When you’re dangling your feet over the side of a wooden pier on a private lake or walking through a shady grove of oak trees on a summer day, you might start feeling like the main character in a Hallmark movie. Perhaps that’s why I live where I do. Surrounded by acres of our own land, my husband and I had a vision. To design and build our own barndominium south of Sulphur Springs. 

Our home sits proudly on a private lake with a grove of oaks; views which allow us to revel in Hopkins County charm. I never grow tired of driving past rolling pastures, wooded thickets, ponds and lakes such as Lake Fork, Cooper Lake, Lake Cypress Springs or Bob Sandlin Lake. All of which make North East Texas so interesting.

Back when we built, barndo’s weren’t as mainstream as they are now. Financing was tricky. However, in the last 10 years it has crossed the threshold of popularity making it more available to more people. Since collaborating with banks through my office, Janet Martin Realty, I’ve seen this positive development firsthand.

Our Bardnominium is the size of a tiny home, (or a large cutesy apartment) tucked inside the corner of a ginormous garage. The whole building is 50 x 60 feet with a 25 x 60 foot awning on the side. The coziness is by far one of my favorite things about it. With less square feet comes the benefit of less cleaning time and maintenance. After a long day’s work, I appreciate this even more. However, when family or friends gather inside the living quarters, cozy becomes cramped. 

Here’s 3 things I wish I knew before building a Barndominium:

Bigger is Better.

Had I known then that this was going to be long term, my closet would definitely be larger than a vacuum-packed storage bag shoved into whatever tiny spare corner I have. And while I’m at it, I’d put in a 2nd bathroom and take out a wall to give me a super sized living room. Since we love entertaining friends and family, having that extra space is preferable. If you’re on the fence, I’d recommend extra square feet versus less. 

Clutter Happens … A lot. 

Having such a wide open indoor area for hosting beautiful festive parties or creating an epic man cave is a huge benefit. Except, when the clutter happens. Consider your packed boxes, work out stuff, car stuff, RV and ATV stuff, stuff, and more stuff inevitably beginning to pile up in the garage section attached to your living area.  This means you may have to get creative with the interior designing before anybody steps one big toe inside. If you have a normal garage, just think how easily it turns into a catch-all for random tools, the antique chair collection (obsession), or the coffee table you planned to sand down 8 months ago. Times all that by a gazillion more square feet of random stuff. You’re welcome.

Design Choices – The Good, The Bad, & Staying on Track

So many decisions go into a new build. So many. Such as, the roll-up garage style doors, how many and where to put them. Which tractor, lawn mower or outdoor equipment will go where. Not to mention the usual interior design process. You’ll wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, panicking over what colors to choose. Pearly White, Alabaster or Gossamer Veil?! (Sherwin Williams) You’ll spend 5 hours wandering through interior design stores to find the PERFECT drop light. Or was it? Then you’ll question everything at least four more times. You might even fight to the death for a dark, woodsy cabin look only to switch into light n-airy farmhouse chic. Needless to say, you’ve developed strong feelings. If you have researched your design ideas (as in, scrolled through Pinterest a ridiculous amount of hours) then stay on track. You’ve done the work. Now trust the process and your choices. 

Once you move in you might realize, after the fact, that some things make more sense for your family. Like replacing a roll-up garage door with a swinging door for easier access outside to feed the animals. Or how a south facing entrance blows in more dust during summer than, say the sheltered east entrance. But these things happen. 

As for us, we love barndominium life. Of course we will still talk about adding that 2nd bathroom or expanding the living room. But for now, we continue to enjoy our shady grove and private lake located at the end of a tree lined county road in Sulphur Springs. Here, we have the perfect mix of peaceful rural living, small town values and city convenience.

Short Bio: Janet Martin owns and brokers, Janet Martin Realty, a multi-million-dollar real estate company in Sulphur Springs that works with clients nationwide. Her and her team are some of the top producers in Hopkins County to create a top-tier independent office. In 2021, they sold over $62 million in property throughout North East Texas. Janet’s office is located at 1325 South Broadway Street, Sulphur Springs across the street from Starbucks.