Building base structures—what if you had to start over?

Couldn’t agree more about the hallway thing—32” is just asking for bruised elbows and daily frustration. People get starry-eyed over fancy finishes, but you can’t retrofit good flow into a house. I’ve had clients beg to “just move that wall a little” after the fact, and it’s never as simple (or cheap) as they hope. Honestly, I’d take wider halls and decent closet clearances over the latest HVAC gadget any day. The basics matter way more than most folks realize when they're in the planning phase.

Honestly, I’d take wider halls and decent closet clearances over the latest HVAC gadget any day.

Funny how the basics get overlooked. I’ve seen folks obsess over quartz counters but then end up with a laundry room you can barely turn around in. If you were starting from scratch, would you prioritize wider halls or bigger bedrooms? I always wonder where people draw the line between flow and square footage for “living” spaces.

Title: Building Base Structures—What If You Had to Start Over?

I hear you on the basics getting lost in the shuffle. It’s wild how many new builds I’ve walked through where the hallways feel like afterthoughts—barely wide enough for two people to pass, let alone move a piece of furniture without scraping up the walls. Meanwhile, there’s a showpiece kitchen island that could double as a runway. Priorities, right?

If I had to start from scratch, I’d lean toward wider halls and doorways over bigger bedrooms, hands down. Years ago, my partner and I lived in this older ranch with these generous hallways—nothing fancy, just enough space that you never felt boxed in. It made a difference every single day, especially when we had kids running around or were carrying laundry baskets (or, let’s be honest, when we were both grumpy and needed to pass each other without bumping elbows). Bedrooms are important, but unless you’re spending all day in there, I’d rather have a house that feels open and easy to navigate.

I get the appeal of large bedrooms, but I think people forget how much “living” happens in the spaces between rooms. Flow matters more than square footage sometimes. You can always make a bedroom feel cozy with good lighting and storage tricks, but you can’t fake a cramped hallway or a closet you can’t open all the way.

Funny story—my aunt built her dream house and insisted on walk-in closets for every bedroom. Gorgeous, but she skimped on hallway width to make it work. Now every time we visit for family gatherings, there’s this awkward bottleneck outside the guest rooms where everyone’s trying to get by at once. She jokes about it now, but it drives her nuts.

Anyway, I’d say give me functional flow over extra square footage any day. The little things—clearances, door swings, turning radius—those are what make a house livable long-term. And honestly? You don’t miss the extra bedroom space as much as you think once you’ve lived with better circulation.

I get where you’re coming from about wanting more generous hallways—there’s nothing worse than trying to move a couch and realizing you have to wedge it through a passage that feels like it was designed for stick figures. That said, I’ve seen the pendulum swing too far in the other direction, where folks focus so much on “flow” and open space that the private parts of the home end up feeling like an afterthought.

You mentioned,

“You can always make a bedroom feel cozy with good lighting and storage tricks, but you can’t fake a cramped hallway or a closet you can’t open all the way.”

and I mostly agree, but I think there’s a limit to how much coziness you can squeeze out of a small bedroom—especially if you’re sharing it, or if you need space for a desk, or you just want a spot to breathe away from the main living areas. I once worked on a remodel for a family who’d gone all-in on wide corridors and open sightlines, but their teenage kids ended up basically living in the living room because their bedrooms felt more like oversized closets than actual retreats. Privacy matters, especially when you’ve got a full house.

One thing I always try to do is find that sweet spot—enough width in the halls so you’re not bumping elbows, but not at the expense of making bedrooms feel like afterthoughts. There’s a reason old farmhouses had those big, square rooms with doors that actually closed; people needed space to themselves, too. I think sometimes we get caught up in the idea of “open concept” and forget that a home needs places to tuck away, not just pass through.

Funny how every family seems to have a different rhythm, though. Some folks barely use their bedrooms except to sleep, others treat them like personal sanctuaries. I guess if I had to start over, I’d want a layout that lets both the shared spaces and the private ones breathe a little. Flow matters, sure, but so does having a door you can close and a room that feels like yours, not just another stop on the hallway.

BUILDING BASE STRUCTURES—WHAT IF YOU HAD TO START OVER?

- Totally get the struggle with “flow” vs. privacy. I’ve seen too many houses where you could land a plane in the hallway but you can barely fit a twin bed in the bedroom.
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“Flow matters, sure, but so does having a door you can close and a room that feels like yours, not just another stop on the hallway.”

Couldn’t agree more. If your bedroom feels like a bus stop, something’s off.
- Honestly, I’d rather have a slightly tight hallway than a bedroom that doubles as a closet. You can always sidestep down the hall, but you can’t magic up square footage for actual living.
- Open concept is great until you realize there’s nowhere to hide from your own family... or your own mess.
- If I had to start over? Give me rooms with doors and enough space to actually live in them. Hallways are for moving through, not living in.