13 beautiful, functional and affordable houses

Sarah Tolle—Homify Canada Sarah Tolle—Homify Canada
homify Modern houses
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What determines the value of a home? For starters, comfort, convenience, and cleanliness make a large impact on a home’s ability to provide a functional environment for its residents. However, it’s not just the practicality or usability of a home’s features that matter—for many, price is the top consideration when scoping out potential homes. An affordable home can mean different things to different people, but in general, an affordable home is one whose price tag is attainable on a modest salary, while still offering a beautiful, comfortable, and healthy place to live. Value is added when the house takes into account a family lifestyle by including features such as a carport, garage, finished basement, patio, and yard.

In the following projects, these architects aren't trying to knock your socks off with luxurious features and sprawling floor plans—instead, they’re intended as functional, comfortable, and healthy places to live (and they’ve been made available for a reasonable sum!). Explore these projects to learn about the intersection of beauty and practicality in these affordable house designs!

​American colonial

Traditionally finished with white, gray or light blue, the iconic Colonial-style home has become synonymous with middle class family life.

​Asian style cottage

Compact and cozy, this less-is-more design is intimate and friendly, with room for a family with children.

​English style home

This compact sized, peaked roof home is representative of traditional English architecture. Decorative tile and stonework coupled with a well-maintained natural landscape add all the more charm to this idyllic home.

​Modern German

This family home maintains an emphasis on low energy use and efficient living. Striking in a simple white and classic silhouette, this practical home has many features that allow a busy family to enjoy the outdoors.

​American Georgian

Georgian style came to America with the British a few centuries ago. Today, Georgian American homes represent an iconic residential style—especially in suburbs—all over the world.

​Modern European

Sharp contrasts and eye-catching geometrical compositions characterize this modern European family home.

​Scandinavian

Panoramic windows, spacious rooms, and an interior finished in white characterize this contemporary Scandinavian-style home.

​Romanesque

Steeped in tradition, this small-yet-sturdy brick Romanesque-style building stays grounded with a stone foundation, ornamented with curved metal railings and elegant stone steps.

​Greek inspiration

The presence of white columns and ample exterior ornamentation allude to inspiration from a Greek architectural style.

​Mediterranean

Warm shades of ocher tiles mixed with beige distinguish this home as Mediterranean, with a stone courtyard and elegant semicircular arches adding to a refined atmosphere.

​Modern cabin

Simple, sleek, and low cost, this home is efficient and accessible to families on a modest budget.

​Traditional brick

Longevity is one reason why home buyers might opt for brick, investing in a sound structure that benefits from the natural insulation provided by the exterior brick layer.

​Minimalist house

In terms of functionality, there’s nothing better than the practical, less-is-more attitude of a distinctly minimalist house.

Find more home designs in this ideabook: 7 fantastic stairs perfect for modern houses

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