The concept of building a custom home that’s attuned to your specific interests can be freeing. You can create exactly what you want, and you’re only limited by your budget and your imagination. The home of your dreams can finally become a reality!

Yet, that’s where many people get stuck. Faced with the responsibility of making decisions about the details, they become paralysed by all the possibilities and choices. Not only can this hinder the design process, but it also limits the ultimate vision for their home.

We believe your luxury dream home should reflect who you are, but we also understand you might need some advice. Use this list of 50 popular custom home features as guidance and inspiration. Think of it as a launching pad for your ideas – because what you’d like to see in your kitchen, pool, or bathroom should vary wildly from what someone else wants.

The Best Design Details to Consider When Building Your Family’s Luxury Home Indoor Living Spaces

Think of these as the common spaces everyone shares. Your home’s interior is your sanctuary, the place where your family gathers to work, play, relax, and just be together. It’s also the place where you entertain friends and extended family. In short, this is where everything starts, where everyday life happens – so you want things to be as perfect as possible.

Decked-out kitchen

From high-end appliances and seating on an oversized island to an enclosed pantry and the actual sink, current design trends focus on the kitchen as the focal point of the home, especially in terms of how the family interacts.

Under-cabinet lighting

Nothing says warm and inviting like installing expanded lighting options below your upper cabinetry.

Kitchen nook

We’re not talking about setting aside a bit of extra floor space for a kitchen table. We’re talking about carving some serious real estate for a dedicated location where your family can gather for meals, snacks, homework, or private conversation.

Shelving

While there’s nothing wrong with high-quality freestanding bookshelves, we tend to recommend installing built-in bookshelves. Not only are they more stable, but they give all your favorite tomes an increased level of class and sophistication.

Mudroom

Creating a specific space where your family can decamp all of their gear after a long day at work or school is essential – especially for keeping it all together to leave the next morning.

Pet area

Your fur babies deserve their own dedicated area. We’ve even designed some spaces like this with built-in bowls, automatic feeders, and a shower area.

Organising cubby

We’ve heard this area called the “drop zone” – the place where parents drop their keys, wallets, phones, and purses. We like packing such locations with charging stations for electronics and bulletin boards for messages, calendars, and reminders.

Large home office

Sometimes, you need a break from all the hubbub happening in the great room – especially if people want to focus on a big project, serious homework, or an engrossing book. Such a space can serve as a serious guy’s “man cave.”

Game room

Sure, your family loves spending time together, but you don’t want all of those activities and electronics out in the middle of high-traffic areas. The game room helps with organizing, and it can contain some special features – like pinball or a big television for gaming.

Playroom

When you have young kids, this area can serve as a toddler-friendly space. As your kid’s age, it can convert into the room where homework gets done – kind of like their version of the large office the grownups have.

Home theater

Take your television and home movie experience up a notch! Create a room with the best lighting, visuals, and sound for rewatching your favorite Hollywood blockbusters in the comfort of your own house.

Impressive view

A good architect will be able to deliver beautiful vistas no matter where your property is located.

Big windows

And they’ll achieve it by maximizing all the natural light entering your home and the sight lines provided by those large pieces of plate glass.

Granite and Quartz countertops

The materials used for the surfaces in your kitchen, bathrooms, and other locations will take your house from ho-hum to hooray.

High ceilings

As more contemporary homeowners opt for one-story affairs instead of multi-story homes, you can increase the feeling of the space by selecting 10- or 11-foot ceilings, instead of the traditional 8 or 9 feet.

Open floor plan

This is where it all comes together. By removing the walls that used to subdivide old homes, you can fill your home with activities and people organically and holistically.

Outdoor Living Areas

Gone are the days when a luxury home is a fortress. Contemporary high-end homes fully embrace “indoor to outdoor” living. Where and how people spend time on the exterior of the house is just as important as the interior. People are investing time, money, and effort into first developing a seamless flow between these spaces and then taking the outdoor experience to the next level (and beyond). And we’re talking about a lot more than a well-manicured lawn.

Outdoor kitchen

Make your family’s chef happy by embracing their grilling dreams. This well-appointed space allows the cook to remain outdoors with the rest of the family.

Custom pool

Nothing says “I love being outside with my family” than a truly custom pool, one that first accentuates the geography of your backyard while encouraging the flow of traffic between the outdoor and indoor spaces.

Water features

Take your custom pool up a notch or three by installing sumptuous architectural marvels that accentuate the overall aesthetic of your swimming area.

Spa and/or Hot tub

Because sometimes you want to sit still and luxuriate in a batch of warm, bubbling jets with a smaller group of people instead of splashing around.

Outdoor lounge seating w/ Firepit

After all that time in the water, you need a comfy and tasteful place to relax and eat the meal created in that outdoor kitchen.

Sports area

Your options are endless, but they also depend upon your preferred recreational sport. We’ve built basketball courts, tennis courts, putting greens, and more – including a bocce ball pitch.

Playground

Expand your mind beyond a mere jungle gym or playhouse. We’re talking about immersive treehouse experiences and play areas that rival what you can find at high-end public parks.

Oversized garage

Here’s the other popular option for the “man cave.” Take your average three- or four-car garage, double the square footage, and add a guest bedroom, bar area, and area for displaying memorabilia. It’s perfect for your vehicles, extra storage, and entertaining.

