If the backyard faces north that means it is shaded by the house for much of the day. That’s good if you don’t like high temps. Not so good if you like to garden or have a pool that will be shaded.

The garage facing south… no opinion on that.

For me, what would be more important is the direction of the roof line. Having a south facing roof line (eaves run east/west) means you could upgrade to solar in the future. Solar panels work best if on a southern exposure. Unfortunately, our roof line runs North/south – so we’d have to settle for west facing panels.

Every home owner is different. Every home owner has differing priorities. I like to garden and would like to install solar someday. A north facing backyard means the panels would be in the front – so more visible from the street.

If the backyard faces north that means it is shaded by the house for much of the day. That’s good if you don’t like high temps. Not so good if you like to garden or have a pool that will be shaded.

The garage facing south… no opinion on that.

For me, what would be more important is the direction of the roof line. Having a south facing roof line (eaves run east/west) means you could upgrade to solar in the future. Solar panels work best if on a southern exposure. Unfortunately, our roof line runs North/south – so we’d have to settle for west facing panels.

Every home owner is different. Every home owner has differing priorities. I like to garden and would like to install solar someday. A north facing backyard means the panels would be in the front – so more visible from the street.

Unless you’re close to the coast, a south-facing family room is a negative (it can get too hot and you will end up running higher cooling bills).

[quote]Having a south facing roof line (eaves run east/west) means you could upgrade to solar in the future. Solar panels work best if on a southern exposure. Unfortunately, our roof line runs North/south – so we’d have to settle for west facing panels.[/quote]

If solar panels are planned, another important factor is the slope of the roof. The optimal slope for the panels at this latitude is around 15 degrees off horizontal. With a 30 degree roof, it’s still doable … with a 45 degree roof, you either lose efficiency by mounting them flush, or mount them at an angle to the roof, which is more complicated, more expensive, and does not look as nice.

Unless you’re close to the coast, a south-facing family room is a negative (it can get too hot and you will end up running higher cooling bills).

[quote]Having a south facing roof line (eaves run east/west) means you could upgrade to solar in the future. Solar panels work best if on a southern exposure. Unfortunately, our roof line runs North/south – so we’d have to settle for west facing panels.[/quote]

If solar panels are planned, another important factor is the slope of the roof. The optimal slope for the panels at this latitude is around 15 degrees off horizontal. With a 30 degree roof, it’s still doable … with a 45 degree roof, you either lose efficiency by mounting them flush, or mount them at an angle to the roof, which is more complicated, more expensive, and does not look as nice.

Unless you’re close to the coast, a south-facing family room is a negative (it can get too hot and you will end up running higher cooling bills).

[quote]Having a south facing roof line (eaves run east/west) means you could upgrade to solar in the future. Solar panels work best if on a southern exposure. Unfortunately, our roof line runs North/south – so we’d have to settle for west facing panels.[/quote]

If solar panels are planned, another important factor is the slope of the roof. The optimal slope for the panels at this latitude is around 15 degrees off horizontal. With a 30 degree roof, it’s still doable … with a 45 degree roof, you either lose efficiency by mounting them flush, or mount them at an angle to the roof, which is more complicated, more expensive, and does not look as nice.

A north to northeast facing backyard could easily be unusable frozen tundra for much of the year. If you have small children it will be cold,dark and damp all winter.

A north to northeast facing backyard could easily be unusable frozen tundra for much of the year. If you have small children it will be cold,dark and damp all winter.