The success of a floorplan isn't judged by how it looks when you're standing still or seated. The true measure of a floorplan is how you move through it. These days, we rarely use hallways to move from one space to another. They waste space and they're dreary.

Now other rooms have become our passageways. This has the added advantage of making small space rooms seem larger when they are open to other rooms with good sight lines. But when you walk from the master bedroom to the kitchen, do you want to walk between the sofa and the TV? If your master is upstairs, do you want to walk down the stairs and pass through the entry in your pajamas to get a glass of water?

The best floorplans use a technique called horizontal banding to accommodate traffic patterns. If, for example, the family room is flanked on one side by a master bedroom and on the other side by the kitchen, the doors or openings should be kept to the same side of the home. If not, you create a traffic pattern that forces one to navigate diagonally through another room.

In this case, the family room. It can also make furniture placement more difficult. A stairway from the entry may not be very practical, either. It's sometimes a better idea to have it come to the family room or kitchen toward the center of the home for better access and a better use of space. And don't settle for just one way in to the kitchen. This is the heart of the home. The more ways in, the merrier. You don't want bottlenecks during parties and family gatherings. A good rule of thumb is three ways in, minimum. Five is even better.