Summary
- Start building a dream home in The Sims 4 by focusing on the exterior, from paint to decorative items.
- Use clutter items like car keys and headphones to give a Sim's house a lived-in feel with personal touches.
- Experiment with different shapes, hide mistakes with plants, and use object placement cheats for ultimate customization.
An important part of The Sims 4, along with playing with the families and keeping them happy (or miserable), is giving the Sims a home where they can live. The easiest option is to choose existing houses and apartments and just move the new family into such a home. However, if the player enjoys building and decorating houses and wants to have fun making a personalized house for each family, they can start from scratch.
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Building a new house in The Sims 4 can take a lot of time and effort, especially if the player wants to make it look spectacular. Luckily, there are ways to make certain the end result looks like a place that Sims would actually want to live in.
Updated on April 14, 2024, by Taylor Pittman: Build Mode offers The Sims 4 players a place to let their imaginations run wild. Whether they are building a house, a public venue, or apartments, the sky is the limit when it comes to architecture. Anything can be built, from a beautiful castle to a bustling park using objects, terrain, and structures. Players can also purchase DLC such as Kits and Expansion packs or download mods and custom content to customize their builds further. It's also possible to renovate builds that other players built if they need inspiration or new ideas. The freedom can be overwhelming when first getting started, but players can use some notable techniques to make homes feel more realistic or unique. Here are some tips and tricks for building amazing houses in The Sims 4.
22 Start With The Exterior
Create a Strong Foundation With Curb Appeal
The exterior is a great starting point for a new build. Players can create their building's shape and vibe without worrying about filling the space until they're ready to move to that point. Wall placement, landscaping, windows, and terrain are all a part of the exterior.
Exteriors are often the best way to make a building look realistic, and players can include decorative items, such as parking spots and signs, for authenticity. There are build challenges within the Sims community called "Shell challenges" that only use the exterior and walls of a building as inspiration.
21 Paint The Terrain
Terrain Includes All Areas Not Enclosed by Walls
The house is only one part of creating a beautiful residential lot; players can edit the lot itself to make things really come together. An underrated terrain tool is the paint feature. Terrain paints can be applied to any outside area that is semi-flat.
Terrain paint designs include things like dirt, stone, and grass. Unlike flooring, terrain paint is free, so players can layer it in as much as they want. The size and opacity of their brush can be adjusted to get the desired tone and shape. Using it to make dirt or stone paths is a great way to get a more natural look.
20 Include DEBUG Items
DEBUG Items Are Great For Storytelling
While good houses in The Sims 4 need the basics, such as kitchens, bathrooms, and bedrooms, adding clutter and decoration makes all the difference. PC players can download custom content to fill their homes with decoration, but a specific cheat allows everyone to get access to hundreds of free items known as DEBUG.
DEBUG items are used all over the maps as purely cosmetic building features. Sims won't be able to interact with them while placed, but they can get standard items of all kinds to complete homes. Enter bb.showHiddenObjects and bb.showLiveEditObjects into the cheat console to view DEBUG items.
19 Utilize Clutter Objects
Fill In Extra Space
Another good way to make a build feel realistic and include some storytelling details is to use clutter. The Sims 4 has several types of decorative items that can be categorized as clutter. Clutter creates the effect of buildings feeling lived in and adds objects for realism that may not have gameplay, such as hair dryers and paper towel rolls.
Clutter items cannot be interacted with in live mode and are only there as a visual enhancement. These include disorganized magazines, car keys, journals, canvases, headphones, and more. Clutter items are a great way to hint at a Sim's personality or hobbies through decoration.
18 Use Furniture Made By Sims
Sims Can Create Their Own Statement Pieces
Sims can use the Woodworking Table to make wooden furniture. This creates rugged, custom furniture pieces that Sims can place and use the same as they would items bought in Build/Buy Mode. Increasing the Handiness Skill will make them more successful when crafting furniture.
The Woodworking Table costs 1,800 Simoleons. Another way to add Sim's creations is to buy a Paint Easel and work on painting. Players can hang up any paintings they finish.
17 Spruce Up The Roof With Details
Roof Decorations include Chimneys, Statues, and Trims
Most players might not think about the roof of a house once it's done. After all, sometimes placing an acceptable-looking roof down in the first place is enough work and effort. That said, adding in a few decorative details can make a massive difference when the home is viewed in its full glory.
This works especially well with more traditional, gothic-style homes and castles. Why not add a few gargoyles on their rooftop for the next vampire family to guard their abode?
16 Add Ceiling Paint
Can Be Viewed in First Person Mode
One of the newest, though somewhat minor, features is the option to add ceiling paint. Most players will not really concern themselves with ceilings—after all, they're usually invisible when actually playing the game.
However, those who enjoy taking photos of their builds from the inside may find it irksome that the ceiling doesn't match the walls. Thankfully, the new ceiling paint tool found in the regular flooring section can help remedy that.
15 Divide Rooms With Fences Or Half Walls
Great For Semi-Open Concepts
Sectioning off a house can be done in other ways than just building more walls. In fact, favoring fences or even half-walls over more walls (or no walls at all) can help make a build feel a bit more dynamic and interesting from the inside.
Plus, the small space creates the illusion of having a corner for specific areas, like a kitchen or a living room. For bigger builds, it's a nice strategy to erase excess empty space, which can be a problem for some beginner builders who overestimate the amount of space their Sims require.
14 Use The Terrain Tool
Create Ponds, Mountains, Ditches, and More
The outside of the house is just as important as the inside, and taking advantage of everything the terrain tool can accomplish is a great way to make even boring lots look cool. Players can create massive pits, terrain mounds, and little pools of water.
There's a lot that can be done here regarding terrain, so only the sky is the limit—quite literally.
13 Use Platforms
Make a Social Pit or Custom Stairs
Introduced with the release of the Snowy Escape expansion pack, platforms can be a real game-changer when it comes to building and decorating indoors. While they fit particularly well with Japanese-style architecture, platforms can make just about any house more interesting and layered.
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Use platforms to create depth to separate small parts of big rooms. Combine that with half walls that come in a few different height variations, and players should be able to come up with a variety of different modern and classic builds.