If you’re in the market for a house and love to entertain, keep in mind that some homes are more suitable for staging a bash than others.
A good party can be even better if you have the right floor plan, room design and ceiling height, says Reed McIlvaine, president of Renny and Reed, a New York party and event planning company. Of course, he says, having a superb venue for a party won’t automatically make you a great host.
“The wrong host in the right house is not going to throw a great party,” says McIlvaine, whose uncle, Renny Reynolds, founded Renny and Reed more than 30 years ago. Reynolds also authored the classic book “The Art of the Party.”
But ambience does make a difference. Here are suggestions for home buyers who love entertaining:
Design the right features into a custom-built home. “How your house is set up really determines how comfortable it is to entertain,” says Mary Lou Wilson, the New Hampshire-based author of “Party Like a Pro.”
Wilson, her husband and four children designed their house with home entertaining in mind. Each year they stage two large bashes (with novel themes) and a half-dozen dinner parties. They also throw several brunches, wine-and-cheese events and summer cookouts.
Ideally, the layout of the home you build or buy should allow for open movement among the core rooms on its main floor. That way, your partygoers can keep moving and interacting with different people.
“What you want to avoid is a house with a boxy, closed floor plan or one with long hallways and small rooms off them,” Wilson says.
Search for a house with high ceilings and a great room. McIlvaine says an optimal party house includes a great room with ceilings that rise higher than the 8-foot ones found in the majority of American homes.
Most budget-constrained home shoppers seeking a party-friendly property are better off owning a place with a great room than one with a formal dining room, McIlvaine says.
“If you want to have a big sit-down dinner, you can always rent a banquet table for your great room and decorate it beautifully,” he says.
Think through the kind of kitchen that will suit your parties. As many experienced party hosts know, people tend to flood into the kitchen if food or beverages are offered there. Assuming you’re planning to stage lots of get-togethers–such as an informal Super Bowl Sunday party with steaming kettles of homemade food on the stove–you’ll want a large kitchen that encourages visitors to linger and talk. But if you’re more inclined to formal, catered events, you could settle for a smaller kitchen, making sure it has doors that close so your hired cooks can work undisturbed.
Look for a home with hardwood floors. “If you have a lot of parties, carpeting is likely to show wear in heavy traffic areas,” Wilson says. Hardwood floors also are much easier to keep clean than wall-to-wall carpeting, which lessens the hosts’ concerns about spilled food and drink.
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Look for versatile lighting. Like other party professionals, McIlvaine likes to stage events in rooms that offer good built-in lighting systems. For most rooms, he favors recessed lighting that can be adjusted in intensity with dimmer switches. Buying a home with recessed lighting already installed is generally less expensive than hiring an electrician to retrofit a property, he says. Along with the appropriate music, decor and food, the right lighting can create the mood you’re seeking and add magic to your home entertaining, McIlvaine says.