Part 4 — Exterior Elevations | Sheet by Sheet

 

Four sides. One house. And every single one needs to be documented.

Most permit reviewers look at elevations before they look at plans. Contractors use them to frame openings, apply cladding, and set window heights. HOA reviewers use them to check design compliance. If any elevation is wrong — the ripple runs through the entire build.

What it shows:

• All four facades — front, rear, left, right
• Exterior finish materials and transitions

• Window and door locations and heights
• Roof pitch and overhang dimensions
• Finished floor and finished grade lines
• Building height for permit compliance

• Elevation option differences — Craftsman, Farmhouse, Traditional

Why all four sides matter:

Builders often focus on the front elevation — it sells the house. But the rear elevation is what gets framed. The side elevations show gable heights, window placements, and cladding transitions that contractors work from directly.

A missing rear elevation means the framing crew is guessing. A wrong side elevation means a window rough opening in the wrong position.

Where builders get burned:

Option coordination. A Craftsman front elevation with a Traditional rear — because the options weren't fully coordinated back into the master set. The contractor builds what's on the sheet. If the sheet is wrong, the house is wrong.