re: 10 vs 12 foot ceilings in new construction

12' in living/family, maybe a study is a nice feature. Most construction right now is 10' down and 9' up as standard in my area. I understand what you're saying about down the road 10' being the 8' of today, you could alway hedge and do 11' with 8' doors, aesthetically that would look fine and you could bump area mentioned above to 12' to give a little dimension.

I've got 10' throughout, with cathedral in living room to 13', trey and master to 11', 9' upstairs. One thing about 10' is you will never be able to go back to 8 or 9, spoils you big time