The Low Country house plan is best suited for Southern climates and coastal locations.
With abundant windows and doors and large shade porches, the distinctive features of Low Country style are designed to keep the home comfortable in marshy Southern marshy climates. A Low Country home is often raised and resting on piers to capture cooling breezes and prevent flooding. In fact, these designs are sometimes referred to as tidewater house plans. Tidewater home plans make excellent beach houses.
A Low Country floor plan typically exhibits a simple, rectangular footprint with a central entrance leading to a traditional hall-and-parlor layout or a more modern open floor plan layout. The hallmark of Low Country style is the wide, wraparound porch that is frequently accessed by multiple French doors, which provides inviting outdoor living space while shading the interior of the home. Low Country house plans typically offer one or one-and-a-half stories of living space (with bedrooms upstairs), though many have parking, storage, or bonus space on the ground level.
Architectural features:
- Wide front or wraparound porch
- Raised foundation (home is slightly or significantly elevated)
- One or one-and-a-half stories, with dormers to light living space under roof
- Side-gable or hipped roof, often metal
