Log Homes >> Getting Started

Your Log Home Dream: Getting Started

If the desire to own a log cabin or log home has just come upon you, you may be looking for a place to start. Even if you had the stream for a while, you may not have thought about what comes next. Here are some things you should consider in the fledgling stages of planning your log home:

Early on, start thinking about the floor plan and designed for your log home. You don't have to be an architect to do this. Clip out pictures you see of log homes, whether they be exterior shots that focus on the whole home or interior shots of specific nooks and crannies in specific rooms. See a staircase you want to incorporate into your own home? Take a picture. See a floor plan in a magazine that suits you? Tear out the page. Start keeping a scrapbook now, and by the time you are ready to build, you'll have plenty of ideas to feed to the architects and designers.

Where are you going to build your log home or log cabin?

Though you can start sketching now, ultimately, the land you have available to build on will dictate some of the intricacies of your floor plan.

Log homeowners usually want more than the typical one quarter acre urban lot. They drift toward rural areas with room to stretch out. Start looking at what is available in the location where you want to live. Are there sewer hookups or will you need to build a septic tank? Are there any building restrictions? These are things you will want to check into early on because they will influence the cost of your log home building project. 

Research. Research. Research. There's nothing cheap about building a house whether it's built of logs or sticks. Make sure you know what you're getting into before you break ground.

Books and magazines are a great source of ideas. Log home ones in particular tend to be heavy on pictures and many include floor plans next to their selected homes.

Log Home & Cabins Magazines:
Log Home Living
Log & Timber Style
Log Home Design Ideas

Log Home & Cabins Book Reviews:
Log Homes Made Easy
The Log Home Plan Book
Hands-on Log Homes

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