When buying a home, many people have strong opinions about purchasing a colonial or ranch style home, with the main difference being that it has either one or two floors. However, do you have as strong of an opinion about split level homes? Splitting your home across three levels can be quite different, with it having some advantages over other styles. Here is what you need to know about this unique style of home.

Split Level Home Advantages

One advantage of having a split level home will be the additional storage that you have. The middle level often has a large crawl space underneath it, as well as an attic that is easy to access. This can give you plenty of room to store things that are out of the way. If you do not have a large attic, having split levels can also provide some nice, high ceilings for the middle level that are not possible with a colonial.

The separation between the levels will be much better than living in a ranch or colonial. You are less likely to be sharing a wall with someone that is sleeping or wants some peace and quiet due to having three distinct levels. This can be great for families that want to put a child's bedroom in a place where they will not be easily disturbed by other people waking them.

Split Level Home Disadvantages

Many people miss out on having a formal basement where their utilities and laundry room are located. These things will still be in a part of the home that is considered livable space, such as a utility closet. This means that you could end up having a bedroom that is located next to a furnace, air conditioner, or laundry room.

With there being multiple sets of stairs in the home, it does not make a split level home very handicap accessible. It would be difficult to put in a chair lift into the home later on because you will likely need two chair lifts in order to do make it accessible. This can be problematic for people that are older in age and closer to retirement.

Split level homes also can be harder to heat than a ranch or colonial. Since heat rises, the bottom and middle levels tend to be a bit cooler in the winter. In the summer, all your cold air is going to flow towards the bottom of the home, leaving the top and middle levels feeling warmer.

For more information about different home options, contact a local real estate agent.