be "plant choosers" with thousands of shrub, tree and flower choices.
The benefit of home design software is that it can eliminate guesswork, miscalculation of costs and expensive mistakes, while heightening creativity and awareness of possibilities.

Features

Look for these features:
Free demos and online tutorials
Expert advice and answers to questions in online help and forums
Sample home design plans
Built-in home style templates
House wizards
Photo galleries of designed and decorated interiors and exteriors
Libraries of appliances, cabinets and furnishings
Cabinet designer tools
Material tools that let you change finishes, wall colors and flooring choices
Ability to move walls, specs, doors and windows
2D and 3D glasshouse or dollhouse views with a point and click
Blueprint views
Building tools like automatic stairway generation, roofing, framing and foundations
Terrain and landscaping tools that let you import elevation data if desired
Ability to design and add decks, fences, driveways, pools and gardens
Cost estimating in automatically generated spreadsheets that even calculate the amount of lumber or concrete needed (usually only in professional high end versions)
Money-back, satisfaction guarantee

Types

Many home design software programs can be purchased in DVD form, or downloaded, for one sale price. Others are subscription services that you can log on to and begin designing.
Better Homes & Gardens Home Designer Software products range from $45 to over $500 with a $97 version getting high buyer satisfaction. There are professional and standard versions.
Plan 3D lets you subscribe by the month for an unbelievably low charge of $2.99 monthly, if you purchase a year at a time.

Considerations

You will need to spend time playing around with the different features and tools of any home design software for it to become useful to you. Fortunately, these programs have tutorials, wizards, guidelines, tips and expert advice available. It's also wise to look for consumer reviews of the various products you can buy before you make your choice. If you belong to Consumer Reports, do your research there. For instance, consumers on Amazon tell you which programs they believe are a waste of money, and which ones are an unbelievable steal. You'll read rave reviews and thumbs-down comments too.
Before you buy, be sure to check your computer capabilities to make sure it meets these requirements: Windows XP/Vista, 1.2 GHz processor, 2 BG available disk space, 512 MB of memory on XP, or 1 GB of memory on Vista DVD drive.

Misconceptions

You may think that if you don't know where to start or what ideas you like, home design software won't help you. But don't worry. When you start your project, there will be many tools and features to inspire and guide you.
Also, don't think that these programs are only for architects and computer gurus. If you are comfortable with word processing, simple design programs and Internet navigation, home design programs will not present an impossible learning curve. Unless you want to operate at the professional level, you will not be producing construction documents (blueprints), but you will be able to plan, design and decorate at a level ideal for communicating your creative ideas to professionals.

Warning

Prices and product names mentioned are merely examples of available programs. You may find other suitable products, benefits and features. Happy designing.