Piling, pier, stilt foundation home plans Coastal, flood plain houses & homes on pilings (http://www.topsider.com/Piling-pier-stilt-foundation-home-plans.asp)

I now am the proud owner of 3.6 acres of Innerbanks (on the Pamlico R)
and since Irene, realize there is NO way I will be building on a pad or even crawl space.

Thus....has anyone lived on Pilings/stilts/piers...?
I am wondering about things like cold floors in winter...annoying wind droning..
hauling furniture & groceries up flights of stairs...insurance (despite being well above flood stage)...cost?
Would you risk living on the coast in one of the models like--
House plans, home plans and new home designs, including floor plan alternatives to modular homes, log homes and pole barns (http://www.topsider.com/houseplans.asp)

(I just contacted the company & they were very quick to respond)
VERY tempted to begin the home as a B&B for boaters on the NC coast.

Anyway,...I needed to dream about getting away from working in PG county.

House in Scotland was PUT on stilts..

But I think my favorite (and no, I haven't lived in either) was a house I watched get built in Solomons.

They have a three story home, but the two living floors are above the garage. Watching them build it the only way to explain it would be a basement that sits on the ground, than the house built on it. It's a LOT of stairs to the front door, but if it floods pressure wash the garage and you're in business.

Water would have to get over 9 or 10 feet deep to get into the living area..

brought about a 9 foot surge...a lot of quiant retreats & weekend homes got utterly battered. The neighbor's home is up on 11 foot pilings: untouched by wind/surge.

Thus, I am weighing the same design...just have to plan wisely & budget. Likely will bring in 2 feet of fill just to make sure normal coastal storms won't flood out the car.

I like buying from a company who designs specifically for coast plain & is already based in NC....maybe a weekend trip down to visit the plant is a good idea. The designs look great.

My parents live on the Outer Banks, in a house on stilts. Make sure the stilts are into solid ground, as shifting sands can undermine the stability. Their house is 6 feet up, but they are also on high ground. Check with a few local builders before you settle on one.

We've rented a few houses in the Outer Banks that were built on stilts and the only thing that I really noticed was that the houses felt like they "swayed" at night time.