Personal Spaces

Even the most social of butterflies need a quiet cocoon in which to relax, reflect, and recharge. The current trend is to develop a luxuriant locale that mirrors what you enjoy when visiting the most high-end travel destinations. If you can afford the best when you’re abroad, you definitely deserve it at home.

Expansive master bedroom

When the end of the day arrives, you need a restorative enclave, one that serves as a microcosm of your entire design aesthetic. Ample space and sumptuous materials are the names of the game, whether it’s your king-size bed, reading nook, curtains, or bedding. This is your place, so you should enjoy it.

Spa-style master bathroom

Create the perfect retreat from the rest of the world within the four walls of your house. This is no mere ensuite – this is where you go to truly get away from it all. This means this is not the place to cut corners.

Walk-in shower

With full-body jets, cool ivory tiles, and perfect water pressure, you won’t ever want to leave this roomy shower…

Standalone tub

… Unless you want to enjoy a long soak in a tub large enough to seat two adults comfortably.

Personal walk-in closets

Sharing with your spouse is a great idea, but you don’t have to do it all the time. Give your clothes, shoes, and personal effects their own private area with enough room to breathe.

Large dressing room

Take the walk-in closet to the next level by expanding it to contain display racks for your shoes, full-length mirrors, a couch, and an island for arranging your jewelry and another personal decor.

Affluent Amenities

When people decide to build a custom home, what they’re really seeking is the ultimate in convenience. You’re creating your house to your personal specifications, and there’s no better way to accentuate this than creating a tech-centric home that works for you. Don’t think of these features as extra enhancements or opulent options. These perks will improve the quality of your everyday life.

Smart home automation

Connecting all the electronics throughout the entire house represents the latest and greatest in 21st-century home construction. Control every element in your house from the convenience of your smart home!

Whole-home speaker system

Some people use this feature to play music throughout the house (and into the outdoor spaces), while others set it up like an intercom. Whatever you choose, it’s great for both parties and daily living.

Modern electrical outlets

If you’re going to use your smartphone to run your house and communicate with your friends and family, you need outlets that reflect our new technological reality.

Heated floors

No longer just for your bathroom anymore, heated floors have been shown to lower winter heating bills. With just a little bit of warmth on the tootsies, you can keep the thermostat lower.

Upstairs laundry room

Sure, we’re used to having the laundry room on the bottom floor, somewhere near the garage or mudroom. But when you have all of your bedrooms on the second floor, it would be nice not to schlep clothes up and down the stairs.

Central vacuum system

It’s like a Roomba – but for the whole home. Just sweep into a vent, and the dust disappears.

Security system

Simple sensors have gone the way of the buffalo. Now, we’re talking about full-scale video systems that monitor all crucial points of your home, complete with connectivity to local law enforcement.

Luxury Features

It’s time to go with gusto, to fashion your home with fervor! You didn’t get ahead in life by being a shrinking violet, so you shouldn’t be reticent with your home design. Sure, not every homeowner will be interested in all of these items, but they appear often enough on lists of top custom homes for us to know that people really like them. Just make sure whatever you choose works for you and your family – and if you want something else than what you see here, we can do that, too!

Hidden room

Whether it’s a private bathroom off the large office, a secure location for firearms, or a space for a hobby that isn’t kid-friendly, it’s the perfect addition for the privacy-conscious.

Safe room

Yes, you could use this as the room for your safe and other precious possessions, but many homeowners also build such a room to keep their family safe from natural disasters. This includes keeping the area stocked with food and water in case of emergencies.

Wine room

A dedicated temperature-controlled wine room (or cellar, depending upon your geography) is the perfect status symbol for any oenophile.

Mother-in-law detached house

No, your in-laws don’t have to live in such a space, but it is a great option for any visiting family or friends that gives them some privacy – instead of sharing bathroom facilities with your children.

Laundry chute

It’s an excellent solution if you’d prefer to keep your laundry facilities away from the bedrooms – but don’t want to walk up and down the stairs all the time.

Bowling alley

You don’t have to bowl 300 to create a space for people who love the social element of knocking down some pins.

Home gym

Sweat it up in the privacy of your own home – without having to wait for your favorite machine.

Library

Some people just use the built-in shelves in their large office to display their books. We’re talking about creating an entire room that’s a personal shrine to your love of reading.

Catering kitchen

Traditionally called a “Butler’s Pantry” in older homes and mansions, this is a small preparation station off the main kitchen and eating area where hired help can work during events while staying out of the way.

Home bar

This isn’t just a small wet bar area offset from the main room that you keep stocked with a few drinks. This is a room of its own where you can entertain in a truly bar-like atmosphere.

Solar panels

With all the roof space on your custom home, you can install a full bank of solar panels to generate nearly all the electricity your family needs.

Waste removal chutes

Keep your trash out of sight by installing discreet tubes in your pantry that take your refuse and recycling to your garage or another hidden area.

Energy efficiency efforts

These tactics include high-efficiency air conditioners, smart thermostats, blown insulation, double-paned glass, smart sprinkler systems, programmable shades and shutters, and ENERGY STAR appliances.

Experience the Ultimate in Custom Home Building

Frankel Building Group is powered by a few key mantras, but this one might be our favorite.

If you can dream it, we can design it. Our experienced staff of architects, interior designers, project managers, and construction professionals will listen to what you want in your home and then create the perfect luxury custom home for your family.

We hope our list of custom home features proves useful as you assemble your personal wish list for your new dream house!