What are your thoughts on open floor plan houses? Thumbs up or thumbs down?
My previous (first) house was completely open on the first floor except for the 1/2 bath and closet. All bedrooms and related bathrooms were on 2nd floor along with the laundry room. I liked it except you could see any dirty dishes in the kitchen from the eating area and great room. I suspect parents with kids might like to be able to see the kids in the great room from the kitchen while preparing meals. Others say they want rooms separated to isolate noise with young kids. I helped my parents in 1997 remove a wall separating their living room and dining room. It really opened the house up while still keeping the kitchen and informal eating area separate.
My current house has a tiny eat in kitchen and a small living room. The majority of the house is bedrooms and bathrooms. I don't know how the previous owners raised six kids in the house and were able to eat in the tiny kitchen. I've thought about removing the wall between kitchen and living room to open things up. I've even gone so far as to think about tearing the walls out on the front bedroom to make it an eating area or new living room and use the current living room for eating area. Since I'm single it works just fine as it is so it would something I would consider only if I thought I might want to sell. The lack of eating area is a killer for resale for a family.